Well what a month of extremes September has been, with snow storms in Calgary to temperatures of 32 degrees Celsius here in Manitoba. For those who follow show jumping, the sight of several inches of snow in the main ring at Spruce Meadows two days before the Masters show earlier this month was something to behold. Kudos to all involved in shovelling the snow to get things cleared for the action go ahead.

I do fear though that winter is fast approaching and it will be soon that dreaded time for the winter tyres to go on and the parka to come out of hiding. However, on the plus side, the mosquitoes are finally gone at long last and my annual Christmas trip home is a little bit closer.

In the last few weeks I have had the opportunity to get out of the office and visit some alternative livestock operations here in Manitoba. Before coming to Canada, if I had been asked to define livestock I likely would just have mentioned cattle, pigs, poultry horses but I can now add bison and elk to that list.

I must admit the only place I had really seen bison before was on television but I had the great fortune to be able to visit Overby Bison, north of Winnipeg, to get an insight into how these animal are produced for commercial markets. They really are magnificent creatures and we were lucky enough to be able to get right up close to the herd. Bison meat tastes fantastic and is a great alternative to beef for those looking to try something a little different (though you may have to visit here to get a taster).

At Stonewood Elk, also north of Winnipeg, the Farmer family raise the largest herd of commercial elk in Manitoba. I had similarly not realized that elk were produced commercially and also that they had other uses apart from hunting and meat. Elk velvet antler is used in natural medicines to help control joint inflammation and improve circulation so like other livestock, they are multipurpose animals. The day of our visit, rut was in full swing so we were also fortunate to hear the bugling for which elk are also known.

Visits to farms like these show how diverse agriculture is over here and it is so refreshing to see the huge passion these producers have to grow their piece of the industry pie. Speaking of pie, it is Thanksgiving here next weekend so a public holiday for all and a chance to tuck into a festive feast.