Insights and Stories of Shannon VanRaes

Dec. 10, 2012 at 5:17 pm CST

Video shot at a farm in Manitoba’s Interlake region by an undercover animal rights activist unfairly depicts animal care practices in the province, farm groups say. Featured on CTV’s newsmagazine program W5, the grainy footage shows sows in gestation stalls, castration, tail docking, a cull sow being repeatedly shot with […]

By Shannon VanRaes

Nov. 5, 2012 at 1:51 pm CST

Maple Leaf Food’s agreement to purchase the Niverville-based Puratone Corporation is good news for Manitoba hog producers, according to the Manitoba Pork Council. "We’re happy to see that a Canadian company has purchased Puratone," said council chairman, Karl Kynoch. "We want to see plants here that can compete with their […]

By Shannon VanRaes

Nov. 1, 2012 at 9:56 am CDT

Maple Leaf Foods is examining its options after competitor Olymel placed a "stalking horse" bid on Big Sky Farms of Saskatchewan. Big Sky is a supplier for Maple Leaf’s Brandon facility, but went into receivership earlier this fall. "We don’t expect any short-term impact on our hog supply and we […]

By Shannon VanRaes

Oct. 10, 2012 at 10:55 pm CDT

An west-central Manitoba hog producer is said to have turned down assistance from the provincial agriculture ministry in the lead-up to the eventual euthanizing of 1,300 young hogs. "We had discussed options with this producer about other steps he could have taken," Dr. Wayne Lees, Manitoba’s chief veterinarian, said of […]

By Shannon VanRaes

Sep. 7, 2012 at 2:32 pm CDT

Manitoba provincial workers took a full day to shoot 1,300 hogs in a barn that is now under investigation for inhumane treatment of its animals, according to a former employee who claims to have witnessed the event. The weanlings were shot using 22-calibre rifles and some were shot "three or […]

By Shannon VanRaes