The Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) is a branch of Health Canada responsible for the registration, evaluation, and sustainable usage of pesticides. A new update to PMRA policy, “PMRA Guidance Document, Tank Mix Labeling” will go into effect at the end of December 2024, with big implications for Canadian spray operators. In this week’s blog, we will go over the basics of tank mixing, the reasoning behind the process, the current regulations governing it, and the forthcoming changes that will shape future implementation.

In recent years, the agricultural industry has witnessed a significant increase in automation investments. According to the Western Growers Center for Innovation Technology's 2022 Specialty Crop Automation Report, automation-related investments on farms saw a remarkable 25 percent surge in 2022. Approximately 70 percent of participating growers indicated that they had invested in automation in 2022, with an average annual spend of $450,000-$500,000 per grower. The biggest percentage of investment? Weed management: 45 percent of survey respondents reported investing in automated weeding technology.

As the world population continues to grow, so does the demand for food. For centuries, agriculture has been a labor-intensive industry, and many farming practices still require a considerable amount of manual labor. But as the global agricultural workforce is aging and the number of people entering the sector is decreasing, labor shortages are becoming the norm in agriculture each year. To overcome this challenge, the agricultural industry is investing in automation to reduce labor costs and increase productivity.

Apples are one of the most widely consumed fruits in the world, with a global production of over 86 million tons in 2020. However, the process of harvesting, storing, and distributing apples present numerous challenges for growers, packers, and shippers. In this article, we will explore some of the challenges facing apple growers and the technological and operational innovations that are helping to overcome these challenges.