• MARCH 1, 2002: MMPP.COM OFFERS FARMERS NEW HELP
• MARCH 26, 1999 : CROP ROTATION INFORMATION 
• MARCH 26, 1998 : FERTILIZER BENCHMARK INFORMATION 
• FEBRUARY 23, 1998: FIVE YEAR ADVANTAGE 
• MARCH 14, 1997 : "FREE" CROP PICKER 
• MARCH 28, 1996 : NO COST INPUT 
• FEBRUARY 15, 1996 : FARMER INFORMATION PAYBACK 

MMPP.COM OFFERS FARMERS NEW HELP

New help is available for Manitoba farmers. The Manitoba Management Plus Program (MMPP) Web Site has been revised to better help with benchmarking farm operations. The MMPP web site (www.mmpp.com) has both a new look and new content. This site succeeds an earlier one. With the assistance of Manitoba Rural Adaptation Council (MRAC) funding the MMPP website has been made more user friendly and contains new information - including 2001 yield data, more maps, a pesticide data browser, and data sales capability. 

The goal of the MMPP web site is to improve crop related decision making for Manitoba farmers through on-line education and research. To meet this goal the MMPP website provides farmers, researchers and agribusiness with ready access to unbiased and current benchmark information and analysis. Fact sheets, maps, query tools and benchmark information have been pulled from the Manitoba Crop Insurance Corporation (MCIC) database and made available in user friendly format throughout the site. By providing access to this information MCIC is enhancing customer relationships, reducing the risk of payouts and providing better client service. 

In addition to MRAC the other major contributors to this enhancement include MCIC (www.mcic-online.com), Manitoba Agriculture and Food (www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture), and the Manitoba Co-operator.

FURTHER INFORMATION 

If you would like further information on this recent MPP initiative, or Manitoba's Management Plus Program in general, please feel free to contact the MMPP at: 

ROTATION INFORMATION NOW AVAILABLE

Economics is driving the trend to "tighter" rotations but there is often yield penalties and increased risk associated with tight rotations. The information releases section of the Management plus program web site (www.mmpp.com) now has summary information on the prevalence of back to back rotations and the relative yield response of the major crops in various rotations in Manitoba for the years 1994 to 1998. The summaries illustrate clearly that the "rotation effect" exists in Manitoba. Crops in Manitoba yield more when grown after another crop type then when grown after the same crop type.

PLANNING CROP ROTATIONS - MMPP CAN HELP

Crop rotation is the alternating of crops on a field year by year in a planned sequence. Crop rotation planning involves proactive consideration of the factors and effort involved in capturing the benefits of crop rotations over the long term - not simply being reactive to immediate problem field histories or current commodity prices.

By combining the MPP web site rotation relative yield information with expected crop yield benchmarks for an area, producers can determine expected crop yields resulting from various crop on crop rotation selections. By combining this expected yield information with commodity pricing information; crop production cost information; risk of disease and risk of herbicide resistance; consideration of soil conservation concerns, livestock feed needs, and distribution of workload/equipment usage; the likely profitability and sustainability of various crop sequence options can be compared.

FURTHER INFORMATION

If you would like further information on this recent MPP initiative, or Manitoba's Management Plus Program in general, please feel free to contact the MMPP at:

FERTILIZER BENCHMARK INFORMATION NEEDED 

On an annual basis, farmers ask themselves how much fertilizer they can afford to apply. Soil tests, experience, and a sharp pencil are necessary to determine the optimum amount of fertilizer to apply on each field. Even then, in a dry year, crops may not fully utilize a recommended rate and in a slightly wetter than average year, a crop may be able to benefit from rates in excess of those recommended. Not knowing how the growing season will progress, and particularly in the absence of a soil test, farmers need to have access to benchmark fertilizer information which will reflect their field's needs. In the past, producers have had to rely on their own experience and the advice of specialists to establish these benchmarks. Through the Management Plus Program (MPP) farmers have a new tool to help establish these benchmarks. 

FERTILIZER BENCHMARK INFORMATION AVAILABLE 

The MPP Fertilizer Browser provides the average Nitrogen, Phosphate, Potassium and Sulphur used by Manitoba farmers and the associated crop yields, for either their rural municipality (RM) or soil zone. The RM and soil zone fertilizer average values from the Browser are not be taken as gospel, but are only to be used as a guide. Combined with the farmer's experience and the advice of specialists, the MPP fertilizer benchmarks can be a very effective farm management tool. 

"DIRT CHEAP" FERTILIZER BENCHMARKS 

By April 1, 1998, the MPP Fertilizer Browser Software can be downloaded for free from the MPP Internet Web Site (http://www.mmpp.com). The software will also be available from Manitoba Agriculture Representative's offices by mid April, 1998. Free distribution of this fertilizer information has been made possible through the sponsorship of the Canada-Manitoba Farm Business Management Council, Manitoba Crop Insurance Corporation and Manitoba Agriculture. 

FURTHER INFORMATION 

If you would like more information on this recent MPP initiative, or the MPP in general, please feel free to contact the MPP at: 

FIVE YEAR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE 

This will be the fifth year that Manitoba farmers will be receiving on-farm variety yield and acreage information through the Management Plus Program (MPP). Since 1993, Manitoba farmers have had the unique advantage of knowing how varieties have performed on their neighbours farms. This on-farm information, along with scientific variety trial information, has lead to Manitoba farmers having some of the best variety performance information decision tools in North America. 

ACCESSING THIS ADVANTAGE 

Farmers have access to this on-farm variety performance information in either of three formats to suit their specific needs: 

(1) On February 26, in a supplement to the Manitoba Cooperator, recent variety performance information by Risk Area, for wheat, barley, oats, flax, canola and field peas will be distributed to nineteen thousand subscribers. 

(2) On March 1st the latest version of the MPP 1st Choice software will be available from Manitoba Agriculture representatives. This software provides the same variety information as in (1) at the RM level, plus average benchmark crop yields by RM for most other crops as well. 

(3) Since February 18th the tables from (1) and the downloadable software from (2) has been obtainable on the Internet at the following Internet web site address: 

FURTHER INFORMATION 

If you would like more information on these recent MPP initiatives, or the MPP in general, please feel free to contact the MPP at: 

"FREE" CROP PICKER 

Need help deciding what variety is the right variety for your farm? Stop by your local Manitoba Agriculture office to test fly the Management Plus Program's "1st Choice Data Browser". This software program will give you easy access to five years of local on-farm yield information for wheat, barley, oats, canola, flax and field peas. In minutes you will have performance and acreage information for your RM, or any combination of RMs in the province. This free software is also available for farm use. 

SERVING FARMERS 

The Management Plus Program is able to provide this software through the sponsorship of the Canada-Manitoba Farm Business Management Council. It is hoped that by making this software available to producers it will provide rapid access to local on-farm performance information and assist producers in making the appropriate variety choices for their farm. 

OAT AND FIELD PEA VARIETY INFORMATION NOW AVAILABLE

On March 20, in a supplement to the Manitoba Cooperator, the MPP is distributing recent variety performance information, by Risk Area, for wheat, barley, oats, flax, canola and field peas. In conjunction with this distribution, Manitoba Agriculture Representatives will be provided with similar information at the RM level through the MPP 1st Choice software. Also on March 20, the MPP 1st Choice software will be made available to the world, via the Internet. The MPP 1st Choice software will be available to Manitoba farmers and the world by down-loading from the following Internet web site address: 

FURTHER INFORMATION 

If you would like more information on these recent MPP initiatives, or the MPP in general, please feel free to contact the MPP at: 

MAXIMIZE RETURNS USING A NO COST INPUT 

Achieving increased yield potential and increased uniformity of ripening, grade and yield at no cost can be accomplished by early seeding - but not too early. For some crops early seeding can assist in disease avoidance and provide increased marketing opportunities and profitability. For example, early seeded crops will normally ripen and dry in the field without the need for grain drying. However if sown too early, crops can be exposed unnecessarily to an increased risk of spring frost and seed rots. 

Farmers are regularly challenged with the difficult task of juggling the advantages and disadvantages of early seeding to maximize return while minimizing risk. 

WHERE TO FIND THIS NO COST INPUT 

Information on the influence of seeding date on the average yields of red spring wheat, barley, flax, and argentine canola over a 15 year period (1981-1995) in Manitoba is available to farmers through the Internet at the following Internet web site address: 

Other agronomic information is also available at this site.

INFORMATION PAYBACK 

For years Manitoba farmers have been providing the Manitoba Crop Insurance Corporation (MCIC) with yield and management data from their farms --- now its payback time. Since 1993, through sponsorship of the Canada-Manitoba Farm Business Management Council, the Management Plus Program (MPP) has had MCIC process this information using a Geographic Information System (GIS) and return it to farmers in a "user-friendly" format. The Internet seeding date initiative is the most recent example of this kind of payback. 

FURTHER INFORMATION 

If you would like more information on this recent MPP initiative, or the MPP in general, please feel free to contact the MPP at: 

FARMER INFORMATION PAYBACK 

For years Manitoba farmers have been providing the Manitoba Crop Insurance Corporation (MCIC) with yield and Management Data --- now its payback time. Since 1993, through sponsorship of the Canada-Manitoba Farm Business Management Council, the Management Plus Program (MPP) has had MCIC process this information using a Geographic Information System (GIS) and return it to farmers in a "user-friendly" format. 

MANITOBA, ONE LARGE TEST PLOT 

By returning variety performance and management information back to Manitoba farmers, the MPP has turned Manitoba into one large on-farm "test-plot", with results available to all. By providing farmers access to meaningful production and management information for use in on-farm decision making, the MPP is strengthening the "first-line" of defense for farmers in Manitoba. This reduces "second-line" payouts and creates a win-win situation for both farmers and MCIC. Additionally, farmers now know what their neighbours are really doing, this has lead to more informed discussions with suppliers and between farmers. 

COMING TO MANITOBA - THE WORLD 

On February 22, in a supplement to the Manitoba Cooperator, the MPP is distributing recent variety performance information, by Risk Area, for wheat, barley, flax and canola. In conjunction with this distribution, Manitoba Agriculture Representatives will be provided with similar information at the RM level. Also on February 22nd, as a new MPP initiative, Manitoba variety performance and management information will be made available to the world, via the Internet. MPP information will be available to Manitoba farmers and the world at the following Internet web site address: http://www.mmpp.com 

FURTHER INFORMATION If you would like more information on these recent MPP initiatives, or the MPP in general, please feel free to contact the MPP at: 

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