The Alberta Barley Commission (ABC) and the Alberta Wheat Commission (AWC) have teamed up and will soon be working out of the same office in Calgary.
AWC’s new general manager Doug Cornell said the arrangement will save grower checkoff dollars because the two commissions will be able to share infrastructure and office costs. They will share five or six positions including a receptionist, accounting and events and marketing staff, as well as a meeting room, boardroom, kitchen area and reception area.
“It’s a neat setup. There is an Alberta Barley side and an Alberta Wheat side, but we have joint staff throughout. I think it will be really neat to be able to build off of each other and have that collaboration that really creates great ideas and moves the industry forward,” said Lisa Skierka, general manager of the ABC.
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The new office is located in the northeast part of Calgary in the same building that houses Alberta Beef Producers and the Agriculture Financial Services Corporation. “We’re really looking forward to this. This is a good use of shared resources and a good way for us to make sure that we’re making the best use of the resources we have,” said Skierka.
The AWC, which formed in 2012, is using the ABC and the Alberta Canola Producers Commission and the Alberta Pulse Growers as models for its operations. Cornell said Alberta Barley and Alberta Wheat will also host some of their regional meetings together.
“We remain flexible for what’s relevant to the directors and the regional reps,” he said. “It works nicely so that we won’t be stepping on each other in the country and the agenda is a little more expanded, but still relevant to both organizations.”
The AWC has recently hired new staff including a new markets manager who is responsible for market development in Canada and abroad, a research manager and a grower relations manager. Shared marketing and events staff will also be able to set up joint events at Farm Tech, Agri-Trade and the Calgary Stampede. The ABC is only half moved into the office, but expects to move in by October. The two commissions are hoping to launch a shared cereals magazine in January 2014.
