Reading Time: 3 minutes The joke when Dylan Robinson was growing up was that he chose farming as a career even as a newborn. “I was born in late August, so my grandfather couldn’t come to see me because he was swathing,” said the Fort Saskatchewan native. “So the first place I ended up going to was the swather. […] Read more
Farming was always the dream — and then it became the reality
You grow food, but have you ever thought about making it?
Reading Time: 3 minutes It doesn’t sound like a farm show — and it’s not — but primary producers are one of the target audiences for the soon-to-be-launched Agri-Food Innovation Expo. “The initial event is a conference with a small trade show, with a bit of a focus on those who wish to expand their farm business and get […] Read more
Awards not just about achievement but about encouraging others
Reading Time: 4 minutes When Melody Garner-Skiba was growing up on a ranch in southwestern Alberta, her parents gave her the same opportunities as her brothers. “I like to say I was the hired hand when my brothers left the ranch,” she said. “For me, agriculture has always been a part of my life.” That’s doubly true now. Garner-Skiba […] Read more
GRIM READING: Farms remain very dangerous workplaces
The ag industry ‘hasn’t adopted a culture of safety,’ says author of report on farm fatalities
Reading Time: 3 minutes Canadian Agricultural Injury Reporting recently released its latest report with data on agriculture-related fatalities between 1990 and 2020, with particular focus on 2011 to 2020. CAIR is a national surveillance program funded by the Canadian Agricultural Safety Association and co-ordinated by the Injury Prevention Centre at the University of Alberta. According to the latest CAIR […] Read more
4-H camps give kids a chance to develop new skills (and s’mores)
Reading Time: 3 minutes Summer is on the way, and so are 4-H camps, which have run every year since 1917 except for a COVID-19 break in 2021. “We get youth who come from all over to camp. A lot of the youth we serve in the camps are rural. This is the one camp that they hear about […] Read more
4-H program teaches kids to be judgmental — in a good way
Reading Time: 2 minutes People are often told not to judge, which in one sense is good advice. On the other hand, good judgment is an essential part of living. Perhaps a better term is critical thinking. That’s what 4-H Alberta aims to teach kids through its judging program, including its recent livestock and crop judging competition. “We always […] Read more
Thinking outside the box prompts ag society to open daycare
Reading Time: 3 minutes They put on fairs and rodeos, host family fun days and large-scale ag shows, build community through a host of events, and share their facilities with organizations of every shape and size. But among the nearly 300 ag societies in the province, the Grovedale Community & Agricultural Society is unique — it’s in the daycare […] Read more
The kids are alright — but give them a chance to prove it
Reading Time: 4 minutes Treating your kids like livestock may seem like strange advice from a farm succession expert — but that depends on how you treat your cattle, says Reg Shandro. “I love the saying of one of my clients, ‘I want to handle my kids like I handle my cows. I want to open the gate and […] Read more
Province’s ag societies bounce back in a big way
Reading Time: 4 minutes Alberta’s ag societies got back to business — and back on their feet — last year. “Generally what we’ve heard is that 2022 went very, very well,” said Tim Carson, CEO of the Alberta Association of Agricultural Societies. “There was some excellent programming provided by agricultural societies in their local communities that were very well […] Read more
Farmers and field trips provide something textbooks can’t offer
Reading Time: 3 minutes Linda Gorim’s goal for her agronomy students is to give them a hands-on experience. “My goal is to get them dirty, and I get them really dirty,” said Gorim, an assistant professor at the University of Alberta and the Western Grains Research Foundation chair in cropping systems. Her field crop agronomy course was created to […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
