Reading Time: 3 minutes My grandfather used to say, “Once in your life you need a doctor, lawyer, policeman, or preacher but every day — three times a day — you need a farmer.” To some this may be a catchy phrase but to others it has a deeper meaning. We were working on a school project, Grandpa and […] Read more
‘Three times a day, you need a farmer’ — a phrase that says a lot
It’s not just the food we produce — farming is much deeper and more meaningful than that
It’s not just the price of beef that drives cattle values
Hides are a big part of the profitability equation for packers and when buyers of leather cut back, producers feel the pain
Reading Time: 3 minutes There has been some great despair over cattle prices this year. Fed cattle dropped below sea level when they decided to descend. This was not entirely unexpected, but we still don’t have a lot of cattle inventory in Canada and our North American economy is OK. What is happening? Cattlemen and cattlewomen have always believed […] Read more
Schoepp: The short and sweet of who we are and what we eat
A survey of eating habits shows that tastes differ across the country, but food brings us together
Reading Time: 3 minutes We have a saying in our home that breakfast is the most important meal of the day — you should always make it home for breakfast. (When I was in my teens it was to make it home for breakfast and for the 3 a.m. milking!) Canadians do love to eat breakfast, especially in Quebec […] Read more
We think we have water in abundance, but that’s just not so
We need to start appreciating how precious each litre of fresh water is, and how much of it we are using
Reading Time: 4 minutes The dry spring brought to many parts of Alberta the stark reality of the importance of rainwater. But all water usage is getting stretched beyond that which falls from the sky. And although this province is technically a semi-arid climate, Albertans have often thought of themselves as “water abundant.” Are we? Alberta has 2.2 per […] Read more
We can’t turn a blind eye to abuse
Domestic violence and animal abuse do take place on farms in our province, and both must be reported
Reading Time: 4 minutes A 2012 report called The Cruelty Connection looked at whether there was a relationship between animal abuse and domestic violence in Alberta. And there was — people who committed crimes against animals also committed crimes against people. The project (a collaboration between the SPCA and the RCMP) found that in 85 per cent of cases […] Read more
We no longer have the luxury of time in making changes
When consumers decide a livestock practice is wrong, they expect changes to be made immediately
Reading Time: 3 minutes We used to believe — and many companies still do — that we could maintain consumer trust by going through the exercise of a food safety or production protocol. We have discovered in this very tribal age of transparency, this is not sufficient. Consumers are expecting actions to be taken and are moving away from […] Read more
Getting ready to deal with consumers’ expectations of the food system
New research shows the public expects farmers, food companies, grocery chains, and restaurants to work as partners
Reading Time: 3 minutes Siddhartha Gautama, the Indian fellow who we in the western world refer to as Buddha, once said: “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” And in this he was right, for when we are ready to learn or seek some form of knowledge, someone comes into our life to enlighten us. Enlightenment has […] Read more
There is opportunity all around us and it’s there all the time
All sectors in agriculture have tremendous strengths and every farm operation can capitalize on them in some way
Reading Time: 3 minutes I am a business mentor for a young woman who just landed a multimillion-dollar deal. She and her family took a risk, went without for a few years, and worked hard to get their product going. They had folks who believed in them but more importantly, they believed in themselves. She once said to me […] Read more
Celebrating food — and gaining a marketing edge
The story of an Australian oyster producer has lessons for any farmer who appreciates creative thinking
Reading Time: 3 minutes My friend Ewan McAsh is an oyster farmer on the Clyde River in New South Wales, Australia. He is a fellow Nuffield Scholar and was a travel mate of mine through Australia, Holland, U.K., India, and Qatar. A young man with vision, he was named in 2015 as a finalist for NSW farmer of the […] Read more
Empower your daughters to be great farmers
Understanding one’s abilities, becoming financially literate, and gaining experience outside the farm are all critical
Reading Time: 3 minutes More women own and operate farms and agribusinesses in Canada than ever before. What is it that women need to do to be great farmers and how can farms prepare daughters for the ownership of the family farm? Underlying any business transaction is value. And often, families focus on the value of the capital assets […] Read more