On-farm leadership is more than the skills we usually think of when defining a leader. This article looks at what farm leadership is really about.– April Stewart, CG Associate Editor When we think of strong leaders we often leap to examples like politicians, sport coaches and the CEOs of large corporations, so it’s little surprise[...]
Out of thin air
A new technology that turns air, renewable energy and water into nitrogen fertilizer could reduce global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and provide farmers with consistent local access to a nutrient that’s proving to be better for crops. Nicolas Pinkowski. “We use the same fundamental process as a lightning storm,” says Nicolas Pinkowski, co-founder and CEO[...]
Making the farm less dangerous, step by step
For most of us, the sight of just one accident is all it takes to get us taking more reasonable precautions. So, imagine you are Krista Harris and you have seen what she has seen. As a career firefighter with over 20 years service with the Abbotsford Fire Department, Harris has attended innumerable motor vehicle[...]
‘Field of Dreams’ diversification
When they decided to start their own distillery in their hometown of Ayr, Ont., Cameron Formica and the brothers Jordan and Nolan van der Heyden decided to test the truth of the movie line “if you build it, they will come.” “Farming on farmland is good in theory,” Formica recalls thinking. He knows the “in[...]
Missing the market
Five years ago, the spotlight was shining bright on a report from the federal government’s Advisory Council on Economic Growth. Few federal reports get much attention, but this report, named after council chair Dominic Barton, generated headlines as it predicted that a new era of value-adding would not only transform the country’s ag and food[...]
Value adding, with a flourish
When Dana Thatcher started getting compliments from the other teachers at school about the food she was bringing for lunch, little did she know it would lead to a thriving farm, food and agri-tourism business. “People were interested in what I was eating, and the fact that we had grown it,” Thatcher recalls. “That’s what[...]
Selling the farm
You only sell the farm once. Obviously, you don’t get to this point lightly. So, what is your first step? Do you sell the whole farm, or go piecemeal? How can you be sure you get the market price? Will you get nailed for taxes? You’ve spent a lifetime — and there’s a good chance[...]
The diversity gap
Canada’s population is becoming increasingly diverse. Statistics Canada estimates that immigrants made up roughly 22 per cent of the population in 2016, and our country expects to welcome over 400,000 more per year until 2024. This will almost certainly result in a continually growing percentage of visible minorities among Canada’s working age people over the[...]
Social financing
Climate change and the pandemic are turning more investors’ minds — and their money too — toward building resilient food supply chains across Canada, according to two experts in social financing. “There are more and more people who recognize that local, social financing is a bit of a vaccination against what’s happening with the global[...]
Time to hit 'Print' for that machinery part?
First, let’s get the name right. Until now, we’ve been calling it 3D printing. It’s a name that will probably stick around for a while, but those in the know are already calling it by its newer name, “additive manufacturing.” “The technology is far, far more user friendly and there are really good desktop printers[...]
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
