Reading Time: 8 minutes Why are Seed Hawk Inc. and Salford Farm Machinery growing so fast? Our Maggie Van Camp finds out it’s a lot more than foreign ownership Although Salford Farm Machinery and Seed Hawk Inc. are a thousand miles apart, the stories behind these two short-line companies have shared a lot of plot lines in the last […] Read more
Takeover
New strategies may help you break out of traditional size constraints, whether you want to be bigger than the old rules allowed, or smaller
Reading Time: 4 minutes If you sit in on Alfons Weersink’s introductory ag economics class at the University of Guelph, you’re going to see a sample of agriculture’s traditional U-shaped cost curve. It will be a graph in a textbook, almost like a smiley face, showing the average cost of production per unit compared to farm size. It’s a […] Read more
Why are Seed Hawk Inc. and Salford Farm Machinery growing so fast? Our Maggie Van Camp finds out it’s a lot more than foreign ownership
Reading Time: 8 minutes Although Salford Farm Machinery and Seed Hawk Inc. are a thousand miles apart, the stories behind these two short-line companies have shared a lot of plot lines in the last decade, including success. Both companies are built on innovation, both are based in rural Canada, both have international ownership and both are aggressively growing their […] Read more
View from the Hill
Reading Time: 6 minutes Q. Do you feel Canadian agriculture is losing our competitive edge, or gaining? A. There are challenges. Competitiveness is key to profitability, and Canada’s agriculture and agri-food sector is well positioned to compete. We have a rich resource base, a skilled and educated (agricultural) sector, and a world-class culture of innovation. Our farmers are innovative. […] Read more
Doing Them, Their Family And Their Farm
Reading Time: 9 minutes It wasn’t cheap. It wasn’t easy. But they believed they could do it and — with help — they did. Now the Gilmers share their story of hammering out a succession plan and the good it is crYstAL cLeAr Only one-third of family-owned businesses survive the transition to the next generation. Then, out of that […] Read more
Second-Career Decision
Reading Time: 4 minutes For the Waddells, it’s been a challenge to convert financial ratios into strategies and action plans. It’s also been more than worth it You’ve got to have profit,” says Charlie Waddell, owner of Waddell Apples near Kingston, Ont. “Whether you’re a smaller farm or a larger one, you need profitability for growth and stability.” Like […] Read more
Agriculture Is Different Today. Our Farmers Must Still Be The World’s Most Efficient Producers, But That’s Not Enough. Today’s Farmers Must Be As Shrewd As Any MBA Grad, As Skilled As Any CEO. So, What Does That Mean For Ag Policy? Our Maggie
Reading Time: 2 minutes Q. Do you feel Canadian agriculture is losing our competitive edge, or gaining? A. T herearechallenges. Competitiveness is key to profitability, and Canada s agriculture and agri-food sector is well positioned to compete. We have a rich resource base, a skilled and educated (agricultural) sector, and a world-class culture of innovation. Our farmers are innovative. […] Read more
For the Waddells, it’s been a challenge to convert financial ratios into strategies and action plans. It’s also been more than worth it
Reading Time: 2 minutes You ve got to have profit, says Charlie Waddell, owner of Waddell Apples near Kingston, Ont. Whether you re a smaller farm or a larger one, you need profitability for growth and stability. Like a growing number of Canadians, the Waddells are second-career farmers. Which means they aren t hobby farmers. The Waddells want and […] Read more
CrYStAL CLeAr
Reading Time: 2 minutes It wasn t cheap. It wasn t easy. But they believed they could do it and with help they did. Now the Gilmers share their story of hammering out a succession plan and the good it is doing them, their family and their farm Only one-third of family-owned businesses survive the transition to the next […] Read more
Actually, his million-dollar cow may be the least impressive thing about Morris Thalen and his Alberta farm. Can his ideas work for you too?
Reading Time: 2 minutes In 1980, Morris Thalen started with a share of a 200-sow farrow-to-finish farm in British Columbia near Chilliwack. One year later he got into cattle buying and selling, and seven years later, Thalen made the leap to dairy farming, milking 17 grade cows in a small barn with four stalls. Fast forward to 2010, and […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
