Reading Time: 5 minutes Countless surveys show the same results. The world has changed. In today’s post-Covid-19 times, we all want more. Or, to put it more accurately, we all want to do more. If you aren’t keeping up on the field called corporate responsibility it might be a good time for a long, hard look in the mirror. […] Read more
Realizing the good idea
Everyone wants a chance to do something good for their community. How do you make that happen? Here is FMC’s plan
Making the farm less dangerous, step by step
Check out what these two farms did after they decided the old approach to safety on the farm is too weak, and sticking with it only makes it worse
Reading Time: 10 minutes 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 […] Read more
Elevating the farm business
It’s the story of Canada’s young farmers. Crucial decisions at the start of their farm careers have enabled Michelle and Nick Hoffsuemmer to make even bigger decisions later on
Reading Time: 7 minutes Like other farmers who market and deliver their own grain, Nick Hoffsuemmer always knew a lot about contracts, delivery requirements, discounts, grades and all the assorted things that most farmers who sell their crops to the local elevator get to know. But Hoffsuemmer didn’t expect to end up getting into the elevator business. When he […] Read more
Farm managers take to the field
Huge chunks of American farmland are getting farmed by professional, accredited managers who work for families who don’t want to farm anymore, but also don’t want to sell
Reading Time: 6 minutes Professional farm management is serious business south of the border. Now, based on today’s trendlines, most insiders are predicting it’s only going to grow and spread. Will it grow in Canada too? Country Guide will look into that question in our next issue, but it’s worth pointing out that the share of farmland that’s rented […] Read more
In search of the next big idea
How would you know if there’s an option out there that is just right for your farm?
Reading Time: 3 minutes When somebody wants to sell you something, they have to talk it up. That’s fair. Everyone knows it’s a basic business principle. They also know the importance of buyer beware. Today, though, there just seems to be so much hype around, especially if you’re talking new ideas for differentiating what your farm produces. It can […] Read more
How to become the partner everyone wants to work with
On today’s larger farms, the partners are up close. They’re your relatives. They farm out of the same yard. Shouldn’t they recognize what you bring to the farm? Maybe not, says cross-border farm advisor Andy Junkin
Reading Time: 3 minutes Maybe your partner is your parent, in-law, sibling, cousin or friend. It doesn’t matter. At some point, says advisor Andy Junkin, there is bound to be tension in the relationship. In fact, if you dig into any farm, that kind of tension is something you’re bound to see, which explains why he calls his service […] Read more
Win, win, win
These companies have found the recipe. What ideas can you borrow?
Reading Time: 6 minutes Like clockwork every May there are big headlines and even bigger press releases from the winners when Deloitte Canada releases its list of the country’s best managed companies. Deloitte’s accolade has to be earned. It takes more than a healthy bottom line. Businesses have to be robust, and resilient. To sort the winners from the […] Read more
A clear view for a multi-enterprise agri-business
On farms like Terry Aberhart’s, the big transformation has come from learning how to manage the farm as a multi-enterprise business
Reading Time: 10 minutes As farms grow, they get connected to more people with more kinds of expertise and they get linked into more and wider networks than ever. The immediate goal may be to get on top of a problem that’s in front of them today, but almost inevitably this helps them see more opportunities, and it opens […] Read more
Do you have a plan to learn?
A systematic approach to continuous learning is strongly linked to higher farm success
Reading Time: 5 minutes The 2015 Dollars and Sense study by Farm Management Canada is still among the most comprehensive surveys to look at which farm practices in Canada increase a farm’s business success and by how much. Here are the practices. Which is the best sign that you’re firing on all cylinders? You have a written business plan. […] Read more
Making a smart choice
An incredible array of leadership training programs are available in Canada. Which one is right for you?
Reading Time: 7 minutes Increasingly, Canada’s farmers are looking to leadership programs to help them achieve more and to give their operations and people their best chances for success. Programs create confidence — which, we’re learning, is an incredibly productive outcome all by itself — they build new networks and ways of thinking, and they inspire better team performance. […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
