Commodity and local agriculture are finding ways to coexist in the oil province. There’s even some respect
It’s a rare moment but I’ve caught Leona Staples when she has time to talk. She has just waved goodbye to the 100 playschool-aged children and their parents who came for the educational agri-tour she gives of her 23-acre vegetable and strawberry operation, and there’s a temporary lull in customers coming to buy plants from her greenhouse.
Besides, the shipment of flowers, herbs, tomato plants, potted lettuce gardens and preserves that she produces and sells as part of the innovative, five-couple produce co-operative called Innisfail Growers, won’t leave en route to the Calgary Farmers Market until tomorrow.
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When she greets me, Staples temporarily puts aside the recipe books she has been consulting in order to come up with a new raspberry vinaigrette to add to her wares at the farmers market.
“After all,” she explains, “why should I waste perfectly good berries that happen not to sell?”
I can see from the papers in front her that Staples has also been figuring out the menu she’ll offer at her next on-farm local-food dinner event. She’s been re-evaluating the concept, but has decided her strategy is right. It’s a ton of work, making all the food in her on-site commercial kitchen, but the popularity of the event — there’s a long waiting list of customers to attend —
makes the time and effort worthwhile. “If I charged more than the
$25 a plate I do charge, it could be a money
maker,” Staples says. “But it’s an add-on been able to choose between shipping to that offers me a great chance to meet customers packing houses, selling to private trucks on a personal level.” heading to urban or Prairie markets, or
On top of all that, Staples has almost marketing through thousands of roadside finished plotting dates on the calendar for stands, on-farm stores and U-picks. this year’s new venture, the “field-to-jar” Along Highway 2, the 300 kilometres event where she’ll teach customers how of asphalt from Calgary to Edmonton to turn strawberries into jam and how to (or from Edmonton to Calgary… it’s a transform mini-cucumbers into pickles. hotly contested point) the sheer scale of
Add to that 900 acres of commodity-oriented grain and beef production has fostered a grain fields, and you’ve got a very commodity-oriented mindset. busy woman with a foot in two camps — It’s true that the sea of wheat that swept commodity agriculture and local food. across Alberta a century ago opened up in
Leona and her husband, Blaine, aren’t the 1960s to let in tens of thousands of exactly what most would consider “traditional” head of beef cattle, and then opened up Albertan farmers. But, like a some more to let in other large-acreage whole crop of innovative, business-savvy commodity crops like barley and canola in farmers across Alberta, they are doing the ’70s.
whatever they have to in order to make Still, the Highway 2 corridor was their acres economically viable. home to “big” …big acres, big feedlots,
big bins. The only thing small here was
CHANGE COMES… AGAIN
yesterday. Tomorrow was always bigger.
Close your eyes and think of Alberta’s As commodity prices weaken and agriculture. What do you see? Golden input costs rise, however, it has become fields stretching to the horizon, AAA more and more difficult for many farmers grade beef, and… high-end cheese? to make a financial go of traditional
How about ostrich sausages? Homeground farming. organic flour? Agri-tourism? “If you’re not making money at what
The great swaths of prairie that have you’re doing, you’re going to look for alternatives,” long supported traditional commodity-based explains Kathy Bosse, whose title agriculture are now checkered with is “new venture coach” with Alberta Agriculture fields, pastures and barns dedicated to and Rural Development’s Local specialty agricultural opportunities and Market Expansion Branch in Red Deer. niche markets. “I speak to a lot of producers (who)
Such agricultural marketing has been are looking at other alternatives rather commonplace across much of the rest than straight commodity farming, because of the country for decades. Growers of returns over the past few years haven’t veggies and fruit in B. C., Quebec and
Ontario and the Maritimes have always Continued on page 18
been good,” Bosse says. “When I hear from producers saying that they’re having trouble making ends meet, I suggest that one of the things that may help is to ask themselves whether they can rethink their marketing and take advantage of local markets. They need to ask how they can take their products and value add.”
Options range from direct-to-door, community-shared agriculture, direct-to-restaurant and farmers markets to alternatives like agri-tourism, Bosse says. “There are definitely more people direct marketing now because the returns are better. You get to be a price maker versus a price taker.”
Alberta Ag sees farm direct marketing as a valuable and complimentary addition to Alberta’s traditional agricultural profile. To support the growth of farm direct sales, the government ministry has created a new umbrella initiative called Explore Local, which is geared specifically to supporting local and niche-market-oriented producers.
Carmen Andrew, a project lead with Explore Local, explains that the initiative’s primary work is “to increase the supply of local food, whether that’s getting new entrants in or getting the people who are already in the business to increase their volume. We work to expose (producers) to new marketing channels and also look at solving some of the barriers to increased production in terms of policy or issues like distribution.”
Andrew’s experience with Explore Local is that there is still plenty of room for the local-food industry to grow. “The consumer is talking more and more about local food. It’s our goal to make sure supply meets demand. Generally speaking, I don’t think the supply is there to meet the growing demand. The trend is very vibrant and exciting, but we want to approach it and grow it cautiously.”
Hwy. 2 links rural producers to increasingly voracious local-food lovers in urban markets, and while non-traditional operations are popping up all over the province, nowhere is the trend more obvious than along this straight-as-an-arrow stretch.
Partly, this is due to the fact that agricultural land along the Calgary-Edmonton corridor has priced the vast majority of potential farmers out of commodity farming. As realtor Tim McRae explains, “The values of land are going up because there is no more of it. The population growth, especially near the big cities, demands that land prices go up. In the area between Calgary and Edmonton, you’re looking at about $2,400 an acre. It sure prices a lot of people out of the market, especially when the price of wheat is next to nothing.”
Yet Hwy. 2 also makes transporting and marketing farm-fresh products to the local-food-hungry urban populations efficient and cost effective, says Staples, so a multitude of non-commodity-based operations are springing up along the road.
Bison, ostrich, and elk producers all call this area home, as do goat cheese producers, yogurt makers, and produce growers like the Staples and their agri-partners.
The Staples’ operation, aptly named “Jungle Farm” is situated almost exactly halfway up Hwy. 2, offering the couple excellent opportunities to earn dollars from both Calgary and Edmonton. In addition to growing strawberries and vegetables for farm-direct sale, their large garden and greenhouse complex hosts numerous entertainment and educational events all designed to educate primarily urban folks about farm life while earning enough dollars to keep Leona and Blaine on the farm.
Though Staples clearly thrives on her ultra-multi-tasking role, she isn’t too shy to admit that the job title has evolved primarily of necessity. “My great-grandfather started this farm back in 1897 and it’s been in the family since then,” she says. “When my dad was running it, he felt that there wouldn’t be another generation that could afford to farm. We knew we had to do something different.
“The vegetables, education programs and entertainment we offer have made it economical for us to be here,” Staples tells me. “We’re doing something different and value added. I can stay home and farm — I don’t have to get a second job just to pay the bills. We’re not flying to Hawaii every year, but we are paying for the farm.”
Staples admits, though, that farmdirect marketing isn’t for everybody. “It takes a different type of farmer, absolutely,” she says. “It would not work for a solitary farmer who loves tilling fields and looking after cattle but doesn’t do so well talking to people. I really firmly believe that I am the face of agriculture to hundreds or thousands of people. I better be upbeat and positive. It’s an important part of my job.”
been good,” Bosse says. “When I hear from producers saying that they’re having trouble making ends meet, I suggest that one of the things that may help is to ask themselves whether they can rethink their marketing and take advantage of local markets. They need to ask how they can take their products and value add.”
Options range from direct-to-door, community-shared agriculture, direct-to-restaurant and farmers markets to alternatives like agri-tourism, Bosse says. “There are definitely more people direct marketing now because the returns are better. You get to be a price maker versus a price taker.”
Alberta Ag sees farm direct marketing as a valuable and complimentary addition to Alberta’s traditional agricultural profile. To support the growth of farm direct sales, the government ministry has created a new umbrella initiative called Explore Local, which is geared specifically to supporting local and niche-market-oriented producers.
Carmen Andrew, a project lead with Explore Local, explains that the initiative’s primary work is “to increase the supply of local food, whether that’s getting new entrants in or getting the people who are already in the business to increase their volume. We work to expose (producers) to new marketing channels and also look at solving some of the barriers to increased production in terms of policy or issues like distribution.”
Andrew’s experience with Explore Local is that there is still plenty of room for the local-food industry to grow. “The consumer is talking more and more about local food. It’s our goal to make sure supply meets demand. Generally speaking, I don’t think the supply is there to meet the growing demand. The trend is very vibrant and exciting, but we want to approach it and grow it cautiously.”
Hwy. 2 links rural producers to increasingly voracious local-food lovers in urban markets, and while non-traditional operations are popping up all over the province, nowhere is the trend more obvious than along this straight-as-an-arrow stretch.
Partly, this is due to the fact that agricultural land along the Calgary-Edmonton corridor has priced the vast majority of potential farmers out of commodity farming. As realtor Tim McRae explains, “The values of land are going up because there is no more of it. The population growth, especially near the big cities, demands that land prices go up. In the area between Calgary and Edmonton, you’re looking at about $2,400 an acre. It sure prices a lot of people out of the market, especially when the price of wheat is next to nothing.”
Yet Hwy. 2 also makes transporting and marketing farm-fresh products to the local-food-hungry urban populations efficient and cost effective, says Staples, so a multitude of non-commodity-based operations are springing up along the road.
Bison, ostrich, and elk producers all call this area home, as do goat cheese producers, yogurt makers, and produce growers like the Staples and their agri-partners.
The Staples’ operation, aptly named “Jungle Farm” is situated almost exactly halfway up Hwy. 2, offering the couple excellent opportunities to earn dollars from both Calgary and Edmonton. In addition to growing strawberries and vegetables for farm-direct sale, their large garden and greenhouse complex hosts numerous entertainment and educational events all designed to educate primarily urban folks about farm life while earning enough dollars to keep Leona and Blaine on the farm.
Though Staples clearly thrives on her ultra-multi-tasking role, she isn’t too shy to admit that the job title has evolved primarily of necessity. “My great-grandfather started this farm back in 1897 and it’s been in the family since then,” she says. “When my dad was running it, he felt that there wouldn’t be another generation that could afford to farm. We knew we had to do something different.
“The vegetables, education programs and entertainment we offer have made it economical for us to be here,” Staples tells me. “We’re doing something different and value added. I can stay home and farm — I don’t have to get a second job just to pay the bills. We’re not flying to Hawaii every year, but we are paying for the farm.”
Staples admits, though, that farmdirect marketing isn’t for everybody. “It takes a different type of farmer, absolutely,” she says. “It would not work for a solitary farmer who loves tilling fields and looking after cattle but doesn’t do so well talking to people. I really firmly believe that I am the face of agriculture to hundreds or thousands of people. I better be upbeat and positive. It’s an important part of my job.”
“ When my dad was running it, he felt that there wouldn’t be another generation that could afford to farm.”
— Leona Staples
There is hope for those who are drawn to farm-direct sales but who aren’t natural sales people. As the number of local-food producers increases, so too does the number of secondary companies that offer support and infrastructure to those producers.
Edmonton-based Full Course Strategies works as a middleman for many farmers who raise agricultural products for the local-food market. As owner Lori Menshik explains, Full Course Strategies connects the chefs at nearly 70 higher-end Albertan restaurants to the locally grown products of about 40 Albertan producers.
Menshik has seen a huge shift in momentum for local food from both the producer and consumers sides. “When I started out 11 years ago, it wasn’t sexy to sell local. Initially, it was very difficult to get chefs and producers to listen to us, and it was very difficult to find the product,” she says. “Today, local food is definitely a trend. More local product is available, more local farmers are diversifying, and more local chefs want to cook with it.”
“Farmers are getting into this because it’s making it sexy to be a farmer again,” Menshik says.
Menshik explains that the freshness, accountability and traceability of the local food she offers to chefs are what set it apart from its grocery store counterparts. “Food is not cheap, Menshik says, making her pitch but also talking about her personal values. “When you buy cheap food, you need to question what you’re buying. I know what food actually costs, what it costs to raise an animal and break it down and package it and market it. So, if you buy a $1 hamburger somewhere, you have to question what you’re eating.”
“Once you raise awareness, people will pay the price because the locally grown products are just so much better,” Menshik says. “People are blown away by the difference.” CG
“ When my dad was running it, he felt that there wouldn’t be another generation that could afford to farm.”
— Leona Staples
There is hope for those who are drawn to farm-direct sales but who aren’t natural sales people. As the number of local-food producers increases, so too does the number of secondary companies that offer support and infrastructure to those producers.
Edmonton-based Full Course Strategies works as a middleman for many farmers who raise agricultural products for the local-food market. As owner Lori Menshik explains, Full Course Strategies connects the chefs at nearly 70 higher-end Albertan restaurants to the locally grown products of about 40 Albertan producers.
Menshik has seen a huge shift in momentum for local food from both the producer and consumers sides. “When I started out 11 years ago, it wasn’t sexy to sell local. Initially, it was very difficult to get chefs and producers to listen to us, and it was very difficult to find the product,” she says. “Today, local food is definitely a trend. More local product is available, more local farmers are diversifying, and more local chefs want to cook with it.”
“Farmers are getting into this because it’s making it sexy to be a farmer again,” Menshik says.
Menshik explains that the freshness, accountability and traceability of the local food she offers to chefs are what set it apart from its grocery store counterparts. “Food is not cheap, Menshik says, making her pitch but also talking about her personal values. “When you buy cheap food, you need to question what you’re buying. I know what food actually costs, what it costs to raise an animal and break it down and package it and market it. So, if you buy a $1 hamburger somewhere, you have to question what you’re eating.”
“Once you raise awareness, people will pay the price because the locally grown products are just so much better,” Menshik says. “People are blown away by the difference.” CG
