Reading Time: 5 minutes Of course farmers are proudly independent, and of course there are huge advantages in fixing your own problems and setting your own direction. But if diversification might be on your agenda, or if you’re dreaming of launching an innovative new business, there can be big costs too. Today, there’s even more proof that mixing with […] Read more
Summer Series: Business connections
[Change Management] Planning a new venture? Keep close to other innovative and entrepreneurial minds
Inspiring ideas on the farm
Which is more important — the idea, or the person who has it?
Reading Time: 7 minutes Everyone has ideas. Every day. Every hour. And some of those ideas really are solid. Some are even exceptional. Yet only a few of us actually take those ideas and turn them into successful farm businesses. What is it about the people who do that? What’s their magic? For some light on all this, Country […] Read more
The ‘how’ of success
Most farmers have great ideas but only a fraction turn them into businesses. Even fewer become profitable. John Cote wanted to know why
Reading Time: 9 minutes John Cote already knew a thing or two about adding value to farm-grown ingredients and about how to run a successful company in the value-added sector even before he set out to study how other business owners are doing it. In 2010, the fifth-generation Saskatchewan farmer and his spouse and business partner, Barb Stefanyshyn-Cote, gave […] Read more
Three farms find ways to live it up
Yes, farms can aim at five-star markets, as Nuffield farms show around the world
Reading Time: 7 minutes When we think of farm diversification here in Canada, we usually imagine new crops or livestock, maybe some value-adding, or possibly some entry-level agri-tourism. How often, though, would you think of going after the top end of a luxury market? Below, meet three farms that have successfully diversified their income streams by targeting luxury offers […] Read more
These farmers call it teamwork
As these Nuffield farmers are learning, time invested in your HR makes all the difference
Reading Time: 10 minutes It is well known that Canadian farms are limited by labour shortages. Pre-COVID-19 studies say Canadian farms already faced a labour gap of 63,000 positions in 2018, set to increase to 123,000 within this decade, and research by the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council (CAHRC) estimates that labour shortages during COVID-19 pandemic resulted in $2.9 […] Read more
‘That will never work!’
Mark Brock was told it’s a waste of time for independent farmers to try to collaborate with other farmers. Then he did the research
Reading Time: 10 minutes Consolidation is the name of the game in Canadian business, and especially in Canadian agriculture. The pressure is on everywhere to grow bigger. If you’re a farmer, that means buying your neighbour’s land to grow your economy of scale, and it’s the same if you’re a processor, an input dealer, a chain of accountants or […] Read more
Chicago high school turning learners into leaders
Near the top in the academic rankings in Chicago, the Chicago High School of Agricultural Sciences is transforming city kids into graduates eager for careers in agriculture
Reading Time: 5 minutes Rarely does someone wish they could go back to high school, but that was certainly the feeling I had when I toured a school in Chicago last June during my Nuffield Scholarship. The institution is about 30 km south of downtown Chicago, and in many ways, it is a standard high school. It has lockers, […] Read more
Filling the youth gap in agriculture
Here’s how to inspire and recruit the next generation of ag employees
Reading Time: 5 minutes What do you want to be when you grow up?” It’s a common question that adults ask young people. Popular answers include pro athlete, doctor or lawyer, or you might just get a shrug of the shoulders and an “I don’t know.” Unfortunately, careers in agriculture and food rarely make it to the top of […] Read more
Three ways to recruit the next generation of ag employees
For youth to become involved in agriculture, the agri-food sector needs to play a major role, using three steps (exposure, engagement, and influence) to encourage youth to select a career in agriculture and food.
The class of agricultural learning
These farmers find it rewarding and enlightening to host student field trips. Should you?
Reading Time: 6 minutes Farmers need to open their farms to more people!” It’s a modern rallying cry from both inside and outside the agri-food industry as the two sides try to build better bridges to each other. But when do dairy or hog producers have time to conduct tours? And are grain farmers supposed to stop planting or[...]
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A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
