Share of rented land increasing

Share of rented land increasing

Reading Time: 2 minutes Between the 1975 Census of Agriculture and the most recent, 2021, Census, the share of rented farmland has increased from 30 to 39 percent across Canada. This percentage comes from Census numbers, as the share of “area rented or leased” compared to the total of the “area rented or leased” plus the “area owned.” A […] Read more

WTO director-general Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, pictured here in 2021. (Photo: Reuters/Joshua Roberts)

WTO meeting seeks modest outcomes, with global trade at ‘critical juncture’

Striking deals by consensus becoming more difficult amid signs global economy fragmenting

Reading Time: 3 minutes Trade ministers from around the world gathered in Abu Dhabi on Monday for a World Trade Organization meeting that aims to set new global commerce rules, but its chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and delegates sought to curb expectations.


“When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.”

The mentorship option

[Leadership] How to know if it’s some great one-on-one insight from someone who has already been there that will help your farm the most

Reading Time: 7 minutes All kinds of professionals offer farmers advice. Think of accountants, agronomists, bankers, business planners, fitness coaches, marketing experts, soil scientists, succession planners, vets. It can be overwhelming. Even so, when you need someone to help you pull all the pieces of your business and personal life into one big picture, you might be looking for […] Read more

So, you want to be a mentor?

Here are a few organizations to consider

Reading Time: 3 minutes Cattle Young Leaders program More than 180 mentor/mentee pairs have completed the Canadian Cattle Association’s annual Canadian Cattle Young Leaders (CYL) program since 2010, including Brenda Schoepp and Jeff Braisher. That’s an impressive track record. Jessica Radau was an ag journalist and a mentee in the Canadian CYL program in 2018. Now she looks after […] Read more


Tom Button

Editor’s Note: Leadership – yes, it is a science

Reading Time: 2 minutes So often when we’re putting the finishing touches on your next Country Guide, I find myself pausing and thinking, “If only we could get this issue into the hands of every Canadian… Imagine the impact if they leafed through even just this one issue and saw farmers as we see them all the time.” In […] Read more



“You have to work together to get a lot of jobs done. You’re going to be there for 12 hours working beside somebody... There’s nothing that makes the job worse than working with a person who doesn’t want to be there.” – Taylor Schmitt.

Next gen talent scouting in agriculture

Reading Time: 3 minutes Taylor Schmitt, son of company founder Barry, is operations and business manager at Barr-Ag and is in charge of Middle East and domestic sales as well as domestic logistics. Yet it is on the HR side where Taylor has really come into his own. Over the last seven years, Taylor has interviewed 250-plus candidates and […] Read more

Right for your farm too?

Reading Time: 3 minutes As more farms like Jackknife Creek Cattle & Land find success with their direct-to-consumer ventures, many experts believe it’s a good time for others to do the same. Food veteran Jo-Ann McArthur says Canada is ready and waiting. “Is it a good time? Absolutely,” she says. McArthur, president of Toronto-based Nourish Food Marketing, says now […] Read more



Former CFA president Mary Robinson has been named to the Senate. She’s pictured at the CFA’s AGM in Ottawa in February 2020. (CFA-fca.ca)

Robinson named to Senate

Former CFA president brings agricultural and business acumen to Canada’s upper house

Reading Time: < 1 minute Mary Robinson, former president of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture, has been appointed to the Senate.