Leader Post Agriculture Month by Lori Kluge

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AGRICULTURE MONTH

Message from Honourable Lyle Stewart, Minister of Agriculture

am proud to proclaim October as Agriculture Month in Saskatchewan. As harvest continues and school gets underway, this month is an ideal time to share with youth the opportunities agriculture has to offer. Agriculture is one of the largest economic engines in Saskatchewan, contributing 10 per cent to Saskatchewan’s gross domestic product and generating more than 50,000 jobs in the province. In fact, last year we produced 96 per cent of Canada’s lentils, 82 per cent of Canada’s flaxseed and 87 per cent of Canada’s durum. We also exported more than $100 million in sales to 16 different world markets. The economic significance of agriculture creates many opportunities for careers and entrepreneurship as the industry requires innovation, investment and infrastructure to grow. During the month of October, the Ministry is focused on encouraging youth to think ag. Teachers, guidance counsellors, producers and industry are encouraged to get involved and help us to spread the word about the opportunities in Saskatchewan’s agriculture industry. Beyond primary production, there are many careers that support agriculture — from research and processing to manufacturing, finance and everything in between. With an increasing global demand for food and agriculture at the backbone of our economy, agriculture can offer a stable and rewarding career. To showcase some of the many options, the Ministry has launched a new web presence (www. saskatchewan.ca/thinkag) that profiles Saskatchewan people employed in the industry. In addition to interactive career features, this site offers scholarship information and teacher resources. During this harvest season, I’d like to thank those in the industry, at every level of the value-chain, for their hard work and dedication as Saskatchewan feeds the world.

Honourable Lyle Stewart Minister of Agriculture

he Agriculture Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) and the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture have partnered to develop the APAS Youth Leadership and Mentorship Program. Don Ross with APAS said the organization saw a need to foster leadership and policy development skills in young producers. “In rural Saskatchewan and rural western prairies, we see demographic shifts where we see folks who are at the stage where they want to draw back a little bit,” said Ross. “As a result of that, we said we need some way to get better leadership among the younger folks in rural Saskatchewan.” There are five positions available through the program, which runs from November 2014 to April 2015. Successful applicants will be paired with more-experienced farmers who have a history of involvement in local, provincial or national organizations — especially when it comes to policy development. “Farmers are very knowledgeable now and, by twinning them up with some farmers who may have some different experiences or more national experience, it gives them a different perspective,” explained Ross. “Hopefully, we can develop a relationship between the mentor and mentee at least for the six months and maybe even after the six months.” Mentees will be encouraged to choose one or more topics to focus on and follow through the various meetings and program events. The topic can be anything in the agriculture industry that interests them, such as food security or risk management. They will attend district meetings through APAS and other organizations. In December, they will be invited to the APAS annual general meeting in Moose Jaw where they will participate in representative orientation and follow through the resolutions or topics of interest they identified earlier. In February, they will attend the Canadian Federation of Agriculture annual general meeting in Ottawa. They will see how an idea at the local level can influence policy in a larger context at the national level. The goal is to have the mentees learn the skills necessary to shepherd an idea or resolution from one level to the next. A session with Jack Wilkinson, former president of the International Federation of Agricultural Producers, is also planned. Back home in Saskatchewan, the five participants will present a report and chair a meeting at APAS to learn the skills of chairing a meeting and to convey what they’ve learned throughout the process. “The purpose is to try and help people understand what policy

Torch River Agriculture Corp acts as steward of the land

by Jonathan Hamelin For L-P Specialty Products

n December 2013, the Government of Saskatchewan’s agriculture value-added strategy was launched, outlining how the province will support growth in this sector. Compiled by the Value-Added Team, including the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of the Economy and Innovation Saskatchewan — the strategy focuses on increasing the value of Saskatchewan grown products above commodity price levels. Growing the value-added sector is one of the targets in the Saskatchewan Plan for Growth. The specific goal is to increase revenue from the value-added production to $6 billion by 2020. Other key agriculture goals in the Plan for Growth include: increasing crop production by 10 million tonnes by 2020; increasing agriculture and food exports from $10 billion in 2011 to $15 billion in 2020; and establishing Saskatchewan as an international leader in biosciences. Penny McCall, the manager of Saskatchewan Agriculture’s value-added unit, is encouraged by the Saskatchewan farming community’s willingness to implement new ideas to boost the province’s agriculture. The province is also making progress toward its Growth Plan agriculture goals. In 2013, Saskatchewan harvested a record 38.4 million tonnes. That same year, the province’s ag and food exports generated a record revenue of $11.7 billion. Meanwhile, the province is around the $4 billion mark in total value-added revenue. “Saskatchewan people are proud of their agricultural roots and innovative farmers. We’re helping to build on those strengths,” said McCall. “Saskatchewan was built to be a primary production and exporting province, and we’re not changing that but it’s a paradigm shift to then say, ‘Hey, what else can we do here? What can we do to actually capture some of that value closer to home?’ ” One of the greatest examples of the strides Saskatchewan is making in the field of value-added agriculture is in its canola oil processing. The province has become the largest canola crusher in Canada, having currently crushed close to four million metric tonnes — boasting a capacity that has tripled since 2007. The total spin-off from canola crushing is $8.2 billion annually, with companies investing close to $500 million in crush plants since 2007. “It goes to show that the investment, the vision and the access to that quality raw commodity can lead to success in the value-added field,” said McCall. “The reason for the success in the canola crush industry has been industry investment, because they recognize that we have quality canola produced here. It’s a very great impact on our Saskatchewan economy.” Collaborative research, added McCall, has been important in the value-added

Mentorship program supports future farmers by Jennifer Jacoby-Smith SP Creative Features

IN SASKATCHEWAN

Saskatchewan adding value to its agriculture

Mitch Lahoda, Shift Supervisor, InfraReady Products Ltd., pre-cooks product for the Malaysian market. — Photo courtesy of Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture

process so far and will continue to be moving forward. By utilizing groups such as the Saskatchewan Food Industry Development Centre and POS Bio-Sciences, as well as the research program chairs at the University of Saskatchewan, the value added sector can tap into multiple resources to come up with ground-breaking ideas. “What we’re trying to do is grow our processing research cluster,” said McCall. “We do agriculture research very well within this province. It’s typically been focused on that primary production, but we want to expand our research into the processing side. We are looking at our existing funding programs to determine how best we can support innovation and improve on processing technology. We also think they’re very important for attracting additional investment. “Our funding programs and efforts to identify processing opportunities and assist with overcoming challenges will, in turn, attract some of the companies external to our borders that might be interested in investing within our province.” McCall feels we have witnessed only the beginning of the impact value-added agriculture will have in Saskatchewan. She said the province still has potential to grow on its natural advantages by pulling out some of the ingredients such as flours, starches, oils and proteins by doing the processing closer to home. These ingredients could then be exported. For example, there’s an increased demand globally for proteins, especially vegetable-based protein such as peas. And Saskatchewan produces 65 per cent of Canada’s peas. “Although we want to see come checkmarks before 2020, we are looking beyond 2020,” said McCall. “It’s going to take a long-term vision.”

The corporation also employs the minimumtill farming method that reduces the need for machinery, resulting in less fuel burned. Soil sampling is done to determine what the proper crop rotation should be to help reduce disease. Peas, legumes and grass seed are planted as part of this rotation to increase the level of nitrogen in the soil. Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is reduced by appropriately using fertilizer, minimizing soil disturbance and using appropriate crop strains. “It’s a win-win situation. The better you look after the soil and the better you look after the land, the better your crop is,” said Hughes. Torch River’s commitment to the land is certainly one reason it has been able to attract and maintain high profile clients such as Malteurop, PepsiCo, Quaker, Cargill, Viterra and Bunge. “We have great working relationships with our clients,” Hughes said. “There’s a consistent demand for the product, so it gives us some security and peace of mind in terms of marketing. They appreciate the quality of our product, the consistency of supply and our environmentally sound methods.” Torch River was established in 2007 by a group of corporate financers and venture capitalists. It now owns 12,000 acres of farmland, and employs four people year-round, with up to 10 during the peak seasons. Torch River’s main crop is canola, though it also grows oats, barley and wheat.

hen it comes to environmentally responsible farming, Torch River Agricultural Corp is on the right track. In its mission statement, the farming operation located near Choiceland states that it “farms on the principles established by our forefathers.” Through its method of transporting grain to market, Torch River is effectively reducing its environmental footprint. In late 2007, Torch River Agricultural Corp — along with a group of 46 shareholders comprising farmers and local governments — acquired a 45-kilometre short-line railway between Choiceland and Nipawin for $1.2 million. The line, has come to be known as Torch River Rail, is a branch of the Canadian Pacific Railroad main line. It allows Torch River Agriculture Corp to transport its grain to Prince Rupert, B.C., Thunder Bay, Ont., or Cedar Rapids and Milwaukee in the U. S., and then on to various global destinations. In April 2014, the finishing touches were put on a $1 million car-loading facility in Choiceland, with the storing capacity of 56,000 bushels of grain. Beyond opening up the market for local growers, transporting grain by Torch River Rail leaves a significantly smaller mark on the environment than when it’s shipped by truck. “It’s a more environmentally friendly method of transportation because mass shipments ensure there will be less individual trips back and forth,” said Torch River Agricultural Corp CEO David Hughes. From the beginning, the owners wanted to prove that a farming operation run by a corporation could turn a profit while being run in an environmentally responsible manner. The corporation works closely with Ag Grow Consulting Ltd. to determine ways to reduce emissions in all stages of the process, including procurement, seeding, spraying, harvesting, storage and transportation.

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ABOUT THIS CONTENT: These stories were produced by Leader-Post Specialty Products to promote awareness of this topic for commercial purposes. The Leader-Post editorial department had no involvement in the creation of this content.

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development is all about with the skills knowledge and expertise — in very short order — to try and understand what that might mean and give them another avenue by which they can contribute to rural Saskatchewan,” Ross said. “We’re just trying to provide them with another opportunity where they can take those skills and expertise, reshape them, maybe gain a bit of skills and knowledge and apply them in a different way so they can advance ag industry on the policy side.” Ross encourages interested individuals to visit the website to apply. APAS will be looking for young agriculture producers between the ages of 18 and 39 with clear leadership goals and objectives. The successful applicant will have roughly 10 days over the six month program to dedicate to events and programming. Deadline for applications is Oct. 15.

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