Agriculture is Alberta’s (and Canada’s) most important industry.
Obviously there are bigger economic drivers: we immediately think of the energy sector, particularly oil and gas, as Alberta’s biggest industry. Not only does our province benefit from the money the industry earns for us, we (and the rest of the world) rely on its many products.
But nothing is more important than food.
We have a convergence of agriculture stories in today’s paper. Haying In The 30s celebrates the old techniques, the hard physical labour, the ingenuity and craftsmanship, and the way families and communities worked together to grow, harvest, prepare, and share food.
Open Farm Days invites everyone to see how modern farms operate, how farming practices have evolved, and how producers use new techniques to produce good food—whether as cottage industries or for global markets.
Between these stories is the story of the M.D. of Bonnyville declaring an agricultural disaster for the 2025 growing season. This is one of the threads that connects the hay wagons of the 1930s to the combine harvesters of today. We are all at the mercy of the weather.
When I say “we,” it is not to imply that I’m a farmer (I’m not). But all of us are affected by farm fortunes. The availability of good local food, and the price of our food, depend on whether there is a good harvest. The income that is generated from our exported commodities contributes massively to our economy and shows up locally.
In some ag operations, notably beef, one bad year can echo for years to come. If a producer has to sell off animals because it costs too much to feed them, it can take a string of several good years to recover that herd size.
Haying In The 30s isn’t about hay, of course. It’s an amazing volunteer-driven, community-based fundraiser that directly helps people diagnosed with cancer. It’s part of the ageless story of hardworking people in small communities, and it’s as true of fishermen as it is of farmers: you help your neighbour. That’s how we all survive.
That attitude runs through the decades, even the centuries, and it’s still important today. As pastures dry up and hayfields fail to produce, local cattle producers with feed left over from last year are sharing it with their neighbours to tide them over until more will inevitably need to be shipped in.
Canadian farms are getting bigger, but most of them—by far—are still family owned and operated. A couple of tough years can put a family farm out of business. That’s where the big corporate outfits find their opening.
In the prairies we’re proud of how our producers feed the world. On the other hand, as one Saskatchewan rancher said to me, “Feed the world? I’m just trying to feed my family.”
The farmers could use some rain, people say from time to time.
We all could.