Scores of farmers and agricultural enthusiasts attended the 12th annual Moose Mountain Ag Days trade show to find out the latest in agriculture innovation.
The event was held on Feb. 7, at the Prairie Place Hall in Arcola where six speakers specializing in areas like forage management, marketing, seeds and livestock delivered pertinent information on current industry practices. Mark Newman chairperson of Moose Mountain Ag Days since 2007 said the show was originally a collaborative effort between the RM of Moose Mountain and Brock. He said the goal was to provide a local show for producers to come and listen to top notch speakers talk about the new and leading trends in agricultural technology. He said the show provides a venue for producers to connect and said each year organizers try bring something relevant and new to the show.
"Our focus from one year to the next, is to always bring something on a little bit of the livestock side as well as mixing it with the grain and oil seed sideWe brought someone in from the Lake Winnipeg fund to talk to us about the drainage stewardship programs and some of the other funding opportunities for our local producers here - to help water quality issues," he said.
This person was, Les Rutherford, manager of the Lake Winnipeg Basin Initiative with Environment Canada. Over the years Lake Winnipeg has gradually declined in health as a result of extreme eutrophication which is also known as nutrient enrichment. Nutrients are essential for plant and algae growth, especially nitrogen and phosphorus but like anything in life too much can have negative effects. The lake spans over four provinces and four states and according to Environment Canada, half of the nutrients reaching Lake Winnipeg originate outside Manitoba's border. And recent estimates by the government indicate that 53% of the total phosphorus and 51 % of the total nitrogen to Lake Winnipeg is coming from upstream jurisdictions. Rutherford spoke of several contributing factors that add to the declining health of the lake such as agriculture and nutrient loading. He gave details of the Lake Winnipeg Basin Stewardship Fundwhich was formed as part of the government's Action Plan on clean water, a $3.6 million commitment over the next four years.
Mark Newman highlighted the environmental side of the show hoping producers would take away something from the event.
"I hope the impact is positive, one where people can take home ideas and take time to reflect, 'could I make better management decisions to improve my farm and improve my community or improve the environment that we live in,' Newman said.
Another speaker at the show was Adrienne Hanson, a watershed agrologist from the Upper Souris Watershed Association (USWA) who informed farmers of funding available from the USWA. The provincial government has programs to help farmers get funding for environmentally sustainable projects. Hanson said these programs address remote watering systems but said many farmers consider these programs difficult to access sometimes due to the heavy paper work involved.
"This time of year - in the winter time, some places aren't able to support the cattle they have on their house well, so we help them develop a winter source away from the house. And that protects their ground water as well as get some pressure off the dugout," she said. She explained that environmentally, the USWA is helping to improve water quality and animal health and prevent drownings. One technique many farmers use is to cut a hole in the dugout and the cattle would have to go in on the ice and they would sometimes fall through. Hanson said when that happens it can be costly.
"This time of year is so hard for producers, it's so cold and there's still a lot of winter coming and it's nice to get out and share some ideas with different people and see what's happening and share a bunch of research stuff that's happening at Western Beef," she said.
Dr. Bart Lardner represented Western Beef at the event and discussed forage management options. He detailed the benefits on managing legumes in pasture systems and grazing stockpiled perennial forages.
After his presentation there was a coffee break that allowed networking and perusing at the various booths. Many companies that had booths at the show praised the organizers, saying the event is highly beneficial to both farmers and companies in various ways.
Chris Hourd, customer service representative at Parrish and Heimbecker Limited, a full service grain company said the trade show allows their company to remain relevant in various areas.
"Events like this are very good, it's nice to see the community come together and see different people that you maybe don't normally see. We're up in Langbank and I get to touch base with producers that are from this area and it's nice to see speakers come out and share their knowledge with us and maybe help guys make some decisions," she said.
Norman Klatt of Mack Auction, a company based out of Estevan that has been in operation for the last 10 years, said the show represents all that is local.
"We're a local company and this is a local group and it's nice to see functions in small town Saskatchewan stay alive," he said.
Moose Mountain Ag Days also had Shawn Rempel, production manager and agronomist at Quarry Seed Ltd in Stonewall, MB. Rempel discussed the basics of soybean agronomy and using current farming practices and equipment, reviewing the history, production and potential for soybeans in Saskatchewan.
John De Pape, president of the Farmers Advanced Risk Management Company was the last speaker at the show and he spoke on hidden marketing opportunities that could help take the sting out of today's market. In his presentation he shared how to get more revenue out of today's grain market using low risk strategies that are employed by grain traders. As well as urging farmers to change their culture and way of thinking in regards to grain marketing.
Mark Newman said over the years he has seen where the show has sensitized producers to the different programs available and said this is highly beneficial to the area.
"[I have seen it] definitely with some of the program funding available through the agro environment group plans as well as the Upper Souris Water Association. Working in tandem with producers and other partnership bodies throughout the province to put program funding to ground projects for producers in our area," he said.
