THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2015
VOL. 93 | NO. 35 | $4.25
SNEEZES AND Market plunge | CHINA MARKETS GET A COLD P6
SERVING WESTERN CANADIAN FARM FAMILIES SINCE 1923
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LONG DAYS OF HARVEST
Harvest at the Cayley, Alta., Hutterite colony is in full swing as all hands pitch in and work into the evening to take off this pea crop. |
INSURANCE FAST TRACK
The new professionals: farmers learn new roles Being successful means having marketing and agronomy expertise and business and financial management skills Part 1: This series looks at how farmers, agriculture consultants and service providers are professionalizing agriculture by integrating the many skills required by today’s complex and challenging industry. BY ED WHITE WINNIPEG BUREAU
WAWANESA, Man. — Simon Ellis hasn’t dealt with many of the down times in western Canadian farming, at least not as the operator of a farm. However, he’s spent the last few
profitable years getting ready for when things turn lean, something that might be happening now as crop prices drop. “You need to be able to identify the risks and manage for them,” said Ellis, a 28-year-old who farms with his wife, father and mother in a verdant patch of farmland along Black Creek near Wawanesa. To do that, he’s spent some of his few adult farming years getting educated at both university and college, attending agricultural industry conferences, joining organizations and talking — a lot —
with the rest of his family. Although he hasn’t far med through the tough decades that scarred veteran farmers, he and a young generation of producers are trying to adapt to the increasing demands of modern farming. These farmers need to be expert crop producers like the generations before them, but they must also be competent with financial management, business management, marketing management and personal management. SEE THE NEW PROFESSIONALS, PAGE 4
Alberta declares disaster BY MARY MACARTHUR CAMROSE BUREAU
The Alberta government’s agricultural disaster declaration won’t bring the rain, but it will unlock the vaults for speedy crop insurance payouts. The declaration allows Alberta Financial Services Corp. to access its reserve funds to pay out farmer claims quickly. Farmers paid $613 million in crop insurance premiums this year, but based on early yield estimates, AFSC expects to pay out $700 to $900 million in claims, said Merle Jacobson, chief operating officer with AFSC. “By doing this disaster declaration, it means there is no hold up at all in us paying out client’s claims as they come in.” Yields are expected to be 25 to 30 percent lower than average, based on an estimated harvest potential. Jacobson expects more farmers to submit claims as harvest continues
and they know more closely if yields are below their insurance guarantee. SEE ALBERTA DISASTER, PAGE 4
u|xhHEEJBy00001pzYv.:; AUGUST 27, 2015 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Box 2500, Stn. Main, Saskatoon, SK. S7K 2C4 The Western Producer is published in Saskatoon by Western Producer Publications, which is owned by GVIC Communications Corp. Publisher: Shaun Jessome Publications Mail Agreement No. 40069240
THE BUSINESS OF AGRICULTURE
MIKE STURK PHOTO