Ag Days Opens with Youth Speaker from Neepawa Area

Future leaders of agriculture set the stage for this year’s Ag Days in Brandon, including Raylyn Koshowski from Dauphin and Sveinna Bjarnason from the Neepawa area. Both represented Manitoba at the Canadian Young Speakers for Agriculture last November, Koshowski in the senior category and Bjarnason in the junior.

Bjarnason gave a talk about global warming and the effect rising temperatures have on agriculture and agricultural practices - with food insecurity being a primary concern. Some effects, she said, are already visible, such as flash flooding and heat waves. Others are predicted for the future, such as losing marine species and coastal farmland being lost to salt marshes as ocean levels rise.

Koshowski’s speech addressed supply chain issues throughout the country. Again, one of the primary concerns was food insecurity and the fragility of our supply chain which is only as strong as its weakest link. Throughout the pandemic that weakest link has been transportation issues, but massive food shortages can be triggered by several other challenges as well.

They were followed by The Honourable Anita Neville, Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba; the Honourable Heather Stefanson, Premier of Manitoba; and The Honourable Derek Johnson, Minister of Agriculture. All three commended Manitoban farmers with their resilience during the challenges of the pandemic, and thought the theme of this year’s event - Farmers’ health, safety, and wellness was important and timely.

Stefanson called attention to some of the innovations we’re seeing in agriculture and provincial programs aimed to help agricultural producers capitalize on current opportunities, and Johnson was able to elaborate on several of these. Some of the highlights over the past few years include new or expanded facilities for dairy processing, oat processing, pea protein extraction, and pork production and processing. He credits Manitoba’s Protein Advantage Strategy, which integrates both plant and animal protein initiatives, with $823 million in new investments since 2018.

We also heard from the parliamentary secretary to the federal Minister of Agriculture, who noted that farmers are on the front lines of climate change, and from David Beaudin, Minister of Agriculture for the Manitoba Metis Federation. Beaudin spoke about agricultural issues affecting the 125,000 Red River Metis citizens in Manitoba and as well he spoke about initiatives around traditional foods such as establishing greenhouses, edible forests, and community gardens.