The Rural Voice, 2019-01, Page 12 Being a lifelong learner is one of
the most valuable attributes that has
been passed on to me from my
parents. I have been fortunate to
learn from their example as they
continue to learn, embracing new
ideas and challenges even as they are
well into their 70s and 80s. They
have both adopted lifestyle, business,
and personal changes as new
knowledge has become available to
them. With this in my background, I
decided to take the plunge and
commit to C-Team, a course offered
by Agri-Food Training.
C-Team stands for Canadian Total
Excellence in Agricultural
Management and “is designed
specifically for producers and
ranchers. Through four modules,
which are held in different cities
across Canada, you will develop and
implement your own strategic and
operations plans for your farm”
(www.agrifoodtraining.com).
Okay … big ideas… but what
does it really mean? It is so easy, in
our farm businesses and in life in
general, to get so caught up in the
day-to-day grind that we lose sight of
the big picture – why we are doing
what we are doing? In Ontario, the
Grow Your Farm Profits workshops
(which I taught for a period of time)
have a similar goal – taking you out
of your daily work day and doing the
hard work of evaluating the why
behind all of that work.
So last February – I ventured to
Vancouver for a week of intensive
learning and some hard work. At the
time, we were considering doing a
major upgrade to our grain handling
system that had been built and
modified over the past 50 years. It
didn’t owe us anything, but it was
becoming more and more difficult to
manage and there were some
shortcomings. I was wrestling with
different ideas and quotes and
thoughts about efficiencies and
downpayments… and of course,
deadlines.
But I stepped aside from all of
that, got on a plane and started on a
journey that I am only part way
through now. Tonight I am sitting in
a hotel room in Calgary reflecting on
the C-Team experience I’ve been
fortunate to participate in up until
now.
First of all, C-Team is something
that requires you to be engaged to
participate. As we all became more
familiar with all of the faces around
the table – we have shared more and
more about our operations, our life
experiences as farmers, as family
members and as part of a bigger rural
economy that plays such an
important role in Canada.
As part of the course, we are each
expected to really look at our own
operations in a new and detailed way,
then present our learnings to each
other. That in itself can be daunting –
but a level of trust is built as the
course progresses and it becomes
clear that people are happy to help
each other so that everyone can learn
and grow from the experience.
We have people in our group from
Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, and
Nova Scotia. As one of the elders in
the group I am amazed at the
enthusiasm, knowledge, and
willingness to take on risk of the
young people that are sitting in the
room with me. And even just the
things people are doing! In our group
there are people who are growing
canola, peas, lentils, wheat, beef
cattle, bison, pheasants, tobacco,
corn, soybeans, asparagus,
strawberries, squash, cantaloupe,
zucchini, lettuce, and celery.
It highlights for me once again
the complexity and expertise
involved with farming.
In spite of the fact that there is a
huge geographical spread and an
even bigger commodity spread, there
are many commonalities that link us
together. We share similar challenges
8 The Rural Voice
Farmers across
Canada share
common goals
Kate farms,
hikes, canoes,
and plays
guitar in
Huron County.
Kate Procter
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