The 11th annual NL Young Farmers Leadership Summit took place October 18-19th, 2024, in Deer Lake and the surrounding area. The theme for this year’s Summit was “The Cost of Farming,” so speaker sessions were organized around that theme.

 

Day One, October 18th

 

Following opening remarks from NL Young Farmers Coordinator Lisa Davis, Outreach Coordinator Mark Hoffe, NL Federation of Agriculture Manager Colin Carroll, and Town of Deer Lake Manager Jason Young, Day One kicked off at the Deer Lake Motel with engaging presentations from representatives of the Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture (DFFA). Afton Madore (Farm Management Specialist, DFFA) spoke about farm business planning and how to create a solid business plan for future success. Afton followed up her session with a business plan workshop later in the day. Following a lunch and networking break, Daniel Hillier (Land Management Specialist, DFFA) spoke about land acquisition and explored the pros and cons between leasing land versus buying land and crown land versus private land.

 

Annette Bennett, a partner with Poole Althouse in Corner Brook, joined us to weigh the benefits of incorporating a business versus registering a sole proprietorship and the various costs associated with each. During a session about financing and funding opportunities, Jennifer Eustace (Industry Development Officer, DFFA) provided a presentation about Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership programs. Jason Codner, Relationship Manager with Farm Credit Canada, spoke about various financial resources, including Farm Credit Canada’s Young Farmer Loan. Before a nutrition and networking break, Crystal Anderson inspired the group to think about farm business marketing and used her experience as Market Development Officer with the DFFA to explore the effective ways farmers can market their farms.

 

Following the nutrition and networking break, keynote speaker Dan Rubin from Food Producers Forum talked about the importance of community collaboration and offered a compelling overview of his personal involvement with farming and the various projects he’s involved with as founding chair of Food Producers Forum. Dan also had three of his books for sale, including Sun, Seed and Soil: Tips and Techniques for a Northern Garden (Boulder Books, 2023), and offered free copies of the Food Producers Forum’s 2024 report Where’s The Food? A Survey of Community Food Producers in Newfoundland and Labrador.

 

The Day One sessions ended with a Young Farmers Panel featuring farmers from all four Atlantic Provinces: Lauralee Ledrew (Upper Humber Settlement, NL), Soleil Hutchinson (Soleil’s Farm, PE), Adrienne Helder (Creek Home Farm, NB), and Patricia Bishop (TapRoot Farms, NS). Moderated by Lauralee, the panel discussed how and why they started farming, how the participate in community collaboration, how they deal with financial and other challenges, and each panel member offered words of wisdom and advice for aspiring farmers.

 

Following a break, the staff at Deer Lake Motel provided tremendous service and a fantastic networking banquet meal featuring ingredients and products from local farms in the area, including Rideout’s Farm in Cormack, Dennis Farms in Cormack, Cormack Cheese Company, and Birchbark Farm in Pasadena. During banquet opening remarks, the Honourable Gerry Byrne, Minister of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture, praised the work being done by farmers across Newfoundland and Labrador and called for more young farmers to take advantage of government and other resources as they begin careers in agriculture.

 

The banquet was sponsored by Harvey & Company, who also had an information booth present at the event along with Western NL Food Hub, Farm Credit Canada, Dan Rubin/Food Producers Forum, and the NL Federation of Agriculture featuring resources about their organization and their Mental Health & Safety Program, which is coordinated by Kylie Stokes.

 

Day Two, October 19th

 

Day Two was a collaboration with NL Living Lab, a project led by Rodney Reid at NL Federation of Agriculture and carried out in collaboration with producers across the province and in partnership with Memorial University (Grenfell Campus), Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, and the Government of NL’s Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture.

 

In the morning on Day Two, attendees boarded a coach bus that took them on inspiring and informative tours with the farmers at Wright's Family Farm and Birchbark Farm in Pasadena followed by a trip to Cormack to visit Larch Grove Farm, Rideout's Farm, and Cormack Bee Company.

 

At Wright’s Family Farm, Andy Wright took participants on a tractor ride to his fields and provided a farmer’s perspective on the practical economics of improving soil health with cover crops. Following a networking break, the bus travelled to Birchbark Farm where Richard Butt gave a tour of his farm and discussed how and why he transitioned from the real estate industry to farming, how he developed his farm with a solid business and marketing plan, and his plans for business growth in the future. Richard also runs the Western NL Food Hub in collaboration with Food First NL, so he discussed the benefits of food hubs for farmers. NL Living Lab representatives also held a panel discussion about social research and implementing beneficial management practices.

 

The visit to Birchbark Farm was followed by a lunch and networking break with bag lunches provided by Deer Lake Hotel before the coach bus stopped at Larch Grove Farm for a Living Lab Site tour with core Living Lab farmer Ian Richardson. Ian discussed benefits and costs in the forage field and offered a lot of information about how technology improves efficiency on the farm. He explained how his modern facility makes the comfort and safety of his dairy cows and staff a top priority.

 

The next stop on the tour was Rideout’s Farm, another Living Lab Site and CanadaGAP certified farm that adheres to Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs). Core Living Lab farmer Melvin Rideout gave attendees a tour of his vegetable processing and storage facility and explained how certain Living Lab practices and technology help reduce input and processing costs. Dr. Vanessa Kavanagh and some students from Memorial University (Grenfell Campus) also presented on various technologies and how farmers use them as practical management tools.

 

The final farm tour took place at Cormack Bee Company with beekeeper Lee Harvey. He discussed how he and his wife Dawn got into beekeeping and the various products they sell thanks to their hard work and their busy bees. The bees were the star attraction, especially when Lee opened a hive for interested attendees. Lee also talked about what's new and exciting at Cormack Bee Company, including plans to produce kombucha and research into bee therapy. Lee and Dawn’s story is one of incredible resiliency and perseverance.

 

At the end of the day, the bus returned attendees to the Deer Lake Motel and that was a wrap on the 11th annual NL Young Farmers Leadership Summit. Approximately 55 people attended the event, including 15 NL Young Farmers members, farmers from across Atlantic Canada, government representatives, and industry stakeholders.

​