thecarillon.com
OCTOBER 3, 2024
FEATURE STORY Sustainable fibre and fashion celebrated See story on page 2
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n www.thecarillon.com THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2024 Agriculture Now
Red River Ex venue adds animals to Fibre Festival
part time staff. For her it’s “hands on” for every piece that goes out. Perhaps feeling just a little out of place among all things wool was Chuck Allen from Niverville, who creates one-of-a-kind bags from cowhide and bison leather. The leather worker says he was encouraged to sell his wares at the annual wool festival by a friend who is a knitter. She sent a picture to Al- len’s phone showing five of his bags hanging on hooks during a session of Wolseley Wool knitters. It appeared to Allen, he may have a market for his craft, among the fans of all things wool. And he was right, for his very first customer at the Fibre Festival was a woman from Winnipeg Beach, who said she used to have a booth at the fibre festival for a number of years, selling hand-dyed fabrics and quilts at the St Norbert Market, when the festival was there. Heidi Hunter tried on a pair of bi- son mitts and chuckled at the leath- er fly-swatters Earth and Hide had on offer. When she moved on to chat with another vendor, she took the mitts, not the fly swatter, with her. Fibre Festival co-ordinator Ruth Brook says that’s pretty well how it is in the fibre community. “Everybody knows everybody.” But Allen wasn’t the only excep- tion to the nearly all-wool crowd of vendors at this year’s Fibre Festival. During Friday evening’s Fibre Farmer Chat session, Randy Dyck of Pembina Fibreshed made a presen- tation on the process of turning flax into linen.
She demonstrated how to hold and how to shear the animals, dis- cussed their food, water and exercise requirements, giving the audience a thorough understanding of what it takes to be an angora fibre farmer. In the exhibition hall, first-time vendors were elbow-to-elbow with veterans, who had been coming to the Fibre Festival for years. Fibre Festival visitors had plenty of opportunities to pick up the finished product, everything from socks to sweaters, enjoying the fruits of the labours of crafters from all over Manitoba, as well as Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia. A couple of the vendors this year are neighbors of Anna Hunter at Long Way Homestead and have their wool processed there. Victoria Radauskas is a “hob- by-knitter”. and a first year vendor at the Fibre Festival. She calls her place at St Genevieve “Between Two Farms”, for she is located directly south of Long Way Homestead and north of Ferme Fiola Farms, where she works as a shepherdess in a col- laboration effort with Christel Lan- thier. Radauskas says they raise sheep together. She has six ewes and Chris- tel Lanthier has 59. They breed for specific yarns, she said. The collaborative farmers shared space in the exhibition hall where a wide array of items included wool felted items, placemats, coasters, cast iron skillet holders and oven mitts. Lanthier says she designs and makes everything on her display, with the assistance of some seasonal
by WES KEATING A ttendance for the annual Manitoba Fibre Festival at Red River Exhibition Place has swelled to over 2,000 visitors and 80 vendors in the dozen years the event has been showcasing all-things- wool, from farm to fibre, with work- shops, craft sales and a wool auction. For two days in September, Fibre Festival visitors had the opportunity to wander through the spacious Red River Exhibition Place, where hun- dreds of woollen craft items were on sale, take in a workshop, watch a spinning wheel demonstration or visit the animals in the adjacent barn. This year, Eastern Manitoba was again well represented at the Fibre Festival, both in the barn and the ex- hibition hall. Andre Laframboise and his wife Katheryn, who own Raspberry Roost at Cooks Creek, brought angora rab- bits and alpacas for their display in the Red River Ex barn. Both Kathryn and Andre work full- time, while managing their farm. Kathryn is a high-school teacher in Winnipeg and Andre works as a gen- eral manager of a sewer and water construction group. After working all day, they say they find joy on the farm, caring for these amazing crea- tures. The farm has seven alpacas, six sheep, one llama, as well as four an- gora rabbits. Fiber Farming came naturally to the Raspberry Roost, as the Lafram- boises were looking for animals that were delicate on the pastures which needed some serious rejuvenation, when they moved there seven years ago. “Our alpacas provide a beautiful manure that is ready to be spread over the required areas. No need to compost!” The couple is also interested in sustainable fibre and fashion, so raising animals that contribute to that venture made it an easy choice. The alpacas, sheep and llama are shorn every year, typically mid- spring depending on seasonal tem- peratures. Alpacas can generate 5-7 pounds of fleece per animal. The angora rabbits are shorn every 3 to 4 months, creating around 4-8 oz. of high-quality, warm fibre. Raspberry Roost has their sheep and Alpaca fibre processed at the Long Way Homestead mill at Ste Genevieve and the Austin Woolen Mill. They typically sell the angora fibre to yarn spinners, who are looking to add some luxury to their home-spun yarn. Angora is typically blended with alpaca fibre and/or sheep fibre. It creates “a lovely feel” to any yarn it is spun into. Saturday, Kathryn made a pre- sentation about angora rabbits and small-scale fibre animals at the Red River Ex barn. She explained the many amazing qualities of the angora rabbits, spe- cial aspects of their fleece and how to manage and maintain it, the care and housing specifics for angoras, some “dos and don’ts” for new ango- ra owners, as well as tools for main- taining their coats.
WES KEATING THE CARILLON Andre Laframboise shows visitors “Nora”, an angora rabbit at the Raspberry Roost display in the Red River Ex barn during the Fibre Festival.
WES KEATING THE CARILLON A curious alpaca from Raspberry Roost checks out the visitors at the Red River Ex Barn.
WES KEATING THE CARILLON Anna Hunter of Long Way Homestead erects a sign directing visitors to the animal displays in the Red River Ex barn at the Fibre Festival.
WES KEATING THE CARILLON Heidi Hunter of Winnipeg Beach, who used to sell hand-dyed fabrics and art-quilts at the St Norbert Market tries on a pair of bison mitts at the Earth and Hide display.
WES KEATING THE CARILLON Victoria Radauskas of In Between Farms enjoys collaborative fibre farming with her neighbor, Christel Lanthier of Ferme Fiola Farm at Ste Genevieve.
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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2024
Agriculture Now
Leather craftsman found Fibre Festival a great venue
WES KEATING THE CARILLON
Allen works on a piece of cow hide at his Cedar Avenue shop in Niverville.
requirements, giving the audience a thorough understanding of what it takes to be an angora fibre farmer. In the exhibition hall, first-time vendors were elbow-to-elbow with veterans, who had been coming to the Fibre Festival for years. Fibre Festival visitors had plenty of opportunities to pick up the finished product, everything from socks to sweaters, enjoying the fruits of the labours of crafters from all over Manitoba, as well as Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia. A couple of the vendors this year are neighbors of Anna Hunter at Long Way Homestead and have their wool processed there. Victoria Radauskas is a “hob- by-knitter”. and a first year vendor at the Fibre Festival. She calls her place at St Genevieve “Between Two Farms”, for she is located directly south of Long Way Homestead and north of Ferme Fiola Farms, where she works as a shepherdess in a col- laboration effort with Christel Lan- thier. Radauskas says they raise sheep together. She has six ewes and Chris- tel Lanthier has 59. They breed for specific yarns, she said. The collaborative farmers shared space in the exhibition hall where a wide array of items included wool felted items, placemats, coasters, cast iron skillet holders and oven mitts. Lanthier says she designs and makes everything on her display, with the assistance of some seasonal part time staff. For her it’s “hands on” for every piece that goes out. Perhaps feeling just a little out of place among all things wool was Chuck Allen from Niverville, who
serious rejuvenation, when they moved there seven years ago. “Our alpacas provide a beautiful manure that is ready to be spread over the required areas. No need to compost!” The couple is also interested in sustainable fibre and fashion, so raising animals that contribute to that venture made it an easy choice. The alpacas, sheep and llama are shorn every year, typically mid- spring depending on seasonal tem- peratures. Alpacas can generate 5-7 pounds of fleece per animal. The angora rabbits are shorn every 3 to 4 months, creating around 4-8 oz. of high-quality, warm fibre. Raspberry Roost has their sheep and Alpaca fibre processed at the Long Way Homestead mill at Ste Genevieve and the Austin Woolen Mill. They typically sell the angora fibre to yarn spinners, who are looking to add some luxury to their home-spun yarn. Angora is typically blended with alpaca fibre and/or sheep fibre. It creates “a lovely feel” to any yarn it is spun into. Saturday, Kathryn made a pre- sentation about angora rabbits and small-scale fibre animals at the Red River Ex barn. She explained the many amazing qualities of the angora rabbits, spe- cial aspects of their fleece and how to manage and maintain it, the care and housing specifics for angoras, some “dos and don’ts” for new ango- ra owners, as well as tools for main- taining their coats. She demonstrated how to hold and how to shear the animals, dis- cussed their food, water and exercise
by WES KEATING A ttendance for the annual Manitoba Fibre Festival at Red River Exhibition Place has swelled to over 2,000 visitors and 80 vendors in the dozen years the event has been showcasing all-things- wool, from farm to fibre, with work- shops, craft sales and a wool auction. For two days in September, Fibre Festival visitors had the opportunity to wander through the spacious Red River Exhibition Place, where hun- dreds of woollen craft items were on sale, take in a workshop, watch a spinning wheel demonstration or visit the animals in the adjacent barn. This year, Eastern Manitoba was again well represented at the Fibre Festival, both in the barn and the ex- hibition hall. Andre Laframboise and his wife Katheryn, who own Raspberry Roost at Cooks Creek, brought angora rab- bits and alpacas for their display in the Red River Ex barn. Both Kathryn and Andre work full- time, while managing their farm. Kathryn is a high-school teacher in Winnipeg and Andre works as a gen- eral manager of a sewer and water construction group. After working all day, they say they find joy on the farm, caring for these amazing crea- tures. The farm has seven alpacas, six sheep, one llama, as well as four an- gora rabbits. Fiber Farming came naturally to the Raspberry Roost, as the Lafram- boises were looking for animals that were delicate on the pastures which needed some
WES KEATING THE CARILLON Allen’s first Fibre Festival customer of the day holds up a pair of bison leather mitts that will certainly keep her hands warm this winter.
festival was there. Heidi Hunter tried on a pair of bi- son mitts and chuckled at the leath- er fly-swatters Earth and Hide had on offer. When she moved on to chat with another vendor, she took the mitts, not the fly swatter, with her. Fibre Festival co-ordinator Ruth Brook says that’s pretty well how it is in the fibre community. “Everybody knows everybody.” But Allen wasn’t the only excep- tion to the nearly all-wool crowd of vendors at this year’s Fibre Festival. During Friday evening’s Fibre Farmer Chat session, Randy Dyck of Pembina Fibreshed made a presen- tation on the process of turning flax into linen.
creates one-of-a-kind bags from cowhide and bison leather. The leather worker says he was encouraged to sell his wares at the annual wool festival by a friend who is a knitter. She sent a picture to Al- len’s phone showing five of his bags hanging on hooks during a session of Wolseley Wool knitters. It appeared to Allen, he may have a market for his craft, among the fans of all things wool. And he was right, for his very first customer at the Fibre Festival was a woman from Winnipeg Beach, who said she used to have a booth at the fibre festival for a number of years, selling hand-dyed fabrics and quilts at the St Norbert Market, when the
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WES KEATING THE CARILLON Although there is not a fly in sight, Allen has his leather fly swatter at the ready, just in case. Displayed on the wall behind him is the first bag he ever made and in his lap is one of the more expensive models he now creates.
*Rate subject to change. Tiered pricing available.
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WES KEATING THE CARILLON Every member of the Froese family has a job during the cutting up of a 200-pound pork carcass at the museum. They are: Bill, Sheila, Mark and Katherine (holding Kianna and Josie), Rachel, and Joanne.
‘Fall on the Farm’ more than just one day for Froese family
After a few minutes of scraping bristles by hand, Bill goes to the more modern method and fires up a small torch to burn off the remain- ing bristles, the easy way. And at the same time, he points out that any visitor expecting to see him turn- ing the handle on an old-fashioned grinder to make sausage in the after- noon, will be disappointed. The first year at the museum’s fall event, the family did grind the pork by hand, but found that dealing with a 200-pound pig, that was too ardu- ous a task. Now the family brings out their shiny new power grinder from Cabela’s and Mennonite Heritage Village manager Robert Goertzen provides a long cord to plug it in.
with some cattle, pigs for butchering and chickens, which supply the fam- ily with the main ingredient of chick- en noodle soup, as well as fresh eggs. Sheila also has a huge garden and Fall on the Farm Day was a break from her steady fall routine of can- ning, canning, and more canning. Bill says Sheila has slowed down a bit recently, though, as she used to can 140-150 jars for the pantry shelves and that is now down to probably just over 100. When asked if all this great food was shared with customers at local farmers’ markets, Bill was quick to say they didn’t need to spend their time that way. Bill has nine siblings, so there is
much needed to be self-sufficient. For many older museum visitors, who dropped by the demonstration table, this was the way they remem- bered it as it used to be, but for the Bill and Sheila Froese family this is very much the way it still is. Froese Heating and Ventilation has been the family business for 23 years, but the family farm is 140 acres
They cheerfully spend a long day of slicing and cutting, while pre- paring a whole hog for everything from head cheese, and crackles, to smoked bacon and spare ribs. All the while, members of the family answer questions and show visitors how each part of the pig was used and how things used to be done by pio- neers on a farm, that, back then, very
by WES KEATING M embers of the Froese fam- ily from the Grunthal area have been demonstrating the pioneer skill of hog butchering at the annual Fall on the Farm Day at the Mennonite Heritage Village for much more than a decade.
Family members know that when they are invited to the Froese’s for dinner, they will be well fed, and may even take home a jar or two
The necessity to finish the job in short order also prompts the use of an electric saw to cut through the bigger bones, in preparing different portions of the carcass on the dis- play table. The pioneers certainly did not have it this easy, but Sheila Froese is quick to note that hard work and healthy eating made for a lengthy life for earlier generations. Froese’s father, John J. Penner, is 96, still lives in his own home and has his own garden. He used to live in Chortitz, west of the Red River, but has retired to Grunthal, Sheila said. While she separates the skin from the layer of fat beneath it, Shiela ex- plains the skin will be ground up and used for the making of headcheese. The ground up skin provides the gel- atin to hold the headcheese togeth- er, she explains. During the cutting process that creates roasts, hams, spare ribs and bacon, not a single scrap was wast- ed. A cauldron was heated up to cre- ate crackles. Boiling water separated the meat from the lard and the re- sulting crackles were put in storage
no shortage of family to help dispose of all they produce on their “hobby farm.” Family members know that when they are invited to the Froese’s for dinner, they will be well fed, and may even take home a jar or two. “No farmer’s market for us. We can eat this all ourselves.” Early in the morning on Fall on the Farm Day, the Froese family was all set up and the cutting process well underway before the arrival of the first visitors. Using the edge of a sharp knife to scrape the bristles off the head of the demonstration carcass, Bill Froese explains this is the first step in mak- ing head cheese and has been his job ever since he was a teenager on the farm. The parts of the head and the rest of the animal are laid out on the ta- ble to explain to young and older visitors alike how every part of the animal was used, “in the old days.” Bill says his dad’s favorite part of the pig was the snout, but his were the ears and the feet, which were boiled, pickled and then eaten cold.
WES KEATING THE CARILLON By her expression you can tell Kianna is not in any hurry to help Grandma Sheila and Grandpa Bill with their annual demonstration at the MHV.
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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2024
Agriculture Now
WES KEATING THE CARILLON
Joanne Froese gives museum manager Robert Goertzen a demonstration of the way to remove the pig’s skin.
to be used as needed. The pioneers ate everything else on a seasonal basis or canned it to save meat that way. Today, it goes into the freezer. The lard was used for baking or headed for the fryer to make those delicious donuts Mennonites are known for. A hog producer who visited the ta- ble was asked about his favorite part of raising pigs. His reply was that it was when the raising of the pig was done and it was in the oven roasting. And just like the pioneers, who, out of necessity, used every part of the animal, today’s cooks appreciate the flavour added by pork bones. Nathan Dueck, who stopped by to chat with the Froeses, said he likes to use pigs’ feet as an ingredient for the base when he makes Ramen. The popular Japanese soup has a hard-to-describe flavour of its own, adding “umami”, (a pleasant savory taste), to the usual salty, sweet, sour or bitter. And where better place than the museum grounds where a multicul- tural theme was the order of the day to pick up a cooking tip combining cultures. Alongside the traditional Russian Mennonite ethnic food in the Livery Barn Restaurant, Fall in the Farm Day visitors had their choice of foods of half a dozen different cultures. Food vendors included Chinese spring rolls, Filipino eats, Paraguay- an dishes, Columbian cuisine, Nige- rian delicacies, and dishes served up by the Indian Spice Club. And along with the traditional pi- oneer demonstrations ranging from threshing to flour milling, a cultures stage featured entertainers repre- senting nine different ethnic groups. Museum interim executive direc- tor Robert Goertzen says this year’s Fall on the Farm program was an ef- fort to make everyone feel welcome at the museum. Mennonite Heritage Village is not just about Menno- nites and provides an opportuni- ty to share that culture and history with so many people of other back- grounds, he said. A popular social event for the early pioneers was the farm auction and the Mennonite Heritage Village took the opportunity to include a small sample again this year. In the past, a fund-raising auc- tion of donated items was an annual event at the museum, but recently it has been a way to cap off the sum- mer for the museum’s pork produc- ers. In the spring, a local producer do- nates three weanlings to the muse-
WES KEATING THE CARILLON Bill Froese demonstrates his barbering skills, using a sharp knife to shave the bristles from a pig’s head as the first step to making head cheese.
When the Froese family were fin- ished their demonstration, the area was cleaned up and the government inspected cut and wrapped pork from the other two carcasses was auctioned off by Ron Kornelson. This is good quality pork and peo- ple are happy to be generous in their bidding, and the auction usually raises between $1,000 and $1,500 for the museum, Goertzen said. This is a small version of the farm auction that used to be a social event, where neighbors got togeth- er to support the family holding the auction. The auctioneer creates an at- mosphere of friendly competition among bidders, adding a festive note to the occasion.
um and the summer is spent raising the animals to market weight, Goert- zen explains. The pigs spend the summer in a pen, and outdoor shelter with straw, on the museum grounds, getting fed and interacting with visitors to the museum. Sometimes, when they are lucky, the pigs are treated to kitchen scraps and garden waste. By the end of August, the three pigs weighed close to 200 pounds. They were butchered and two of the carcasses were cut and wrapped at a government inspected facility. The third carcass, as has been the case for about 15 years, was delivered to the museum grounds by the Bill Fro- ese family, who spent the day show- ing visitors how the animal is cut up, how bacon is prepared, how crackles are made, how sausage is ground up and hams are smoked.
WES KEATING THE CARILLON Mary Goertzen, a welcome volunteer, drove in from Gimli early in the morning to give the Froese family a hand with their butchering efforts during Fall on the Farm Day.
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Agriculture Now
WES KEATING THE CARILLON
Marc Hutlet welcomes customers to the 40th edition of the fall crop tour at the Marc Hutlet Seeds test plots on Provincial Road 201, east of Landmark. Southeast diversity spells success for Hutlet Seeds
by WES KEATING A fter more than four decades at the helm, Marc Hutlet has decided to turn the ever- ex- panding seed company at Dufres- ne over to the next generation. But while his daughter Karis and Ben Signer are handling things on a day- to-day basis, Hutlet is not complete- ly out of the picture just yet. Like the farmers he has been serving for generations, he still isn’t ready to retire, and his dedication drives him to keep a finger on the pulse of the agricultural diversity that has seen southeastern Manito- ba grow and flourish. Many of those farmers, who also have turned their operations over to the next generation, joined Marc at the annual fall crop tour the first week in September. Hutlet was very much present, visiting with cus- tomers, while Karis and Ben talked about the soybeans and corn that made up the two test plots on Pro- vincial Road 210, east of Landmark. While the company agronomists were wrapping up their presenta- tion, Marc was back at the road, firing up the barbecue to serve up smokies to the hungry crowd at- tending the event. There were prob- ably close to 80 farmers there, some for the soybeans, some for the corn, Hutlet said. The annual crop tour, approach- ing its 40th year, gives Marc Hutlet Seeds the opportunity to rate the performances of several varieties of corn and soybeans during the grow- ing season, and at the same time, introduce a new variety or two that will do well in the soil conditions and climate of southeastern Mani- toba. The five varieties of soybeans, planted in eight rows of each, have turned around since the cold, sat- urated conditions in the first half of the season. Hutlet Seeds usually includes one or two new varieties in their test plots, but for next year Pi- oneer Hi-Bred is launching five new varieties of soybeans with a new genetic platform of herbicide toler- ance called Enlist E3 and all five will be in Hutlet test plots and commer- cial fields in 2025. In the Southeast, this year’s soy- bean crop is not expected to be as good as last year’s, but 2023 was a high-water mark year for soybeans, Hutlet said.
WES KEATING THE CARILLON
Eric Peters, Wendell Penner and Loren Warkentin in a tall stand of corn at the annual Marc Hutlet Seeds crop tour.
crop tour, one of her many tasks in the office, was to text 250 people asking them to attend the tour. As the company has expanded, so has their yard. Over the years, more warehouses were added to the yard at Dufresne for corn seed storage and a soybean plant today that con- sists of eight bins, capable of hous- ing 32,000 units of soybeans. Hutlet explains that one unit of soybeans doesn’t quite plant one acre while a bag of corn can plant approximately 2.35 acres.
students. Marc’s wife Marilyn still helps out in the office during spring pick-up days, although she is more grandmother than staff, these days, Hutlet says. Their daughter Karis is one of the two agronomists at Hutlet’s and a part of the shift in ownership. She has been with the company on a full-time basis since graduating from the University of Manitoba with an agri-business de- gree in 2017. Ben Signer, who has been with Hutlet for a decade, is now the lead agronomist, according to Karis. Barb Dueck is busy as the full-time administrator. Before the recent
From the beginning, when he was selling 15 to 20 bags of corn seed to a dozen customers, Marc Hutlet Seeds soon outgrew the family farm location and moved to the yard at Dufresne. From that start in 1982, Marc says he built the business slowly and when he made the decision to focus all his energy on lining up more seed customers and being more connect- ed with his existing customer base, Marc Hutlet Seeds grew rapidly. The company today includes two full-time sales agronomists, a full-time administrator, a full-time seasonal driver, as well as summer
The same challenges apply to growing corn this year and produc- ers may be running out of time for grain corn to mature before a killing frost. Some will cut the corn as for- age instead of waiting to harvest the crop, but most will wait for the first frost before making that decision, Hutlet said. Marc Hutlet Seeds had its begin- nings on the family farm north of Giroux where Marc was a salesman for PAG Cargill, selling sunflowers. It wasn’t long before corn was added to his list and he recalls that Ed Os- wald at Friedensfeld was one of his first grain corn customers.
See ‘Soybeans gaining’ on 7C
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Agriculture Now
WES KEATING THE CARILLON
Mike Weir, area agronomist for Pioneer Hi-Bred, chats with Eric Peters, who has been a Marc Hutlet seeds customer since the 1990s.
Soybeans gaining in popularity Continued from page 6C
ing to connect as much as possible with his customers and has spent the past two decades working on finding out what their needs are, while gaining a reputation as an ad- visor. One of the important facets of gaining the information needed in- volves roughly 100 corn/soybean trials Hutlet Seeds conducts every growing season, comparing yields on 500 different strips of numerous varieties of corn and soybeans. During the growing season, Marc Hutlet Seeds provides a weekly video that can be picked up on YouTube to help producers alleviate problems that may arise along the way. Satel- lite imagery has replaced the drones that used to be employed to create videos that provide instantaneous recommendations to producers. A website developed more than a dozen years ago gets reports on yield weight comparisons to customers in a hurry and saves an enormous amount of mailing, which used to be the case. Years ago, Marc Hutlet Seeds would mail out 350 copies of the report. Now farmers can visit the website and download the informa- tion or, if they choose, receive it by e-mail. More field scouting helps produc-
well, Hutlet explains. “There is no better plant than corn to recycle the nutrients in soil applied manure and make efficient use of it.” Corn and soybeans are the biggest driver of sales for Marc Hutlet Seeds, which also handles alfalfa and cano- la. It hasn’t always been that way and when Marc first started back in the early 1980’s, it took 85 to 90 days for grain corn to mature and yields were inevitably lower. Today, 75-day corn is producing up to 50 bushels more per acre than that first corn. “Herbicide tolerance, improved disease protection and pest resis- tance to European Corn Borer as well as Northern Corn Root worm have turned that crop around.” But even as the business expands and sales continue to grow, Hutlet says there are no plans to increase the area Marc Hutlet Seeds has tra- ditionally served, which is a wide swath of southeastern Manitoba. The diversity of dairy, poultry, swine and cash crops in this corner of the province is a phenomenal mix and provides Marc Hutlet Seeds with ever-increasing soybean and corn acreage. Hutlet says he is persistent in try-
Some customers find it conve- nient for Hutlet to store their seed until it is needed, and the added warehouses are a result of that. Hut- let says this is a most important con- venience for customers, who don’t always want their seed until they are ready for planting. Soybeans are delivered to the cus- tomer in bulk or picked up by pro- ducers in tenders or trucks. Corn proboxes or bags are mostly de- livered except at pickup days. The yard at Dufresne grew as the busi- ness grew, with four bins going up in 2005 and another four added five years later. There has been an evolution in soybeans throughout the North American marketplace. Adaptable genetic varieties combined with herbicide tolerance traits have brought early maturing soybeans to this area. Two decades ago, there were no soybeans of any relevance in the Southeast, and now it has be- come a rotational crop on most ev- ery farm. Grain corn acres have increased a lot over the years, as well. Genet- ic development has stimulated that growth and the use of manure as fertilizer from all the livestock op- erations has played a major role as
WES KEATING THE CARILLON Ben Signer checks the planting date for a variety of grain corn that used to be the most widely grown in Manitoba.
Bomber, Pistons games and offers snowmobile rides in the off-season. “It is important to keep in contact with producers and it is not always just about selling something.”
ers manage their crops and is just one of the perks of being a Marc Hutlet Seeds customer. Hutlet also hosts regular growers’ meetings, takes customers to Jets,
WES KEATING THE CARILLON
Karis, Ben and Marc review the agenda for the day before beginning presentations at the annual crop tour.
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n www.thecarillon.com THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2024 Agriculture Now
LORI PENNER THE CARILLON Jeremy Hughes, product manager at Horsch, says while farmers can’t control the weather, they can take advantage of new technology which allows more efficiency.
LORI PENNER THE CARILLON One of many machines demonstrated at Down2Earth, a learning event hosted by genAg.
Farming: A bigger learning curve than it used to be
about the pinnacle planting date. After a certain date, you start losing yield because of the calendar. We far surpassed that in many regions of the major corn and soybean areas of the U.S.” He added, “With our climate changing, our seeding windows are getting shorter, and when we have the time to get out there to get the job done, we need to get the most done.” While high tech equipment can’t control the weather, it can provide producers with better systems to spray at higher wind speeds, with nozzles that are more directed at the target. “We work with planting and seed- ing technology, running at higher speeds, with less time filling, more time running, and more acres per day, so that when that window opens, we can capitalize and grab more productivity rather than sacri- ficing it with something that’s slow- er.” Vencatasamy says with new tech- nology comes better efficiency. “These days, farmers have to be constantly more efficient and able to do as much as possible, while keep- ing the costs as low as possible. With interest rates climbing, and all other things getting more expensive, the more we can do for the same cost or less cost, the better for everyone.” She adds, “Our goal is to get the equipment to be as efficient and meet the needs that they have. It’s always a changing environment, but
vesting equipment. “Our customers invest a lot of money and time into these products and this lifestyle. It’s important to give them the support and the edu- cation they need to use them prop- erly.” Last summer, they hosted their by-annual Down2Earth event, which always includes equipment demon- strations, educational sessions where producers spend one-on-one time with the actual manufacturers and can ask all their burning ques- tions and gain valuable insights. There was also a panel of speakers, who covered topics like stress man- agement and finance on the farm, which are no less relevant since technology came along. Jeremy Hughes, product man- ager at Horsch, based out of North Dakota, also shared his insights. He discussed changes in the industry, in relation to residue management, soil structure, and extreme weather conditions. “It’s about getting customers to sit down and analyze what’s going on, and potentially changing some of their dynamics and techniques to achieve more yield, more revenue, and look at it from a long-term strat- egy rather than year to year.” Hughes reflected on the influx of precipitation last spring. “It’s been an extreme weather year. We had a very wet spring. Back home in the U.S., our corn belt region was close to a month behind getting planted this year. We always talk
technicians at each of their three lo- cations in Winkler, Portage la Prairie, and Steinbach - the business takes pride in offering training and assis- tance for producers. “Equipment is becoming more complex. These are not your grand- father’s tractors,” says Vencatasamy. “These are way beyond even my scope. They all have computers on them now, so you have to know how to work the computer to work the machine. This is very advanced technology. So, we offer training for producers all winter long at various clinics for various operators. The ed- ucation piece is very important.” Greg Braun agrees. After years of experience in equipment sales with genAg, he’s seen firsthand how the new technology has added efficien- cy and led to healthier profits - but it comes with some learning. “This goes beyond just being a dealership. It involves a lot of train- ing, and a lot of classroom time in the field,” he says, explaining how their team learns and operates the equipment alongside the farmers, during planting and seeding season. “We sit in his tractor, and that is one way we can learn about the equip- ment, and the best way to use it.” The business offers a variety of products: CLAAS tractors, foragers and hay tools, SPUDNIK/GRIMME potato & vegetable equipment, Drago corn & sunflower headers, HORSCH tillage, seeding, planting and spraying equipment, as well as COLOtMBO dry/edible bean har-
by LORI PENNER A hundred years ago, farmers were still using horses to get their work done. It’s hard to imagine that, when you see today’s fields, packed with high-tech ma- chinery and computers doing the navigating instead of the farmer’s seasoned eye. Over the past century, agricul- ture has hit some major milestones, from commercial fertilizers and hybrid corn to GMOs. But the real game-changer has been the evolu- tion of tractors and implements. Nowadays, precision is everything. Each seed is planted at just the right distance and depth, with sensors on every row keeping track and sending updates to the cab. If something’s off, the farmer knows right away. Planters use pneumatic downforce to keep the pressure just right, ad- justing on the fly based on how firm the ground is. Spraying tech has also come a long way. Modern sprayers can shut off row by row to avoid over spraying and can even target just the weeds, leaving the bare ground alone. This means farmers can use less herbi- cide while still getting the job done. With all this tech, choosing and learning your machinery can be a daunting task. This is where experi- enced ag dealers come in. Melissa Vencatasamy is the gener- al manager of a second-generation farm equipment business called genAg. With an experienced team of
I think in general, that’s just the way it has to be. Can you use technolo- gy? Can you do something to make this machine do a little bit more with what they have? Farming has always been a learning curve, but now it’s become a lot more complex, and producers as well as dealers need to be willing to learn.” LORI PENNER THE CARILLON genAg general manager Melissa Vencatasamy says technology has added to the learning curve, which ag dealers and producers need to embrace.
September 14, 1962
Marchand tobacco may become next new cash crop for Manitoba
and parts of Tache and Reynolds. Steinbach area agricultural rep- resentative Fern Paquin assisted with the Marchand plots of tobacco grown for the Extension Service and the University of Manitoba. The crop grown on the Davidson Farm at Marchand was a cigarette type of tobacco, with seeds provided by the Dominion Experimental Sta- tion at Ottawa. While the plants looked good, the quality of the tobacco is only deter- mined after the leaves are cured. The Manitoba experiment was initially more concerned with the quality of the plants grown here, rather than determining the quantity that could be produced. A 1954 sample sent to an eastern factory graded Number 2, which would have fetched 30 cents a pound. Prodan had an experimental plot at Prawda that produced 1,100 pounds of cured tobacco per acre. “Unfortunately, the east grows all the tobacco it needs and there is absolutely no market for Manitoba grown tobacco.” Prodan was formerly an agricul- tural representative at Vita and be- lieves there are at least 60,000 acres of land in the Southeast that could grow tobacco successfully.
lecting yield data to find the most productive variety for this area.” The Marchand experiment grows 33 varieties side by side, includ- ing the best available on the North American market. In addition to the variety of seeds, each variety has had a variety of fertilizer trials done on it. This means there are hundreds of carefully marked stakes in the large plot and details of the plants in each section are recorded very carefully. The crop is picked by hand and the number of leaves each plant has borne is recorded before the leaves go into the kilns, where they are cured to a soft, golden yellow before they are off to the tobacco factory. In addition to tobacco, the exper- imental plot at Marchand is also growing mint and coriander seeds, along with several other crops. Experiments with tobacco grow- ing in Southeastern Manitoba in the early 1950s showed that a great grade of cigarette tobacco could be grown successfully here. But at that time, there was no market for the product and the land best suited for tobacco would stay in jack pine and blueberries. In charge of the experiment at Marchand, seven years ago was agri- cultural representative C.S. Prodan, who served the RM of Springfield
by WES KEATING A fter several years of experi- mental production, tobacco grown at Marchand is begin- ning to show promise of becoming another new cash crop for Manitoba. Mars Lipsit, manager of the Marchand project, told The Caril- lon News that judging by the yield of some of the 33 varieties being grown, a target of 1,500 pounds per acre could be met, not that far into the future. The 1,500 pounds is the production yardstick used to deter- mine when the tobacco crop would become profitable, he said. The tobacco growing experiment was panned by Winnipeg daily newspapers last year, claiming try- ing to grow tobacco in Manitoba was a waste of time, as the crop could never be grown profitably in the province. Lipsit hopes these naysayers will take note of the results of this year’s experiment. Dr. A. C. Ferguson of the plant science department at the Uni- versity of Manitoba agrees with him. “For the past three years, we have only experimented to determine whether or not we could match the quality of eastern growers. Now we are working on monitoring and col-
CARILLON ARCHIVES C.S. Prodan, ag rep and tobacco specialist, with tobacco leaves from the 1955 crop grown on an experimental plot at Davidson Farm at Marchand.
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