I am the fifth generation of my family to operate our Wetaskiwin area farm. In keeping with tradition, I have given it my own unique spin in the form of a garlic products business.

Ag continues to digitize at a rapid pace. The ag sector is increasingly more about automation and AI and less about buttons and belts. Throughout the industry, bright minds and innovative companies take risks and push toward data-driven solutions. GrainsWest  sat down with five organizations that aim to make life easier and more profitable for farmers while attempting to derisk and demystify emerging tech.

When it comes to hot Canadian commodities, flour takes the cake. Over the last several years, domestic demand for flour and baked goods has steadily grown. As factors such as immigration, higher personal incomes and the evolution of consumer tastes drive this trend, the industry hopes a healthy appetite for flour will be baked into our economy for years to come.

Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan have gone underground, and underwater, to uncover the root cause of lodging in barley. Using a new approach, the Crop Development Centre’s Aaron Beattie and the National Research Council of Canada’s Allan Feurtado employed hydroponics to identify root traits that improve lodging resistance.

Canadian wheat breeders and researchers agree on three things: lodging is a serious concern for Prairie wheat farmers, stem strength isn’t the only factor that affects lodging and more research is needed to find agronomic and genetic responses.

Real Garant began his work life at 18 farming grain and forages with his father and two brothers in the Donnelly area. In winter, he took a job at a local sawmill operated by relatives. A general labourer, he was inquisitive and bombarded maintenance staff with questions. Over following seasons, he serviced air and electrical systems and began welding and machining various parts. To beef up his farm skillset, he took an apprentice machining course at NAIT. Soon after, he established a small shop on the farm. Customer demand grew quickly. He rented his land to his brothers and threw himself into the launch of his own full time business, Donnelly Machining and Fabricating. The business serves a wide variety of clients in agriculture and agri-food manufacturing, the heavy equipment and forestry industries and even schools and hospitals. It’s a go-to business in the Upper Peace Region, but it is Garant’s 2022 product the Spider Hitch, which launched a second enterprise that carries international potential.

If it’s true you’re only as good as your data, the thinkers at Hebert Group are exceptionally good. Led by farmer Kristjan Hebert and CFO Evan Shout, the agribusiness recently partnered with Stratus Ag Research to survey 417 farmers about Canada’s agricultural policy landscape.

When Greg Newman is pitched a new product for his 3,000-acre grain farm in Alberta’s Peace Region, the first question he asks is: “Has that product been tried and tested up here?” Without local data, he’s not buying. “What works in southern Alberta can work totally different up north,” said Newman, who farms alongside his two sons near Fort Vermilion.

Nitrogen is a fundamental driver of plant growth, yet a significant portion of what is applied annually by farmers is not taken up by the crop. When nitrogen fertilizer is applied to a field, a portion is lost to greenhouse gas emissions, leaching and run-off. “It’s an inefficiency problem,” said Chad Matthies, chief growth officer of Ukko Agro, a Toronto-based ag tech company.

Until recently, Saskatchewan attracted less than one per cent of Canadian tech venture capital dollars. In 2019, Conexus Credit Union of Regina established its business incubator, Cultivator, to kick-start the province’s modest tech sector. “Saskatchewan was missing out in a big way because we didn’t have this tech ecosystem,” said director Laura Mock.