Grainswest - Fall 2024

Fall 2024 Grains West 20 F armers are skilled at many tasks. Marketing an entire season of crops while in line at Tim Hortons or properly sampling a super-B of grain while scrolling social media are but two examples. One thing many farmers just aren’t too good at, though, is retirement. For so many, 65 really is just a number. With the wisdom they’ve acquired in the art and science of farming, they can continue to make a difference. And given the standard auto features and air-rider comfort of new-model tractors, the work has become more physically accommodating for senior farmers. Famously reluctant to call it a day, many farmers are happy to change roles within their farm. By age 65, many have transitioned, in part or in full, away from the role of boss. New roles may include advisor, gopher, machine operator and shop worker. At the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council (CAHRC) in Ottawa, ON, staff regularly monitor vital farmer data, including age. The group’s 2023 farmer survey indicates the average age of a Canadian farmer is 58. “If that’s your average age, you know there’s a number that are over the age of 65,” said executive director Jennifer Wright. She points out, though, that farmer is more than a job description. It can define a person’s identity. “It is who they are, and if they’re healthy and they’ve been a farmer all their life, they don’t feel they need to retire. There is also some undertone that, for the larger farms especially, there may not be enough help.” Certain farmers may continue to work if they have no heir apparent, child or otherwise, to take over. This has become more common. Farm families are smaller than in generations past. From this diminished pool of potential farmers, many choose to work outside agriculture or within the industry but in other job categories. Of CAHRC survey interviewees who identified as farm workers, 21 per cent, or 438 out of 2,119, were over 65. CAHRC believes the industry can collectively lower the average age of farmers and alleviate pressure on farm owners. To do so, it can recruit vigorously outside of agriculture and maintain or expand rural infrastructure to attract and retain workforces. To understand why certain farmers carry on, GrainsWest interviewed a trio of Alberta farmers about their farming life before, and after, 65. Reluctant to retire, three farmers discuss the rewards of work beyond age 65 By Trevor Bacque • Illustrations by Dominic Bugatto FEATURE