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MATT
SAWYER
The towering work ethic of former Prairie
farm boys is legendary in the country’s
corporate boardrooms, but the brain
drain of agriculture’s best and brightest
emerging leaders has slowed in recent
years. Times are changing, and western
Canadian agriculture is increasingly
harnessing the power and ambition of its
young minds.
Matt Sawyer, 42, exemplifies the
powerful motivation of this generation.
A grain and oilseed producer who raises
Black Angus cattle, he works the family
farm near the town of Acme. He is also
Alberta Barley chairman, a WCWGA
director and vice-president of Grain
Growers of Canada.
He reminisces about backbreaking
farm labour as fondly as if it were a
European backpacking trip. While
studying agricultural production at Olds
College, Sawyer packed live chickens
into semi-trailers at facilities across
Alberta and into the United States.
“We’d pack upwards of 35,000 birds
a night,” he recalls. His philosophy on the
subject is simple: “I’ve always enjoyed
hard work. You know, if you’re not
working, you might as well work, right?
That job taught me about work ethic.” It
also paid for his education and his first
herd of cows.
Graduating in 1993, Sawyer took on
feedlot work as he searched for direction
in his farm career. He found a mentor in
Doug Miller.
Just a few years older, Miller farms grain
and cattle a few kilometres from Sawyer.
“My grandpa always said, you pick
somebody that’s doing a good job and
you kinda go with it,” explained Sawyer.
“And this guy was always doing a good
job. He was a good farmer, a good
family man, and I respected that.” The
two became great friends, and when
Miller became an Alberta Barley director,
Sawyer paid close attention.
“I was interested in learning, and it was
exciting,” he said. “I certainly learned
you do need to have farmers’ voices in
there to help shape your industry and
help move things in the right direction.
Politicians and policy makers, whether
it’s provincial or federal, they look to
accredited agriculture groups to help
themmake decisions.”
“Matt’s pretty sharp,” said Miller.
Soaking up ag policy like a sponge,
Sawyer stepped up when Miller’s term
ended.
“He had a knack for it,” said Miller, who
ascribes much of his friend’s success in
the ag-sphere to charisma. “Matt is very
influential because of his personality.
He’s very well respected. People like
being around him. When he steps down
as chairman of Alberta Barley next year,
he’s going to be missed.”
Under Sawyer’s leadership, the
commission has indeed been very
productive. In 2013 alone, it worked
to build barley’s profile and boost
communication with farmers, in part
through a rebranding initiative that
saw the launch of two barley-focused
websites. Sawyer was also influential
in the creation of the Barley Council of
Canada.
“We were the group that spearheaded
it and put a lot of funding behind it,
because we realized the importance
of having a national voice for barley
farmers—a voice that unites the entire
value chain on the barley side,” said
Sawyer. These and other initiatives, such
as the creation of
GrainsWest
magazine,
reflect the hunger for communication
and information sharing that really
characterize contemporary farming.
Sawyer and his wife Tara practise what
they preach. Together, they received
the 2011 Outstanding Young Farmers of
Alberta Award. Aptly, the award’s national
governing body presents the honour to
producers for their farmpractices and
achievements, as well as community
contribution. While he balances fieldwork
with commission responsibilities, she
does the books, acts as the general leader
of the Swalwell 4-H Beef Club, feeds the
hired help and together they host 4-H
meetings and raise three young children.
The award illustrates Sawyer’s hard-
earned understanding of the agriculture
industry. As a man who finds fulfilment in
hard work, this suits him fine.
“It’s exciting. The environment is
always changing. There are always issues
that have to be dealt with,” he said. “You
want to make sure that you’re always
moving your industry forward. Farmers’
opinions matter, and it’s important
they're represented. And that’s what I’m
excited about.”
Spring
2014
grainswest.com
33