Young Albertans are working to create what they hope will be Canada’s first major facility for agricultural training, education and business development.
Green Hectares was created because of concerns that young people were not staying in agriculture, said Laura Bodell, chair of the group.
“It was primarily because the industry wasn’t viewed as profitable and yet our research tells us that it certainly can be when the operators are given the right tools,” she said.
Green Hectares is expected to provide the tools and education to help new farmers become viable operators. It will provide an avenue to showcase the latest innovations and research so young farmers can see it working on a quarter section of land in Strathcona county, east of Edmonton.
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“What we’re doing is providing a facility and also an on-line resource centre that gives both agriculture, industry participants, as well as the urban population easier access to the education and information that they need,” said Bodell.
The non-profit group organizing the facility was started two years ago as part of the Josephburg Agricultural Society by young people concerned that the average age of a Canadian farmer is 52. All the directors on the board of Green Hectares are younger than 30.
Bodell said the resource centre started following a recognition that high capital costs and lack of bank support make it difficult for a young person to start a farm.
She said farming has dramatically changed and new farmers cannot expect to make a profit by doing things the old way.
“High performance farms are consistently profitable regardless of market conditions with almost half of their income being derived from the market. Low performance farms, on the other hand, are consistently losing money and rely on large program payouts,” said Bodell.
“Probably equally or even more important than educating the young farmer is educating the urban population because as they get one more generation away from the farm, they have less connection with their food source.”
Bodell said Green Hectares will give city dwellers an opportunity to connect with their food through school visits and a community garden.
A business plan estimates it will cost $12.5 million to set up the centre in three stages including an agriculture, enterprise and conference centre, a demonstration forum and a livestock support and showmanship centre. Bodell sees the three-stage development taking five years to complete.
The group has to raise $3 million by April to complete the first stage, which would include purchase of a quarter section operation that would focus on training, various horse competitions and livestock.
Directors plan to meet with corporations to discuss potential sponsorships of the project.
“Certainly we’re realistic that we have our work cut out for us to raise $3 million by April under the current economic conditions,” she said.
