Roger Provencher has one sweet job. The marketing manager not only receives two all-expenses-paid trips to European trade shows each year, but his bosses encourage him to stay on and do some sightseeing. “After the SIAL food show in Paris last fall, I spent another nine days and toured four different countries while meeting customers,” […] Read more
Stories by Glenn Cheater
Starting new business no easy task – The Bottom Line
Thinking of adding a new enterprise to your farm? Be prepared to suffer. Some new ventures are instant hits, but often success goes to those who grind it out and find ways to endure when times are bleak. Merv Farmer knows that routine. Forty years ago, he and wife Lou went up to their eyeballs […] Read more
Food safety fears present opportunity – The Bottom Line
Whoever dreamed that wheat gluten adulterated with the chemical melamine, which is normally used in plastic and fertilizer, could find its way from China into leading North American pet food brands? It’s a story that gripped pet owners this spring but also has big implications for the human food industry, according to Peter Kaufman, a […] Read more
Expansion can be risky time for businesses – The Bottom Line
They say nothing succeeds like success, but it can also be a ticking time bomb that can blow your business out of the water. “It’s definitely terror mode when you grow,” says Carl Bragg, president of Doug Bragg Enterprises. “Every business that starts to grow will very quickly run into cash-flow issues. You can make […] Read more
Marketing not something to leave to outsiders – The Bottom Line
For a marketer like Ted Soudant, the income problem in production agriculture isn’t exactly a mystery. Soudant once asked a group of 55 prairie farmers to estimate the collective value of their production assets: land, equipment, everything. “At least $35 million” was the answer that came back. “So my next question was, ‘how much do […] Read more
Mentor can help find road to success – The Bottom Line
It’s one thing to believe change and innovation are essential to build a profitable farm business. It’s quite another to think you can do it on your own. Many entrepreneurs say the smartest thing they ever did was find a mentor who helped them on the road to success. That’s the case with William Cheuk, […] Read more
Knowledge helps producers find an edge to get ahead – The Bottom Line
If you could pick your spot in Canadian agriculture, chances are it wouldn’t be a small hog farm in Prince Edward Island. But even in out-of-the-mainstream places, technology and innovative thinking can increase the odds of success. The pork business in P.E.I. is horrible right now. A strong Canadian dollar means low hog prices, and […] Read more
Meaning of healthy eating set to change – The Bottom Line
The hype surrounding functional food is huge but maddeningly vague. Supposedly, there’s a horde of people, notably aging baby boomers, eager to spend billions on foods with healthy properties. How many billions? Who knows. What kind of foods? Hard to say. How might farmers actually get in on the action? Hmmm, we’ll get back to […] Read more
Could an outsider boost your business? – The Bottom Line
If you want to see how successful Canada’s estate wine industry has become, check out land prices in prime grape-growing regions. “Back in the pre-free-trade days (in the late 1980s), land was going for $4,500 an acre, but recently a neighbouring winery paid $100,000 an acre,” said Ben Stewart of Quail’s Gate Estate Winery near […] Read more
Think outside the diversification box and give yourself room to shine – The Bottom Line
If you’re thinking of diversifying your farm operations, you are likely considering something agricultural. But another way to diversify is to use the skills you’ve developed while farming to move into a non-farming business. That’s what Ken Rempel did, and while his story is unusual – not everyone with a welding torch goes from farmyard […] Read more
