In his 38 years as an instructor at Olds College in Olds, Alta., Ian Hall has brought a fresh set of eyes to the world of farm business management, railing against practices that have long been accepted.
Hall, who will retire next year, said his urban upbringing in Edmonton allowed him to question traditional ways of farming while his own operation, acquired after he started teaching, gave him insights into agricultural production.
“I question why people do things rather than accept.”
His teaching style has resonated with students. After winning the Olds College Students’ Association award four times, the association named it after him. The award is given to a staff member who positively affects students, goes beyond the call of duty for students and is involved in extracurricular activities.
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He has also earned the Master Instructor designation three times and a medal of teaching excellence.
Hall, who preaches a straightforward message to his students about learning as much as possible about a variety of topics, holds strong views on the cold reality of modern farm economics, believing some farms will survive and others will not.
Mid-sized farms are most at risk, he said, because they are too big to allow off-farm work that might supplement sagging farm returns but too small to generate enough income to support the family’s needs.
Hall believes success in farming will come from a new vision, where expansion of land base in an increasingly expensive real estate market is not the overriding concern.
Instead, he thinks farmers will have to look at their skills and resources in new ways, which might include renting land instead of owning it, or selling services as a custom baler instead of producing large amounts of forage.
“Maybe it’s possible to do some farming of our own and expand by doing things for other people,” said Hall, who teaches classes in agricultural production and business.
Revamping existing operations to make them more profitable might include switching from baling and hauling feed to swath grazing or replacing summer fallowing with minimum tillage.
“Do things differently than you did before,” said Hall.
He believes farmers of the future can be successful, but narrow profit margins will not allow them to carry high debt loads.
Hall advises farmers to sharpen their pencils and always keep the costs of production in their sights. They can be successful by taking advantage of market opportunities and working toward goals, he added.
“Success just doesn’t come, it has to be earned and worked for.”
Hall chose Olds College as a student, hoping to experience farming after deciding to become a veterinarian. Following his diploma in agriculture, he completed a degree in agricultural economics at the University of Alberta.
He started teaching at Olds in 1968, fresh out of school and just a few years older than his students.
“I felt I could relate as we were going through the same kinds of things,” he said.
Today, he is teaching many of those original students’ children.
Buying a farm in 1973 helped him better understand his students and their farm lifestyle.
One of his three children joined him in the operation, which now raises cattle and produces timothy hay on dry land for export markets.
He tries to keep his classes grounded in the real world, offering practical help in an ever-changing world of farming.
For Hall, teaching a new crop of students each year keeps the job exciting.
“Maybe it’s the 38th time I’ve taught it to the students, but it’s the first time they have heard it,” he said.
Hall plans to travel with his wife Linda following his retirement in 2007, including agricultural tours and the chance to see first hand how other countries deal with their farming challenges.
