IRON SPRINGS, Alta. – Farming needs to be presented in a positive light today to encourage youth to make it part of their life tomorrow, says Christine Van Raay.
From inside her sprawling ranch home adjacent to one of six feedlot sites at Cor Van Raay Farms, she stressed the importance of presenting farming as a comfortable lifestyle and a good business.
“It upsets me when people say, ‘I’m just a farmer.’ It’s too downgrading,” she said. “You should be proud to be a farmer.”
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She and her husband Cor emigrated from Europe before meeting, marrying and founding what is now one of Canada’s largest individually owned cattle feedlots.
It grew from 50 head in the 1960s to today’s capacity of 117,000, with 14,500 acres of irrigated land spread around this southern Alberta region.
Cattle in the feedlot are owned by the Van Raays and enter at 675-925 pounds. They exit for the packing plant at more than 1,300 lb.
The Van Raays buy barley and grain to add to the silage they make themselves and spread manure from the feedlot over their 100 quarters of land.
Sitting around the family’s dining table where business decisions are made daily over breakfast, Christine and her daughters, Colleen and Brenda, discussed their life and future here.
“We wouldn’t be involved unless there was something to be involved for,” said Colleen.
Cor and Christine always encouraged their six children to stay on the farm. The parents say they never talked badly about agriculture and always presented it as a good lifestyle choice.
Even with the current hard times and poor returns that BSE has brought to the industry and to their business, Christine still looks ahead to the day when borders will reopen and when they will finish another feedlot site.
Her daughter Colleen said growing up in the cattle business and managing millions of dollars has helped her learn how to handle stress, take risks and “wheel and deal” in other areas of her life.
Her sister Brenda said she is as comfortable in the corrals as in the offices. She has a trucking business and hopes to ease back into the family business when her children are older.
“I’m not scared to go buy a piece of land and borrow money,” Brenda said. “I don’t need someone to hold my hand. I don’t need my husband’s or Mom’s approval.”
Christine said the family’s success comes from continued expansion.
“If you just plan on keeping what you’ve got, then you should get out,” she said. “If you hang on too long without doing something, then others will surpass you.”
Christine said the feedlot business is not for the faint of heart: “If you couldn’t sleep nights, you couldn’t run this operation.”
In addition to feedlots, Cor and Christine have invested in a John Deere dealership and packing plant.
BSE has made them think more about such off-farm investments, said Christine, who noted that the management of their various interests requires good organization and support.
The family puts a lot of faith in their 55 year-round employees.
The Van Raays are also an integral part of the workforce, with Cor acting as principal owner and operator and Christine wearing many hats, from managing farm tours to yard work.
“If you let things go down, it just loses you money,” explained Christine of her fastidiousness. “If you see a sloppy outfit from the outside, it’s sloppily run on the inside.”ww
Her son Ken serves as the land and equipment manager, Darren works with the cattle and Colleen acts as office manager and grain buyer.
Like their sister Brenda, who has a Class 1 truck licence, Ken, Darren and Colleen also operate their own trucking companies.
Sisters Sandra and Michelle work off the farm in medical careers.
In recent years, Colleen has become the voice and face of Van Raay Farms, a job that publicity-shy Cor is glad to pass on.
The family has worked hard to dispel myths and present information about their operation though tours, meetings and public forums.
“Why would we ruin the land that is our livelihood,” said Colleen. “When you’re as big as we are, you can’t get away with doing things incorrectly.”
Despite its size, Colleen noted their operation is still more family oriented than corporate.
“It is completely managed by a family that makes decisions around the breakfast table.”
She said decisions are made as a family and all members are treated as equals: “Cor respects our input.”
Women remain in the minority in the cattle business, but Colleen guessed many more are working behind the scenes.
The Van Raay women felt women bring greater compassion for the animals, and handle conflicts differently.
“Women let a problem sit and simmer for a while and tend to avoid confrontation,” said Colleen.
Cor, by contrast, deals with issues as they arise, they say.
“He doesn’t avoid things,” said Christine.
She and Cor look ahead to a gradual transfer of the business to the next generation, now in their 30s and 40s, in the coming years.
Brenda will keep a hand in the business through bookkeeping and Colleen will continue to hone her organizational strengths.
“There are plans for us to do less and for them to do more,” said Christine. “But you can’t do it overnight. We didn’t get here overnight and can’t leave overnight.”
