The Saskatchewan government is investigating whether it should help establish an organic learning centre in the province.
A consultant has been hired to do an organic training needs assessment to see if there are ways the government can assist the province’s 1,200 organic producers become better farmers.
It is a show of support for what the province has recognized as one of the most promising areas of agriculture.
“The organic industry is one that has been identified as having a fair bit of potential in this province,” said Don Perrault, agribusiness development specialist with Saskatchewan Agriculture.
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Organic producers have been relatively prosperous compared to their struggling conventional counterparts, he added.
“They’re actually doing reasonably well. From that perspective it’s an opportunity area for this province.”
Saskatchewan is home to one-third of the country’s organic producers and 58 percent of all land in organic production.
Perrault said there is strong potential for growth in the sector, considering the province’s reputation for a clean environment and based on claims that the industry is growing by 15 to 20 percent per year.
“We have a good toehold in this industry. We need to motivate producers to capture more of the opportunities that manifest themselves within this market and we need to capture the benefits that this represents.”
To find out how it can strengthen organic farmers’ knowledge base, the province is providing $30,000 in funding from Saskatchewan Learning’s sector partnership program to hire a consultant who will conduct surveys, hold focus groups and explore successful models used in other regions.
Lorraine Beaudette of Sage Management Services of Saskatoon will conduct the assessment. She has been working on the project since January and is expected to file a report by June 30 detailing recommendations on how to proceed.
Over the next few weeks, Beaudette will survey a cross-section of participants in the organic sector to obtain their views on learning needs, preferred delivery methods, use of technology and other areas of interest.
One of the key issues she will address is whether the province should establish an organic learning centre.
Such a project had previously been proposed for the Prairie Ursuline Centre in Bruno, Sask., but Perrault said the government must determine if there is a need for such a facility before making that big a commitment.
If it is determined there is a need for such an organization, Bruno will be one of several potential sites considered for the centre.
