Earlier this year, Jeremy Simes joined The Western Producer’s reporting staff to cover northern Alberta from his home base in Edmonton. However, as time marches on, other staff members are also moving on.
We are saying goodbye to three longtime journalists who have decided to retire.
Karen Morrison has been covering rural issues since 1984. For the last half dozen years, she’s edited our Farm Living section, which meant long days on the road and in motels to gather interviews for our On The Farm feature. Karen made sure that young farmers got their place in the Producer by featuring 4-H developments, she ensured that issues such as farm safety and farm diversification were highlighted and she managed our food section.
Read Also

Proactive approach best bet with looming catastrophes
The Pan-Canadian Action Plan on African swine fever has been developed to avoid the worst case scenario — a total loss ofmarket access.
Catherine Rumancik has been a layout editor for the Producer since she joined us 27 years ago. Mondays in the newsroom can be hectic, but Catherine’s poise helped us get the paper to press on time. You may not recognize the name, but you’ve read much of her work — she has written thousands of headlines for the Producer over the years.
D’Arce McMillan, our markets editor, is also retiring after almost 22 years at the Producer. D’Arce’s encyclopedic knowledge of everything from lentil markets in India to the weather in Ukraine and how all this matters to Canadian producers has secured our markets section as a must-read every week.
However, we are fortunate to have excellent journalists to take over.
Bruce Dyck, our news editor, will ensure the Farm Living section maintains the high quality rural coverage it’s known for.
“I know the rural lifestyle featured in the farm living section is important to readers,” Bruce said. “We have a great team of writers for the section, and we’ll make sure it continues to serve readers well.”
Michael Raine, one of the most respected agricultural journalists in Canada, will assume responsibility for the Markets section. For many years, Raine has guided our Production section, bringing machinery and agronomy news to readers.
“For farmers, reliable information on market developments and trends is a must to help them make decisions on everything from what crops to plant to when to sell,” he said. “We will continue to feature the depth and context of markets that has been the hallmark of the section over the years.”
Now, bring on 2018.