Ag excellence in Wheatland County

By Amber Link - Wheatland County Councillor

I was among those who boarded the bus on Aug. 23, to enjoy Wheatland County’s Agricultural Service Board tour of various agricultural facilities in the county.
We started with an informative tour of the Strathmore Seed Cleaning Plant. Founded in 1956, the member-owned leading-edge plant has been cleaning seed for over 60 years. It also offers seed treating, commercial cleaning and separation, shipping container loading and bagging, and supplies pedigreed seed. The plant is one of three plants in the county; we also have seed cleaning plants in Hussar and Rosebud. The plants provide services that are integral to our local grain producers.
Our next stop was at one of Hilton Ventures’ fields, to watch their impressive harvest operation in full swing. Through the smoky haze, we watched four combines, which can harvest 60 acres an hour, finish a field in synchronized precision. We learned the process that grain grown in Wheatland County takes to turn into award-winning craft beer.
Hilton Ventures farms 12,500 acres stretching across Wheatland County and beyond, from the Drumheller hills to just south of Calgary. Spreading out the geography helps diversify risk and is just one of the strategic decisions the Hilton’s have made. The family has been farming in the area for more than a century and has been growing some of the best malting barley in the world for over 40 years.
Spencer and Lynne Hilton shared their infectious passion for agriculture with the tour goers. When Lynne talks about how agriculture runs deep in their family’s veins, you can feel it. The love for farming and family is palpable. Today, all the Hilton kids come home to help with harvest and the fifth generation is already teaching the sixth generation what farming is all about. Spencer spoke of how farming has come full circle, back to a large multi-generational collaborative operation, which increases efficiencies.
Hilton’s repeatedly emphasized the importance of teamwork that is vital to their success, and it was evident in the committed crew that was working together making this year’s harvest happen.
Gordon Hilton, Spencer’s father, is known as a pioneer of no-till farming. He was inducted into the Alberta Agriculture Hall of Fame and is the very first inductee into the Soil Conservation Council of Canada Hall of Fame. At the time, no-till farming was unorthodox, and despite his neighbour’s skepticism and good-natured ribbing, Hilton persevered in both using his conservation-focused methods and educating others. Today, direct seeding is practiced by the majority of farmers across Western Canada.
The farm continues to focus on sustainable processes and refines its best crop management practices, which draws on 40 years of research with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada that includes the longest no-till plot in the world.
Conservation practices reduce erosion, increases soil fertility, significantly increases moisture retention and improves carbon sequestering. The Hilton farm sequesters 3,500 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide into the soil yearly. Farming practices improve air and water quality as they flow through the county, even reducing off-site pollutants.
Next the bus rolled into Strathmore to Origin Malting and Brewing, owned by Meleah and Kyle Geeraert. Kyle explained the malting and brewing processes and showed us around the pristine facility. Since the launch in August 2017, Origin brewing has offered 42 styles of beer and patrons can go through 35 kegs in a weekend from their taproom, which is one of the busiest around.
Origin prides itself in supporting local farmers and breweries, and fostering good relationships between the farmer, the maltster and the brewers. Craft malting meets consumer’s growing demand for information about where their food and drink comes from, and provides their product to those who want it sourced close to home. Origin Malting and Brewing provides full traceability, right down to the exact field where the barley was grown.
Origin is also committed to giving back to the community that supports them. The Strathmore Fire Department purchased some of its new equipment through a collaboration with Origin in producing their Last Post Brown Ale. It was created with the help of Legion veterans and proceeds contribute to the local Poppy Fund.
Origin is an outstanding example of vertical integration and diversification that will be the future of sustainable farms. While sampling Origin’s brews, we ate an absolutely delicious barbecued beef lunch, complete with brown beans and coleslaw, prepared by Dianne Brown owner of The Country Farmhouse. The Country Farmhouse opened its doors in 2005 and serves with rare hospitality you only find in the country. The quaint restaurant and unique gift shop is located between Gleichen and Cluny.
Next on the tour, Mick Taylor hopped on the bus and narrated a tour around Cattleland Feedyards Ltd. The capacity is 25,000 head, offering a full-service feedlot in the heart of Alberta’s cattle country. Creekstone Farms Ltd. is a separate entity of the business that shares staff and equipment with Cattleland. It farms 19,000 acres, which provides approximately 10 per cent of Cattleland’s feed needs and it make 36,000 metric tonnes of silage a year.
Cattleland’s Integrated Beef Research Station is Canada’s largest for-profit research facility, conducting a wide range of research, including exclusive and confidential trials to validate new pharmaceutical and feed ingredient products, and/or protocols that enhance animal weight gain and health benefits, reducing handling and stress in cattle. The in-house component is geared toward improving efficiencies of Cattleland’s feedlot, backgrounding and cow-calf operations, as well as adding value for producers through their bull test program. To that end, most of the in-house research is focused on residual feed intake (RFl) testing using the GrowSafe system. They collaborate with the University of Calgary faculty of veterinary medicine and two other universities. Animal welfare is at the forefront of all their research. Much of the research has practical implications and delivers economic impact for local ranchers. The Cattleland National Bull Evaluation Centre is the largest of its kind in the world, with a total capacity of 5,000 head of superior sires. It tests and exposes superior genetics in a globally recognized facility that can accommodate years of progeny testing and large commercial projects.
Cattleland is also feeding certified for natural and hormone-free beef, most of which is exported to the European Union.
I thought I understood feedlots before touring Cattleland, but I never realized how much research occurred and how science-based the operation is. Cattleland also offers educational tours.
Our final stop on the tour took us to Heritage Harvest that specializes in heritage grains, certified organic in 2008 by Global Organic Alliance; they are a fully integrated farm working from soil to the table. Owner Mark Gibeau showed us around the small-scale farm. Their product is high-quality heritage grains, with the main ones being Red Fife (one of the oldest wheat varieties in Canadian history), Marquis, and emmer/farro, which is made into whole grain flour with nothing removed and nothing added. They use organic nutrients, like an on-farm made compost tea, and use natural weed control practices to give a nutrient rich grain that is seeded with specially modified equipment. It is harvested, cleaned, sorted and then ground slow, with unheated stone-to-stone method on a traditional stone mill. The whole wheat is then delivered to artisan bakeries, gourmet chefs, stores and consumers within a growing niche market. The focus is on quality over quantity. Heritage Harvest is another fine example of utilizing niche markets and vertical integration to make a unique agricultural operation sustainable.