Canada’s Agriculture Day Feb. 16

By Stan Ashbee
Sunny South News

Canada’s Agriculture Day is coming February 16, so southern Albertans — get your farm on.
“Agriculture More Than Ever, Farm and Food Care Canada and Agriculture in the Classroom initiated this day back in June of 2016. The intent behind the day is really for it to be an industry day for everyone who is part of the Canadian agriculture industry to come together, to share their pride and their passion for the industry and to also create a closer connection with people outside of agriculture, as to where their food comes from and how it’s produced,” said Candace Hill, manager of Ag More Than Ever.
Essentially, Hill noted, Ag More Than Ever is an industry-driven cause and the organization is focused on being a resource to the Canadian agriculture industry. “With this day, we are supporting groups and individuals by being a catalyst for the day by sharing ideas to inspire them to participate in any way they choose with the one request — they maintain the spirit of speaking up and speaking positively about Canadian agriculture, which is really the foundation as to what Ag More Than Ever, as a cause, is built upon,” Hill explained.
Locally, there are a variety of ways for those interested in participating in the day to get involved including visiting the website agday.ca. “They can go to the website and we actually have a whole bunch of ideas there for both individuals and groups. Every thing from if you’re on social media, so Twitter, Facebook and Instagram — it’s as easy as getting active there and sharing a photo about a day in the life on your farm on that day. It also could be having a conversation with somebody in a grocery store about food and how it’s produced and those types of things. It also could be making a meal for your family with all Canadian food. You could share photos, you could host a potluck at your office or with your friends and invite them over and those types of things with the challenge of food produced in Canada, with Canadian ingredients,” she said.
Hill said the theme of the day is “Let’s celebrate the food we love.” “It’s out of the recognition that today there’s less than three per cent of people in Canada that have a direct connection to the farm, which is an opportunity for those of us who are part of the agriculture industry, which has a great story to tell, for us to speak up and speak positively and to create connections and what better way to create a connection with somebody outside of the industry than over food,” Hill added.
Some of our Ag More Than Ever partners, Hill said, in Alberta specifically are actually hosting events including a whole group of over 20 ag-industry organizations who will come together for an event in Olds. “It is a day where they will bring together people in the industry, farmers and consumers together and connect over food.”
On the Ag More Than Ever website, Hill said, there is an event section with details of events happening on the day.
Hill said Ag More Than Ever encourages everybody who is part of agriculture — farmers, people who work for the industry, and organizations — to look for ways to get active on that day. “And be part of the community across Canadian agriculture who are going to be sharing our pride in agriculture on that day.”

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