What the Cuthberts discovered is there’s an unfilled market they’re tapping into.
“Our birds are between five and seven pounds, and sometimes up to 10 pounds,” Thomas told Farms.com in February. “You can’t really get those anywhere else and it’s a unique market we’re trying to fill.”
Representing Alberta is Sarah Weigum, a specialized pedigreed seed producer and saleswoman from Three Hills, Alta. She’s also president of the Alberta-British Columbia Seed Growers.
“We want to find new ways to connect with our growers, whether it’s on the farm or around a kitchen table,” she said in March. “It’s important that their voices are heard and that we’re constantly aligning our work with their needs.”
Brady and Lindsay Funk, owners and operators of Braylin Acres in Lucky Lake, will represent Saskatchewan at the national event.
The Funks installed a sub-surface drip irrigation instead of a traditional pivot, which has resulted in higher yields.
“Comparing irrigated acres to dryland acres, which were literally 100 metres away from us on the other side of the road, the yield increase was 500 per cent,” Brady told Farms.com in April.
Darren and Allison Hueging will carry Manitoba’s flag into the competition.
The dairy farmers and owners of Current Holsteins in Woodlands, milk about 80 cows while also maintaining a 300 cow-calf beef operation.
The farm focuses on maximizing butterfat production, improving genetics, and improving animal health.
Allison is also a licensed vet specializing in preventive bovine medicine.
Hoping to bring home the national title for Ontario is Ryan and Romy Schill.
The farmers and wool producers from Wallenstein raise about 700 purebred Dorset ewes and raise crops to support the sheep.
The Schills transitioned to sheep farming from beef and hog production.
“The cattle markets were not great, and pigs were horrible,” Ryan told Farms.com in April. “We had to have a discussion about wanting to continue farming, how we were going to do it and how it was going to look. We saw opportunities in sheep with ethnic markets and immigrants in Canada.”
Ryan looks after the sheep and crops while Romy oversees the wool part of the business.
Pierre-Luc Barré and Virginie Bourque from Yves Barré Farm in St-Damase will be Quebec’s representatives in the national competition.
The vegetable farm includes field corn, beans, sweet corn, soybeans, and potatoes.
This diversification of crops allows for improved rotations in addition to reducing financial risk.
His goal is to have 200 hectares of potato production, and 1,000 total hectares of production.
And representing Atlantic Canada is Katie Campbell and her cousin William Spurr from Spurr Brothers Farm in Wilmot, N.S.
The fifth-generation farm started in 1875 on 62 acres of apples, hay, and grains.
Today the farm consists of about 800 acres of orchards including 20 varieties of apples, strawberries, potatoes, and forage crops.
Katie looks after business administration activities while William manages crops and launched a hard cider division of the business.
In 2024, Gemstone Cattle Company from Gem, Alta., and Polyculture Plante 1987 Inc of Saint-Pétronille, Que., shared the national title.
Farms.com wishes all the regional winners luck in the national competition!