Family farm or corporation? I'm not ashamed to be both
It is getting more challenging for small farms to stay economically viable
This piece was originally published on June 6, 2023.
This Opinion piece is by Kristjan Hebert, who operates a 32,000-acre grain and oilseed farm near Moosomin, Sask. For more information about CBC's Opinion section, please see the FAQ.
I'm proud to run a large, prosperous farming operation.
We farm 32,000 acres around Fairlight, Sask. We employ 15 people full-time and 15 people seasonally.
We also run a non-profit foundation that, so far this year, has donated to local community organizations including youth sports, education and health-care initiatives.
We and other large farms regularly hear from critics on social media platforms, quick to judge and criticize the growing nature of today's operations.
The public perceives very large farms like ours as corporate, faceless and threatening small communities. I would argue the opposite is true.
A family operation that's also a corporation
Growing up in Fairlight, Sask., I had a love-hate relationship with our farm.
It provided a good life and great memories for our family, and I'm thankful for that. But it also felt like a monster some days. It always took priority, determined if we could or couldn't go to the lake on summer days, and kept my dad working long hours. I remember wanting him to keep coach my hockey team — which he did until I was nine — but even in the winter, there was equipment to fix, seed and fertilizer to be purchased, and accounting to be done.
At the time the farm was 320 acres. So how did it grow to what it is today?
After university, I became a CPA and returned to our family farm. My parents, my wife and I decided together that we would run the farm like a business — not a hobby, not a lifestyle.
There's a great adage I think about: "If you run a farm like a lifestyle, it is a really bad business. If you run a farm like a business, it can provide a really great lifestyle."
We are both a family farm and a corporation. These are not mutually exclusive.
Many people romanticize the small farm, run only by immediate family members, but it is getting more challenging for small farms to stay economically viable. Without the proper staffing, they can turn into beasts.
The rates of depression and suicide in agriculture are a serious problem. The "rugged individualism" of many farmers who fail to ask for help is contributing to the mental health crisis.
Having good people has allowed our farm to take on more acres — some we own and others we rent. Now, when the opportunity to operate more land comes up, we can comfortably and confidently say yes, knowing that we have enough great people to farm every acre as well as the last. In fact, the farm team votes on expansions before we commit. They enjoy the growth, the challenge and working as a team.
We've created a career progression plan for our people. They feel valued and respected. We pay them well and offer perks like charitable donations to organizations they choose and that benefit their kids. Our culture is like that of a great hockey team, and I think it's infectious.
Peace of mind
It worries me that so many farms either don't have or don't think they need a succession plan. When I first moved home, we identified our largest weakness as the lack of a successor if I left or something happened to me. We strategically decided to grow the organization, in part, to ensure that weakness could be managed by other qualified team members.
If something happened to me or Dad tomorrow, we know there are others who could immediately step in and keep the operation running. We've designed it that way.
I believe smaller farms should be working together, collaborating, even working with retiring farmers to take on new acres, invest in value-add niches and learn from the best. This kind of knowledge transfer is exactly what we need and may encourage more young people to get into farming. Furthermore, policy should be developed to allow farms of different sizes to optimize for success.
It may sound strange, but my "large farm" gives me peace of mind, not because it is large, but because it has given us the ability to have a great team. I can sleep at night knowing the farm can practically run itself, allowing me to coach my kids' hockey teams and take vacations with my family.
These things are important to me and fuel my desire to grow our business. I want my farm to be something my children are happy to take over one day.
Having a large and prosperous farm should be something we're proud of in Saskatchewan and Canada. Why can't we encourage this rather than criticize, ridicule and complain?
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