I love the innovation of farmers! We all know that farmers are hard workers, but the ingenuity and invention to solve any problem is really amazing to see in person. If you ever been to the machine shed on the farm, you’ll see that every bit and piece has value and purpose. A good farmer lets nothing go to waste and every task they do is calculated and efficient – there is a lot to do on the farm every day and being a great farm manager is essential. It’s easy to picture innovation in the machine shed with the repairs made to keep equipment running.
On the other side of the coin though, is the business side where the farmer is just as innovative. Becoming dealers for seeds (or other products), pooling resources together with neighbors to ensure that everyone has access to equipment or services at a fair price, or even working to create a new market for their product when needed.
I even appreciate seeing opportunities, like the “Making More From Milk” event and new on-farm technologies, that provide support and encouragement to farmers who are developing and maintaining healthy agricultural businesses, which also preserve the ability to continue in the tradition of on-farm innovation.
~ Kelly Jacobs, Senior Environmental Scientist
