Local Food Producers Weighing Options

Many local food producers are worried about what this summer is going to look like.

 

Phil Veldhuis is the president of Direct Farm Manitoba.

 

"They've been really concerned about whether the markets and whether the consumers will be there when their product is ready," he commented. "If you're thinking about planting peppers or sweet corn or something, you're kind of counting on there being a farmers' market full of people in the middle of July and August to buy those things. And if you didn't think that would be there, you'd probably rethink how much you're going to put into the planting."

 

Veldhuis notes some producers are seeing an increase in demand for their products.

 

"Producers that have stable products, whether that would be the last of the root vegetables, carrots and potatoes, or meat. In my case, I'm a honey producer and those folks are seeing a significant uptick in demand, partly because people don't want to get into the grocery stores. In some cases its long-term customers just wanting to make sure that they can get it from us."

 

It was announced this week that the federal and provincial governments will be supporting a project which will allow local food producers and farmers’ markets to sell their products online.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.