Thian Carman started farming when he was 14 years old
By Diego Flammini
News Reporter
Farms.com
An 18-year-old sheep, hog, goose and maple syrup producer from Digby, N.S. received a $20,000 scholarship from 4-H Canada.
Thian Carman is in his first year at Dalhousie University’s agricultural campus. He received the call from 4-H about the funding while driving his tractor.
"I couldn't believe it,” he told CBC on Sunday. "I was actually on the tractor at the time and I jumped up in the air. I was so excited."
The scholarship will allow him to focus on school and not have to worry about the cost of tuition, he added.
His dream is to continue raising sheep and selling products locally.
"Basically the end goal is just to be a sheep farmer with high-quality products and sell them all here in Nova Scotia, that would be the ideal scenario," he told CBC.
Carman’s scholarship is one of four Leadership Excellence Awards of Distinction 4-H Canada gives out each year. 4-H members from across the country are eligible for the award.
"I've known Thian for a couple of years, and he's certainly an outstanding 4-H member and one that really personifies the values that are 4-H," David Howell, chair of 4-H Canada, told CBC.
After developing a love for animals through participation in his local club, Carman started Meadow's Brothers' Farm as a chicken operation when he was 14 years old. He was the youngest registered farmer in the province.
And imagine the bank’s surprise when a teenager makes a request for a farm loan.
"You go into a bank at 14 and ask them to back you to build a farm and they look at you like you're crazy," he said.
But his determination has made him a serious player in Nova Scotia’s ag community.
A number of companies invested in his farm after meeting with Thain. He has done all of the business deals on his own, Thain’s mother, Emily, told CBC.
And he represents a new kind of farmer, Emily says.
"He's of the generation that doesn't exist," she told CBC. "He's the new youth in farming, not farming that's been handed down from generation to generation."
Top photo: Thian Carman
Photo: Emily Carman/CBC