Leona Staples, the winner of the 2025 AFSC Women in Ag Notable Lifetime Achiever Award, is a legacy-builder who has dedicated her life to shaping the future of agriculture through innovation, mentorship and education.
Her work turns the farm into a living classroom, builds food literacy across generations and demonstrates how women drive innovation, resilience and community in Alberta agriculture. Recently, Staples spoke with AFSC about her role in agriculture and how mentorship and recognition can encourage women to pursue a career in the industry.
“My role and career in agriculture began through the love and influence of my longtime farming family,” explained Staples, whose agriculture journey is deeply rooted in the Jungle Farm – a fifth-generation family farm homesteaded by her great-grandparents in 1897.
Since taking over the family farm in 1996, Staples and her husband, Blaine, have successfully expanded their traditional grain farm into a market garden business where they welcome 30,000 visitors annually and hosts field trips for 5,000 students each year.
Connecting people to their food
Focused on land stewardship, the Jungle Farm gives visitors a hands‑on farm experience leaving them with a clear, tangible connection to where their food comes from. They recently expanded their programming to include a Forest Walk which explores Indigenous history and teachings on an untouched portion of their land.
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