Future Uncertain For Open Farm Day, 2020 Event Cancelled

Jul 13, 2020

The Manitoba Association of Agricultural Societies has pulled the plug on the 2020 edition of Open Farm Day.

The event usually takes place in September and allows families to get an up-close and personal look at how food gets from farm to table.

Executive Director Marlene Baskerville says they cancelled the event for the health and safety of the farm sites.

"Most of our work is done in early April and May, in getting the host sites online. Right now, we would be doing the push for the general population to participate. We couldn't guarantee the whole pandemic would be over before September."

Last year's edition of Open Farm Days signified the 10th anniversary of the program. The 2019 event set records for the number of host sites open and people who participated.

Baskerville says they're saddened by the decision.

"We're looking at a bigger picture than just our program. We're looking at the safety of people. In March, we couldn't guarantee that everything would be back to what we call normal, and people would be able to move around as they have done in the past."

Last year 55 sites were open across the province.

Baskerville says the future is uncertain.

"We will be sitting down with the Department of Agriculture and Resource Development to see what is the best way to move forwards with this event in the upcoming years. They are one of their major funders. We have to work with them in terms of how this might look and how we can bring it back to where people can enjoy getting out and seeing how their food is produced."

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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.