Risk pays off as Canadian Dairy Xpo celebrates 10 years in Stratford

Apr 05, 2024

The Canadian Dairy Xpo owner always admired the prestigious, multigenerational dairy operations around him while growing up on a beef and cash crop farm in Ayr. He knew what challenges producers faced, and it gave him a head start when he created the industry’s largest event in Stratford, which was in the heart of the country’s biggest dairy producers.

“Risk is necessary and that’s what got us here,” he said Wednesday as the show celebrated its 10th operating year. “The biggest risk was the concept of trying something new. You can either think outside of the box or think about a new box, and this was a new box for the industry. There was a lot of uncertainty when we made the announcement. As it came together and producers showed up, it just grew its own legs.”

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Video: From Conventional to Regenerative: Will Groeneveld’s Journey Back to the Land

"You realize you've got a pretty finite number of years to do this. If you ever want to try something new, you better do it."

That mindset helped Will Groeneveld take a bold turn on his Alberta grain farm. A lifelong farmer, Will had never heard of regenerative agriculture until 2018, when he attended a seminar by Kevin Elmy that shifted his worldview. What began as curiosity quickly turned into a deep exploration of how biology—not just chemistry—shapes the health of our soils, crops and ecosystems.

In this video, Will candidly reflects on his family’s farming history, how the operation evolved from a traditional mixed farm to grain-only, and how the desire to improve the land pushed him to invite livestock back into the rotation—without owning a single cow.

Today, through creative partnerships and a commitment to the five principles of regenerative agriculture, Will is reintroducing diversity, building soil health and extending living roots in the ground for as much of the year as possible. Whether it’s through intercropping, zero tillage (which he’s practiced since the 1980s) or managing forage for visiting cattle, Will’s approach is a testament to continuous learning and a willingness to challenge old norms.

Will is a participant in the Regenerative Agriculture Lab (RAL), a social innovation process bringing together producers, researchers, retailers and others to co-create a resilient regenerative agriculture system in Alberta. His story highlights both the potential and humility required to farm with nature, not against it.