Lending a hand; some more information for those tough tour choices.
Picking the right tour that fits your interests is a monumental decision. We know how it is. If you’re feeling like you’re missing some of the facts, IFAJ 2023 co-chair Annemarie Pedersen is here to help with an indepth look at our tours.
For Thursday, June 29, there are five amazing adventures to choose from. Never fear, Pedersen said there are no wrong answers when choosing which one to take.
Canada’s Canola Frontier
Canola is a Canadian innovation (most of the world called it rape seed) with a fascinating history and even more exciting future in Canada. Participants on this tour will see, touch, taste and maybe even smell canola.
“You're going to see how it's developed, what its uses are and where it's grown. You're going to meet canola growers, and you're going to end with an amazing dinner at a beautiful location,” said Pedersen.
The Business of Beef in Canada
Canadian beef is well known around the world and IFAJ visitors will be able to take in one (or both, check out our June 30 tour post coming soon) of two beef tours during their stay in Canada. This tour will feature an up-close and personal look at a cow-calf operation and a feedlot as part of the beef value chain in rural Alberta. From birth to butcher, the focus is on sustainable, environmentally sound and humane animal welfare production practices.
“We're going to meet the people behind the industry who are really looking at research and innovation and marketing to consumers and to the public. And we'll have a nice beef dinner at the end of it all,” said Pedersen.
The Incredible Farm-to-Fork Journey of Sunterra
Another birth to butcher operation, along with a look at everything in between. Sunterra started out as a family farm in the ‘70s before it grew to greater heights with processing, exports, retail, grain, and greenhouse all at one location. Visitors will have an indepth look at Sunterra on the ground with the tour ending with a delicious dinner in Calgary at a Sunterra location.
Caring for Livestock
Animal welfare is a contentious issue, especially in rural Canada where livestock production is widespread. This tour will look at the people behind the issue, starting with Solvet, a veterinary laboratories company located in Calgary.
“They're not just developing products and sending them out. They're working with the industry to find solutions for their problems in raising livestock.”
Following lunch, visitors will head on over to the University of Calgary’s state of the art Veterinary Medical School. Besides looking into the best practices of animal welfare, they are also trying to tackle the industry’s decline in the number of large animal vets in Western Canada. The tour will end at the university’s WA Ranch where participants will hear from student researchers and Alberta Farm Animal Care.
Please note: this tour does not include supper but the organizing committee will be available with further options.
This is our Prairies
Fill your journalistic plate with a little bit of everything with this eclectic tour of what comes from the Canadian prairie.
Enjoy some fruit wine and bison jerky at Deane House, followed by a tour of a seed farm to catch a glimpse of where the seeds are grown for the rest of Canadian gardens. Get up-close and personal with our landscape defining grain terminals. Cap off this adventure with a unique opportunity with a trip to a bison ranch. See these uniquely North American balls of fluff, and their even cuter calves, under the prairie sky with a wagon ride through the pasture. Just remember, it is advisable not to pet them.
Please note: this tour does not include supper but the organizing committee will be available with further options.
Return on Thursday this week for our amazing Friday, June 30 tour lineup blog post.
