The annual Moose Mountain Ag Day turned into a roaring success for local producers.
With more than 150 participants registering to take part in the event, the turnout was one of the largest the event had seen in recent memory.
With 17 trade show booths, producers had the opportunity to speak with representatives from a wide-range of services and goods to help around the farm.
One booth that was open for the first time at the Moose Mountain Ag Day was the Moose Mountain Meats, the recently opened co-operative abattoir based in Wawota.
"There are some local displays, and some from a bit further away," said Kylie McRae of the Upper Souris Watershed Association Inc. one of the bodies involved with putting on the event. "We try and make sure there is a little of everything, but the venue only has a limited space."
As in previous years, the Ag Day was held at the Prairie Place Complex in Arcola on Friday, Feb. 10.
Opening their doors at noon, the day began at one with a welcome message, as well as an introduction to the sponsors of the event.
"We have had a lot of support from sponsors for the event," McRae said. "They really help make the Ag Day happen."
The first of the day's four speakers was Bismark-based Gabe Brown.
Brown, part of the Burleigh County's USDA-NRCS Soil Conservation District, spoke about methods of improving soil quality with his address titled, 'Growing Cocktail Mixes and Improving Soil Health.'
A presenter in the past at ag related functions in the Â鶹ÊÓƵeast, Brown's bona fides are well established when it comes to holistic management practices on the prairies.
Following Brown came a more market-orientated address by journalist, Ag consultant, and farmer Kevin Hursh.
Based out of Saskatoon, Hursh has written market-focused pieces for Farm Credit Canada's bi-monthly Agrisuccess, as well as writing a regular column in The Western Producer.
Looking at the balance between policy and market forces, Hursh's talk, 'Agricultural Policy and the Grain Market Outlook,' spoke about some of the new developments in the grain market.
Taking a break, visitors were given time to wander the vendor tables until the next presentation, 'Carbon Credit Trading in Saskatchewan,' was ready to go.
Presented by Blair McClinton, the manager of Viterra's Carbon Credit Program, McClinton spoke to producers about this potentially valuable new revenue stream for low- or no-tillage fields.
While expected and impending, regulations for a Saskatchewan market for carbon credits have not yet been set up by the provincial government.
After the seminar, the visitors took some time for visiting with friends and neighbours, and to enjoy a tasty and filling roast beef dinner.
Ending the night was a speech by Senator Pamela Wallin.
Wallin, who hails from rural Saskatchewan, spoke briefly about her first visit to Arcola, some years before, during the filming of 'Who Has Seen the Wind.'
After, she spoke about her role as the Chair of the Senate's National Security and Defence Committee.
She spoke passionately about the work of Canadian Forces personnel in Afghanistan, as well as their successes in the role of builders in the war-torn country.
"They call it 'clear, hold, and build," Wallin said. "Our men and women are instinctively good at this stuff."
Speaking about Stephen Harper's governance, she stated, "I think the Wheat Board decision was a good one."
Her other reference to agriculture came with a reference to food security, an issue of some importance within the larger national security issue.
Ending her speech, Wallin opened the floor to questions, answering the first one about the present disposition of Canadian troops in Afghanistan, and a second about her most interesting interview.
"My most interesting interview was one with (Prime Minister) Trudeau," Wallin said. "He was at record lows in the polls, something like 24 percent, and being a young reporter, I rushed up to him."
Wallin recalled that she asked whether the Prime Minister should step down from office with his polling numbers so low; whether he continued to have the moral authority to lead.
She said Trudeau turned to her and said that she had just made democracy a lot easier if government was to run by poll as opposed to election, and the next time he was high in the polls, he should just declare that was it, and remain Prime Minister forever.
"I learned a really important lesson that day," Wallin told the audience, "Never ask a question unless you know all the potential answers."
