MFGA eBulletin - August 2026 | | Photo: Late July day, Brandon Hills near Howpark Farms. | | From the Desk of the Executive Director | | |
Seems that those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer are quickly mashing into the summer months of excited-to-be-at farm tour and field day circuits.
And that’s a good thing, I think.
Certainly, MFGA has been front and center in the mix. This year we had two flagship events. Other farm groups have been even more engaged than that.
In our two cases, MFGA benefitted greatly from the work, heavier lifting and support of our partners – Manitoba Organic Alliance (MOA) and Regeneration Canada (RC)- and the kindness, expertise and hospitality of the two Manitoba farm families – the Grossarts of Brandon Hills on the MOA MFGA Grazing Day in late July and Holland’s Sundell family who profiled the RC Regen Dairy Hub program a week into August - that hosted our affiliated events.
Many deep thanks are also due to the support of Manitoba Association of Watersheds PWCP program whose support to MFGA for our Grazing Day ambitions is always robustly appreciated.
Indeed, right before our eyes, the Manitoba summer has morphed into a celebration of the great work our farmers are doing on farm, in community and for society while providing learning and peer to peer exchanges with farmer to farmer interactions.
Nothing beats a pasture walk, a jump in a truck-with-room farm-to-field convoy, coffee and muffins in a garage, shed or barn, or a wagon ride farm and field day on working farms with other farmers sprinkled all throughout the attendees.
The on-farm farmer tours are where some of the most important networking, learnings and conversations happen.
And increasingly, like strawberries, rodeos and town fairs, these special days are fast becoming summertime staples in rural Manitoba.
Muchos Grasses ALL,
Duncan Morrison, MFGA Executive Director
| | (LtoR) Regeneration Canada’s Sara Maranda-Gauvin times the soil health water infiltration test as Sophie Beecher, AAFC Director General, Resilient Agriculture Policy Division, looks on. Manitoba Organic Alliance’s Marika Dewar-Norosky and Holistic Management Canada’s Dana Penrice (kneeling) discuss the test and field context while Birds Hill-area’s Stony Hill Farm tour host and MFGA board member Brenda Tjaden (white hat) adds farm insights and expertise on the August 7, 2026 tour. | | |
Six Manitoba Grassroots Producer Group Step Up for Soil Health Strategy Potential and Synergies In Manitoba
A group representing six producer-focused grassroots groups met recently met with AAFC Director General Sophie Beecher and Carl Friesen, acting senior policy analyst, both from the Resilient Agriculture Division of AAFC and key members of the AAFC Policy team on the ongoing- development National Agriculture Soil Health Strategy. The group met and toured with the AAFC duo and also presented a collective producer-focused document to AAFC at that meeting audience and has since shared the same letter with Manitoba Agriculture and Soil Conservation Council Canada.
On behalf of our partnership, MFGA will publish the entire letter in a blog format to our audiences later this week as will the other groups via their respective channels.
The six aligned groups are: Manitoba Organic Alliance, Direct Farm Manitoba, Young Agrarians, Holistic Management Canada, Regeneration Canada and MFGA.
As a group, we are extremely proud of our collective resume of soil health advocacy and work with and for Manitoba producers. We stand united on continuing to advance Manitoba’s well-deserved soil health brand through the National Agriculture Soil Health Strategy, and actually, all other matters where a grassroots voice for producers interested in soil health and all the good that comes from it, adds value and emphasis on the good work of Manitoba producers toward and as key parts of a national soil strategy.
| | |
MFGA AGM: Save the date! September 29, 2026, 1:00 PM ONLINE
More info will follow but please be advised that MFGA will be holding our AGM September 29, 2026, 1:00 pm, online. Members of MFGA are invited to attend. As a note to all readers, if you attended the 2025 MFGA conference, you are a member of MFGA. If you attended the 2024 conference and not the 2025 conference and did not renew your membership online, you are not considered a current member of MFGA. However, we'd be thrilled to welcome you back to the MFGA fold either via online registration for $50 or for next year, by attending our 2026 Regen Ag conference.
| | |
National Beef Bash Delivers the Goods; U of Sask’s Dr. Bart Lardner and BC’s Miller and Grier Families claim national awards
MFGA would like to extend our congratulations to Canadian Cattle Association and host provincial organization Manitoba Beef Producers on the success of the 2026 Canadian Beef Industry Conference (CBIC) that took place from August 17–20, 2026, at the RBC Convention Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The premier biennial event gathered producers, researchers, and industry leaders under the theme "We Are Beef" to focus on sector strategies, market trends, and on-farm innovations.
At the conference, Dr. Bart Lardner was named as the recipient of the 2026 Canadian Beef Industry Award for Outstanding Research and Innovation. The Miller and Grier families of Chilco Ranch-Miller Ranch received 2026 The Environmental Stewardship Award.
MFGA congratulates both Dr. Lardner and the Miller Grier families on their prestigious awards. We also tip our hats with much respect to provincial TESA award winners in our MFGA loops: the English family from Manitoba and the Corcoran family from Saskatchewan for the great things they do on their respective farms.
| | |
REGISTRATIONS PERCOLATING AND TRADE SHOW FILLING UP FAST FOR 2026 MFGA REGEN AG CONFERENCE
The trade show at the MFGA conference is a huge part of the vibe at our annual conference. We celebrate and promote our trade show as a vital component of the event. It is there that many great chats and dialogues happen around products and services. We are receiving a lot of calls from first time trade show booths wanting to lock down a space for the 2026 MFGA conference. We cant go bigger than we already are so if your company or organization is keen on coming back, please register asap.
| | |
EMILI’s Agronomy Day: Weathering Change
A comparative look at two Manitoba soils (above photo) was featured as part of Manitoba Agriculture’s Megan Westphal’s presentation on soil health at EMILI’s Agronomy Day: Weathering Change held recently at EMILI’s Innovation Farms near Grosse Isle, MB earlier this month.
The day also featured a weather-focused panel presentation featuring Susan Ainsworth, Keystone Potato Producers, Ashley Ammeter, MB Crop Alliance and Colin Hornby of Keystone Agricultural Producers, who has recently announced his departure from KAP effective the end of the month.
MFGA enjoyed great synergies and discussions with Colin and the entire KAP team under his leadership. We wish Colin the very best in his new positions and career moves.
| | |
Governments of Canada and Manitoba Provide Flood Recovery Support for Producers Through AgriStability
The governments of Canada and Manitoba are rolling out targeted enhancements to AgriStability to help producers recover from the flooding caused by this summer's heavy rains. Late-filing penalties for 2025 are being waived for producers in municipalities and First Nation communities that declared a state of emergency, and the maximum 2026 interim payment is increasing from 50 per cent to 75 per cent of the estimated final payment — producers who've already received a payment will get an automatic top-up.
Learn more: AgriStability: What this program offers
| |
Explore Canada's Grasslands and Win
The Canadian Grasslands Project is inviting participants to join them on iNaturalist Canada this August for a chance to win a grasslands-themed prize pack worth about $300. Join the project and complete the entry form for one entry, or submit an observation within the project boundaries during August to earn a bonus entry.
Learn more: The Great Grassland Giveaway
| | |
BCRC: 2025-2026 Year in Review Showcases Impacts of Beef Producer Investments
The Beef Cattle Research Council’s 2025–2026 Year in Review highlights how producer investments and input are advancing research, addressing industry priorities and delivering practical value back to Canada’s beef producers.
Download the BCRC's 2025-2026 Year in Review
| | |
EVENTS
Manitoba Women in Agriculture and Food, Meet Jill Verwey, 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm, Canad Inns Hotel, Brandon, MB September 3, 2026. Register: here
Regeneration Canada: Innovations in Pasture Management: Research and International Perspectives, September 3, 2026, Sherbrooke, Quebec, or online
Register here: Register
Harvest Moon Festival, September 18 - 20, 2026 in Clearwater, Manitoba, the Harvest Moon Festival celebrates it’s 25th year! link
EMILI: Agriculture Enlightened, Canada's Agtech Conference, November 5th, 2026. Get your early bird tickets now! here
MFGA 2026 Regenerative Agriculture Conference, Victoria Inn, Brandon, MB Nov 9-10, 2026, Early Bird and Trade Show now open!! link
Advancing Women in Agriculture & Food Conference — AWC EAST2026, November 22–24, 2026, 12:00–4:00 p.m, Sheraton Fallsview, Niagara Falls, ON
Register here: AWC EAST2026 Tickets
2026 Western Canada Conference on Soil Health & Grazing – December 8–10, 2026
Registration is open! Relearn, Restore, Regenerate, Renew — join 500+ producers, industry partners and researchers for a full lineup of speakers and panelists at this biennial conference, presented by applied research and forage associations across Alberta.
Learn more: here
Sask Soil Annual Conference: Regina, February 10 - 11, 2027 as we explore the Future of Soil Health! link
| |
Thank you to our 2026/27 Annual Supporters!
Corporate sponsors from our 2026/27 corporate campaign are included below. MFGA thanks all of these awesome groups and we proudly profile your support of MFGA and our farmer network: if your company is interested, please sign up here
| | | | |
