Farmers graze new attractions at Saskatoon crop show

The entryway to the Western Canadian Crop Production Show at Prairieland Park was already crowded — with lines to get in stretching past the main doors — when it first opened at noon Monday.

Parking spots were already few and far between as the show opened on its first day.

This year’s show boasts 330 exhibitors and 960 booths set up for producers and others to check out at Prairieland Park.

Brad Mitchell and Kyle Njaa were enjoying a day with friends, sharing a beer and checking out whatever new things there were to see.

“And socializing,” Mitchell said with a laugh while Njaa explained he was comparing offerings from various grain buyers during the visit.

The two farmers drove about an hour and a half from Birch Hills to reach Saskatoon for the show.

Each year, Mitchell said he’ll see people he knows and use the show as a chance to catch up.

Sam Johnson said there are always new faces to come across, too, at the big show. Attending with his wife, Karen, Johnson said he takes in the show every year.

Karen said this year, they were checking prices to sell their pea and lentil crop that they have in the bin right now.

The “new and improved and expensive equipment” is what drew Jason Sherstobetoff to the show on Monday.

He said he was checking out what was new to the market since COVID-19 because he hadn’t been to the show since the pandemic hit.

“The last few years have been really challenging with the fertilizer prices and the equipment prices and the availability of the parts and service,” Sherstobetoff said, “so that’s always kind of weighing on your mind.”

He also sees some concerns with possible government limitations on fertilizer emissions.

“It’s all good but it’s pricey and everybody’s always competing for your business, what will work and what’s supposed to work,” he explained.

It’s one reason he wanted to come to the show: “Ask the questions and see what’s going to happen in the future.”

Sherstobetoff said there’s just some marketing left to do to prepare for this year’s crop, leaving him the chance to peruse what he could improve on his farm and get ideas for next year.

Noting that this year is looking “a little bit on the dry side,” Sherstobetoff is hoping the snow will help crops this year.

“Hopefully we can get some early-season rain and stuff to improve the moisture conditions,” he said. “As of right now, we’re going into the crop year on a little bit of a dry spell.”

Karen Johnson echoed how welcome the snow is this season after the dry fall Saskatchewan just had. Her husband emphasized how hard it is to predict what a season will look like.

“Very optimistic,” is how Mitchell described heading into this year’s season, though.

“Prices are good … good moisture, lots of snow, should be good,” he said. “We’ve got everything bought and just put in its place.”

“Make sure the bins are empty,” Njaa joked, making Mitchell chuckle.

Even with the conditions looking a little less than ideal from his perspective, Sherstobetoff said his outlook for the season is good.

“You always have to be optimistic looking at the next year or else you wouldn’t be here,” he said.