Sustainable Agriculture

To be sustainable, the industry needs to increase collaboration between sectors, harnessing technology and capital to build processing capacity in the province and Canada, and connect more with consumers at all levels, say insiders.

“In the past, the focus was on scaling and improving the existing model, getting better at crop production and exporting more, creating more yield,” said Kassandra Quayle, chief financial officer with Protein Industries Canada. “What we’ve been trying to do - and one of the challenges is - to raise the awareness of opportunities, to move from a commodities export focus to really looking at a value chain approach and value creation.”

Local processing facilities for agricultural products will help drive down prices, reduce the industry’s carbon footprint, and increase food security, Quayle said, as part of a panel on agriculture during the recent ATB Business Summit in Edmonton.