By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

Thanks for Farming Tour hits Red Deer Nov. 11-12

Oct 18, 2020 | 9:57 AM

Farming is a job where those doing the hard work don’t get enough credit.

So says Jeremy Matuszewski, founder of the Thanks for Farming Tour (TFFT), which comes to Red Deer’s Westerner Park November 11-12.

The event, which is not intended to replace Agri-Trade, is described as an intimate trade show, which will allow those in the agriculture community to network with one another, as well as learn from various speakers about trends and new innovative technologies on the market.

“Nobody ever thinks of who’s growing their food, who’s out there harvesting at 11 p.m. Farmers are the backbone of not only Canada’s economy, but how hard they work to feed us all is so underappreciated,” says Matuszewski, who also runs Manitoba-based Thunderstruck Ag.

“When I started this company, I’d never been on a farm before. I went about life every day without really thinking about the people who sacrifice and work so hard to farm. Now that I’ve seen it all, I’m blown away by how much most consumers don’t realize.”

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Matuszewski and his team took the Thanks for Farming Tour across the prairies this summer, with stops in Trochu, Barrhead and Enchant, as well as in Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

“COVID-19 has definitely affected the industry and how companies like mine connect with farmers. It’s also affected farmers and how they connect with each other,” he explains. “The first event we did was in a small town called Crystal City, and at the end, one farmer came to me and expressed how much this meant to him because he hadn’t seen his neighbours since COVID hit. That really touched me.”

Matuszewski says TFFT will hopefully offset some of the hardship caused by the recent cancellation of Agri-Trade.

“Agri-Trade traditionally generates between $250 and $400 million in sales every year, so where’s that going to come from? This show will connect growers and farmers with one another help with that,” he says.

The Red Deer show will feature a talk by Lesley Kelly, who will discuss mental health in agriculture, and a farmers roundtable will take place on day one including several well-known agriculture industry names like John Kowalchuk, Greg Stamp and Jessica Dugdale.

Tickets are $20 each and must be purchased prior to the event. Only 500 are available per day, and Matuszewski says a litany of COVID-19-related precautions will be in place. All proceeds from ticket sales are going to the 25 Wing Red Deer Air Cadets on day one, and to the Smiles Thru Lindsey Foundation on day two.

Kello-Bilt Inc. is providing all attendees and exhibitors with personal bottles of hand sanitizer, and Red Deer County has pitched in to give every person at the show a COVID-19 cap shield, which is designed to attach to any baseball cap.

More information is at thanksforfarmingtour.com.