By Becky Zimmer

Canadian farm writers move online to discuss ag issues and the changing world of journalism

Sep 27, 2021 | 5:55 PM

HUMBOLDT, Sask. – Farm writers from across the country met up online this past weekend to discuss current issues in the agricultural journalism industry at the Canadian Farm Writers Federation (CFWF) annual conference.

Many different factors sent the Sept. 23–25 conference to a virtual format this year with the host, the Eastern Canada Farm Writers’ Association (ECFWA), taking recording equipment to local farms to create video tours and panelists and attendees joining sessions over Zoom.

Co-chair Rachel Telford said it was a bit of a scramble since there was still hope that journalists could still meet up in Windsor for an in-person event or the ECFWA could still host a hybrid event.

“We figured it was safer to just move ahead with a completely virtual conference,” she said. “People, you know, for the past year and a bit had already, you know, been used to virtual and working online and we just figured the comfort level was there.”

Going to a fully virtual format, there were aspects of a usual conference that were missing from this year’s gathering.

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While the usual networking opportunities were lacking compared to in-person events, organizers were able to offer a virtual platform where people could meet through webcams and visit online through Kumospace.

“We were happy to see lots of people to take advantage of that but I think that there’s always going to be that missing face-to-face element when you’re virtual and there really is no way to get around that.”

Also scheduled for the weekend was a whiskey tasting with Hiram Walker & Sons, the 160-year-old whiskey producer based in Windsor.

Telford said the eastern organization tried their best to ship or courier samples to as many participants as possible and did provide the list of products on the agenda for other participants to purchase themselves. In the end, they did their best to ensure as many participants as possible could be included.

“We really relied on our regional partners at that local level to help us distribute them so I know that not everybody got their samples, but we tried our best to make it work and make it a good experience,” Telford said.

Going online did not deter farm writers from joining in the three days of sessions that covered topics from issues within the agriculture industry, from discussions on herbicide resistant crops to agricultural sustainability, to discussion on social media growth within the agriculture community and other sessions based around professional development within the journalism world.

Agricultural writers want both, said Telford, as they develop a greater understanding of their subject matter, see how other organizations are dealing with the same issues, and network to further generate story ideas.

“We also want to give people tools/knowledge to have a better understanding of the stories they may cover or a new way to find the info they need — so how to access weather data, understanding grain futures, how to use social media to the best advantage.”

Calgary based writer and self-proclaimed conference aficionados, Ian Doig, still came away with a full notepad of ideas for stories for GrainsWest magazine, even with the change of platform.

“There’s so much topical material here I go away with like, ‘here’s a topic I should be thinking about and how are we going to approach it journalistically.’”

As a journalistic professional who write about the many different facets of the agricultural industry, it’s important the conference balances these two worlds, he said.

“We take a lot of home…you know, here’s a story idea, here’s a topic we should touch on, but also, you know, we are also perfecting our craft, we’re honing the craft of farm journalism.”

Next up for the CFWF is their conference in Regina hosted by the Saskatchewan Farm Writers’ Association (SFWA).

Conference chair, Karen Briere, said they are hoping to have everyone in Regina for the event and are already setting up tours of surrounding agricultural operations with a focus on environmentally responsible operations.

“Farmers do say they’re the ultimate environmentalists, and many of them are. We just want to showcase the good, environmentally responsible things that a lot of farmers are doing,” Briere said.

Canadian producers have been environmental stewards for years, said Briere, but now is the time to talk about how farmers are dealing with things like climate change and good environmental practices.

“That’s our hope is to tell the rest of Canada that our farmers are doing that.”

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becky.zimmer@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @bex_zim