By Cam Lee

Agriculture Roundup for Tuesday, August 6

Aug 6, 2024 | 11:29 AM

The inaugural Provincial 4-H Livestock Show will be held in Melfort this weekend at the Exhibition grounds.

Austin Olson is a member of the Tisdale 4-H Beef Club, and is also the member delegate on the board of directors for 4-H Saskatchewan.

He says the event aims to showcase the hard work of over 2,000 beef project members from across the province.

Saturday will start with team grooming and move onto the showmanship class in the afternoon.

Members will attend a dance and banquet that night.

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Sunday is the big show day, with breed classes and overall champions named.

Buckles will be presented at the end of the event.

Anyone is invited to come out to watch the show.

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The Do More Ag Foundation wants the ag community to “talk it out”.

The #talkitout campaign was launched Thursday and is on until the end of October.

Do More Ag’s Board Chair Lauren Martin says the initiative aims to raise awareness of the need to have conversations about mental health in agriculture.

A big component of the campaign is promoting another Do More Ag initiative called AgTalk, an anonymous peer-to-peer platform that can be downloaded on your phone.

The National Survey of Farmer Mental Health, led by Dr. Andria Jones-Bitton at the University of Guelph, found 58 per cent of producers surveyed across Canada meet the criteria for anxiety, 75 per cent reported experiencing mid-to-high stress levels, and 40 per cent are hesitant to seek professional help due to fear of judgment.

In addition to fear of judgment and anxiety, another barrier is access to resources.

Do More Ag has been around for six years, and Martin believes they have made progress in breaking stigmas, but work needs to continue with those who judge themselves for having mental health crises.

You can join the conversation and share your story on social media by using the hashtag talk it out, or tagging the organization, @DoMoreAg.

More information and resources can be found on the Do More Ag website.