Next round of heavy rain....

[agstar77]

There is very little awareness in the public as generations are more removed from ag. They are more concerned about gmo and organic because no one in the fat cat world goes hungry.

[agstar77]

We are on collision course with the GM effect where no one cares about the safety or quality of the product only the bottom line. We are basically doing it to ourselves in the rush to become larger , to the point where individuals and families will no longer operate the daily functions of farming but will delegate responsibility to employees some who care and others who do not. It is not an indictment , just a fact.

[grefer]

That all leads to an interesting area Agstar. If we were to concede that the end result you described is not desirable, how do we avoid it in a Democracy? Most business owners like to feel they are moving forward with their business,which in Agriculture often means more land, which means bigger machinery. Etc,etc,etc. At what point are family farms not family farms any longer?Is it when companies like Cargill own them or is when the operation is so large the owner/owners only manage the business? Will our governments get to a point that they will have to address this issue or will it already too late by the time the end result becomes evident?i have noticed many farmers put down large operations but at the same time strive to replace them. Time will tell as they say.

[mbdog]

desireable or not, governments role/actions, whether local or national IS the issue to address behind the issue, not what they should do to agriculture. Getting and staying in power, appeasing the masses is the root of the agriculture/producer participation-investment dilemma. Government should look there for the solution.

[agstar77]

There is no turning back, the next ag revolution is well underway. I guess we will manage like any other industry. Possibly training programs for managers and workers. Help for transition of land holdings to a rental operator and lease of equipment, new operating loan arrangements. It will become a major problem for the next generation.

[mbdog]

I agree agstar...well on its way. My point though is government involvement/broader actions have a larger influence in the confidence/participation/attitude to risk in the ag industry than any policy change or profitability/demand agenda they can do at this stage of the game.

[hedgehog]

When things get really tough, the corporates all quit, anf family farmers survive.

[TOM4CWB]

hedgehog,

The first round of city money has been spent... One Earth was an interesting experiment. Pike and his crew I understand also had a bad go.

There are many big operations. They are doing well because many are family based and leadership keeps the focus tight and the operations on track. Responsible managers often learned the hard way... weather is an interesting twist to add to a complex work load and people resourses.

A real gift to work through a season on track on a 10-20,000 ac farm in western Canada or the northern US.