Farms.com Home  › News

Farmer Reflects on First Year as a Director with the Alberta Canola Board

Jeff Frost, a farmer from the Olds area, has just completed his first year as the Region 8 director on the Alberta Canola board. Frost joined the board in January 2024 following the organization’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) and says the experience has been both eye-opening and rewarding.

“This is the first year of my three-year term, and there’s been a lot to learn,” said Frost. “I had a rough idea of what the board did from attending events and being an engaged grower, but being part of it has shown me just how much goes on behind the scenes.”

Frost highlighted the board’s diverse responsibilities, which include government and industry relations, public engagement, and funding research initiatives.

“There are so many aspects to what we do,” he explained. “Whether it’s lobbying government, engaging nationally, or running promotional campaigns, there’s a lot of important work happening that many producers may not realize.”

Research, in particular, is a significant focus for Alberta Canola. Frost said producer dollars are often directed toward projects that improve farming practices, develop new technologies, and address industry challenges.

“It’s tough to see exactly where all the dollars go unless you’re involved, but it’s clear that research is a big part of it. Knowing that your contributions are driving advancements in agriculture is really encouraging,” he said.

Click here to see more...

Trending Video

How American Farmers Harvest 1.15 Billion Pounds of Sunflowers

Video: How American Farmers Harvest 1.15 Billion Pounds of Sunflowers

Across the open plains of North Dakota and South Dakota, sunflower fields turn the American landscape into a sea of gold. In this farming documentary, we go inside modern sunflower farming to see how farmers plant, grow, harvest, clean, dry, process, and transform sunflower seeds into valuable products used every day.

In 2024, American farmers harvested about 1.15 billion pounds of sunflowers. This video follows the full journey from warm spring planting to combine harvesting, seed cleaning, storage, oil extraction, refining, roasting, packaging, and animal feed production.

You will see how sunflower seeds are processed into cooking oil, roasted snacks, bakery ingredients, birdseed, livestock feed, and useful byproducts. From golden fields to modern processing plants, this is the story of how a beautiful flower becomes one of America’s important oilseed crops.

Watch until the end to discover how sunflower farming connects farmers, machines, factories, food production, and sustainable agriculture.