By Megan Lacelle
Kelvin Scansen grew up on the same piece of land as his father and his father's father before him. From a young age Scansen dedicated his life to the 104-year-old homestead just south of Cadillac – spending hundreds of hours each year to keep the 1120 acre farm going.
“From the day a guy was little that’s all he could think about, it was kind of all a guy knew back in the day.” For the last 35 years Scansen and his wife Lesley ran the farm, raising two daughters.
However, this year Scansen made a change. He sold the family farm and moved to nearby Swift Current.
Scansen isn’t the only one bowing out of the business. The 2011 census of agriculture reported that the number of farms in the province had decreased 16.6 per cent since 2006.
“I was worried about it for years. I thought it was going to be a big disaster, you know, like a guy would really be regretting it. I couldn’t sleep at night thinking, ‘oh God, here I am selling the family farm,’ but so far I don’t regret it,” he said on the phone after a weekend of officially moving into their new home.
Both Scansen’s daughters left the farm after graduation to attend the University of Saskatchewan. Stephanie, the eldest daughter, now works as a chemical engineer in Estevan.
“I loved the farm, but I was never really interested in farming, as much as I like growing up there it never interested me as a career, it was more the lifestyle,” said the 25-year-old. “Our parent’s generation, or even before that, it wasn’t common for them to finish high school, let alone move on to post-secondary.”
Fewer young people than ever are taking over the family farm. The 2011 census of agriculture reported 54.6 per cent of farmers in Saskatchewan were above the age of 55.
Nearby farmer Terry Palaschak, 47, has seen the industry change from a hobby to big business. He began farming at nine years old, purchasing his first piece of farmland at 12.
“I still remember going to school and I had a $300,000 mortgage,” Palaschak laughs. He’s seen the changes in the industry and says the stress, the marketing and the pressure just aren’t worth it anymore.
“What it boils down to is everyone says it’s a way of life, but those days are gone,” he says, “You have to run your farm like a business and you have to make decisions based on money.”
With two grown daughters who aren’t returning to the farm, health concerns and high market prices Palaschak and his wife Mona agreed it was time to sell.
“When you look at the overall demographics, this is North America wide, there’s a whole whack of farmers out there that are 80 years old and their sons are all gone to the oil patch or wherever, so now you’re down to grandkids. Well they can’t afford it.”
Professor Andre Magnan at the University of Regina has been teaching rural sociology for seven years – he says the decreasing number of farms in Saskatchewan isn’t slowing down.
“The traditional model of farming is in crisis. The baby boomer sons and daughters aren’t taking over and people are getting more and more urbanized.” From 1991-2011 Stats Canada reported at 24 per cent decrease in farmers across the country.
Magnan says the trends will stay the same with corporate farms purchasing smaller farms that sell out. Palaschak says this has increased the push to “go big or get out.”
Among all the bleak farm statistics, however, young men like Kole Riemer are trying to buck the trend. At 19 Riemer is already emerging as the next generation of family farmer, buying his first piece of land at 17.
“I come from a family farm and I want to keep the generation going. I love farming, everything about it interests me,” he says. He and his family farm 6,500 acres by White Fox, Sask. He acknowledges the other job opportunities for young people across the province, but for him farming provides the freedom and lifestyle he loves.
“Some people get into it for the business aspect instead of just loving what they do. There are a lot of corporations buying out farms whereas we’re just a family farm. We’ll just keep expanding.” Though his passion lies in the field he says farming still comes with heavy stress and big risks – citing marketing and the cost of resources.
“You almost need to take an accounting class to learn it all,” he chuckles. “There are also a lot of costs in starting up if you don’t have your family helping you out – that’s where I’m very fortunate.”
Riemer is one of only 11.8 per cent of farmers in the province under the age of 40. Although getting into the business has been a learning curve Riemer holds fast to the love he has for the farm.
“The most rewarding thing about the farm though is looking back on what you have accomplished in the years and being able to look out the window and see all you have to show for the hard work you have put in, that’s the biggest achievement for me as a young farmer.”
