Hello, ladies and gentlemen. I'm also pleased to have a chance to speak before you.
I grew up on a large-scale potato and beef operation in the Kensington area here in P.E.I. I remain involved heavily in agriculture, both in my beef operation and my uncle's potato farm.
Several years ago I saw no future for myself and frankly for most youth in agriculture, for several reasons. Now, after doing quite a bit of research and going to university and looking at the global economy and what not, I do see a very promising future. Mind you, this future can only be achieved by streamlining efficiencies in a manner that creates sustainability for the producers in the industry. New ways of thinking must be utilized, as Matthew mentioned, in order for such a small part of the global economy as P.E.I. to become competitive and remain competitive.
I'll just touch on a few points. I'll be all over the map, but these points all deal with the same thing.
Newer, higher-skilled jobs need to be established in both the private and public sectors of agriculture, addressing new issues such as food safety, integrated pest management, and heightened levels of information sharing.
The power of information is really starting to show itself in all industries. If farmers can share their information with each other—their non-competitive information—it will really help them to create efficiencies. As well, by establishing these skilled positions, in food safety and what not, you take the weight off farmers' shoulders. They don't necessarily need to worry about the little things like that; they can farm and produce a crop to the best of their ability.
As I said, not that long ago the thought of farmers sharing any information about their operations was never even whispered. The landscape has changed now, and farmers see the need more than ever to work together, not only through existing boards and organizations for marketing and purchasing, but also at the production level. The power of information is truly beginning to show its enormous value in creating efficiencies.
I also feel that a bar needs to be set for existing operations to measure themselves against. A local industry competing in a global market must ensure that it has extracted total value from its operations. Operations repeatedly failing to live up to such standards should be considered non-viable and be made to change.
Also, the existing barriers to entry into the industry for the younger generation must be eliminated through working with the current generation to determine mutually beneficial methods of transferring these high capital farming operations without undue risk to the new generation.
Only when we emancipate the farmer from the added burdens of a global economy will he or she be free to fully transition critical skills and knowledge to a generation empowered to do better.