Farmers
Gary Tokariuk
Gary Tokariuk is the President of Alberta Sugar Beet Growers and farms about 1,000 acres of land in the Coaldale area. In a statement to CBC news, he highlights the importance of irrigation for sustaining crop production and maintaining the ag industry in Southern Alberta.
“We're actually using less water than we ever have. We have more acres, but we're using less water. It's an economic driver in our area, and you're not going to have the McCain's or any of these plants come here if there's no water for irrigation.” – via CBC news
Michel Camps
Michel Camps and his wife run CP Farms, a 1,600-acre potato operation located about 30 km east of Lethbridge. Originally from Holland, the couple comes from a potato-farming background: Camps’ family also grew potatoes back home. CP Farms supplies McCain Foods with 80% of its annual crop yield. At the 2024 St Mary River Irrigation District General Meeting, Camps explained to CBC news that a reduced water allocation from the irrigation district translates into millions of dollars of lost revenue for farmers, stating:
“That's the cost to purchase or rent extra water allocation, not even counting that, just a drop in yield and the fact that if we get less water, the quality is not going to be there …It's going to be a big deal for me and for many of the other farms in the area that have a similar crop mix.” – via CBC news.
Scott Heeg
Scott Heeg is a dryland wheat farmer in Acadia Valley and a councillor with the Acadia Municipal District, located on the eastern edge of Alberta. He spoke to CBC about the security irrigation infrastructure projects bring for family farming operations:
“In my mind, it would mean sustainability for our family farm and the surrounding community as a whole, for all our producers … The population of the area out here is on a steady decline. We need something to sustain the area and keep the people here, and hopefully even grow.” – via CBC news.
Terence Hochstein
Terence Hochstein, the executive director of Potato Growers of Alberta calls the move to expand irrigation in the SMRID “a win for agriculture in general” and sees the benefits for the future of the agricultural industry in Alberta:
“Our plants are at capacity given what we have. I think this now gives the processors an opportunity to look at five, 10 years down the road, what will this look like.” – via the Western Producer