It is a rare opportunity and something that Humboldt Public School took advantage of.
For the second year in a row, Ducks Unlimited are planting one more crop on a section near Carmel.
“Often the land has a fair bit of perennial weeds which could be a problem when trying to grow a grass/legume stand so growing an annual crop, such as canola, for a year provides the opportunity to clean up these weeds,” says Larry Durand with Field Good Ag.
Proceeds from this crop will be donated to the Humboldt Public School and a new score clock.
On Sept. 27, thanks to wet weather conditions, students from all kindergarten to grade 8 classes were bused out to a canola field near the one that will go to pay for their score clock to learn about agriculture in their daily lives.
Farmers Brian Nett and Morgan Jaster, along with Durand got to show the students all about not only the food side of farming but also the everyday things that crops can make.
“The message that I wanted to get across, which was very interesting for the kids, was that agriculture is about more than just farmers,” says Durand.
In Canada there are around 270,000 farmers and producers but around 3 million people involved in the agriculture industry.
That means for every one farmer, there is about 10 more people working in agriculture and supporting their efforts, says Durand.
This goes from processing and distribution all the way to food preparation and food services.
From the non-food side of agriculture, Durand talked to the students about things like bio-fuels and flax straw toilet paper.
“It was good to broaden their perspective of agriculture and I think they found that quite interesting.”
Grade 4B students, Jamir Amante and Bryce Bergerman, were just two Humboldt Public students who got a literal field trip to Carmel.
They say they enjoyed the trip and got to learn about canola and agriculture in the process.
Giving the students this opportunity was something Principal Clayton Parobec did not want to pass up.
“It was a genuine learning opportunity for our kids...a lot of students who live in Humboldt don’t have access or an opportunity to learn about farming,” he says.
