Alberta Open Farm Days lets city slickers get up close
Want to learn how cattle are raised? Curious about the harvest cycle of crops? Wondering how the food gets to your plate? Answers to all of those questions will be revealed this weekend.
Alberta Open Farm Days returns Sunday, with 72 farms across the province showcasing the rural lifestyle to urban dwellers. Those living in Medicine Hat and Cypress County will have an opportunity to tour The Arrowhead Ranch, owned by Dale and Chandra Weiss near Dunmore on Township Road 114, and Neubauer Farms, located just past the city limits off Highway 3 on Township Road 122, owned by the Neubauer family.
Nichole Neubauer says the farm has activities planned for kids, including arts and crafts and seeing the animals, as well as lessons about food production on the farm.
“Everything will always be connected back to agriculture and where your food comes from and who grows your food,” she said. “Our involvement gives us an opportunity to showcase what we do and also to celebrate agriculture and its fundamental connection to life.”
At Arrowhead Ranch, which has been involved in Open Farm Days for three years now, attendees will be able to see cattle, as well as take people on tours of the land, where teepee rings and remnants of a homestead sit.
Dale says more than 50 people showed up at the ranch last year, and says he enjoys being able to showcase ranch life for those who don’t live there.
“I think it’s very important that they can see the effort and the passion that goes into producing food,” he said.
Neubauer said she enjoyed having a chance to connect with people interested in agriculture from the city, including retired farmers who shared stories. Both of Neubauer’s children were involved in the days as well, leading tours of combines and the barns.
“It’s giving them a glimpse into what we enjoy every single day,” she said. “Ultimately, we’re opening our gates to give people a little taste of what agriculture in Medicine Hat means, what it means to us and Open Farm Days is a great chance to represent the diversity that is agriculture, because no two farms are the same.
Neubauer farms will be open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., while Arrowhead Ranch is open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
More information about the event, as well as directions to the farms, can be found at http://www.albertafarmdays.co m/