The Handshake Agreement

Often when folks think about the farming community and the way in which business is conducted in rural areas, they think of the classic handshake agreement.  In this process, two people chat about a business arrangement, agree to work together, and seal the deal with a firm handshake.  Business then proceeds as arranged and everything is peachy-keen.  Nothing ever goes wrong because rural folks are simple and honest and it all just works (I write this with deep sarcasm, of course).  If you were to take this business model to the city, you would quickly be laughed out of the office and would never make a deal, and if you did, you might find that the other party had taken advantage of your trust.

I think it is time to remove the handshake agreement from business because it simply doesn't work.  Of course, there will always be people who take advantage of another person's trust.  However, my dislike of the handshake agreement doesn't stem from distrust of my neighbours and potential business partners.  Rather, I am finding that handshake agreements simply leave too much unsaid.  Let me explain.

Let's say that I rent a 40-acre field from my neighbour (we'll call him Bob).  We agree that I will pay $55/acre to have the use of the field for a year.  We agree to these terms and shake hands to seal the deal.  Now that I have the use of that land, am I allowed to do anything I want with it?  There is nothing telling me what I can or cannot do.  Suppose this field is really nice and clean, with very few weeds in it.  I don't want to spend much money, so I buy low-quality seed from another neighbour and plant it.  The seed is full of of weed seeds and these weeds come up.  Still not wanting to spend money, I refuse to employ any method of weed control and the problem spreads.  Now Bob's field is full of weeds.  The next person to rent that field might demand a lower rental price since the land is not clean and they will have to spend extra money on weed control.  Not only that, but if there happens to be noxious or prohibited noxious weeds in there, Bob will have to pay the local weed inspector to control or destroy them.  Bob loses money because I was irresponsible with his land, but he has no written agreement to point to and say, "Valerie, you violated our agreement and my trust.  You are responsible for cleaning up this mess."  Instead he takes the financial hit and thinks twice about renting his land to me in the future.  As the renter, I can technically do whatever I want with the land and Bob will take the loss if I am irresponsible because there was no written agreement in place to guide my activities.

What about the owner's land use, though?  Bob owns the land.  Is he entitled to use it during the time I have it rented?  There is no agreement saying he can't.  Suppose I rent the land, plant my crop and carry on in a responsible fashion.  Bob accepts the rent cheque and carries on with his business, paying no attention to the field until one weekend when his grandkids come for a visit.  The grandkids enjoy taking their ATVs and dirt bikes for a ride.  The most convenient space for the kids to do this is on the 40 acres behind the house, the 40 acres I have rented.  Bob owns the land, though, so he allows his grandkids to ride all over the field, damaging my crop.  Whether that crop is lentils, wheat, oats, hay, or tame pasture, it doesn't matter.  My crop, which I own, has been damaged.  I will have to take the loss, however, because there is no written agreement saying that Bob and his relatives can't use the land while I have it rented.  I have nothing to point to and say, "Bob, you violated our agreement.  You need to pay for this damage."

In both cases, neither I nor Bob violated our agreement.  I paid Bob the agreed upon price and he let me use the land for the agreed upon period of time.  However, in each situation, one of us took a serious hit.  That is exactly what is wrong with the handshake agreement.  Now, you may say to me, "Valerie, that wouldn't actually happen."  And I will answer, "I have listened to a landlord complain to my dad about another renter who would not deal with his weeds properly.  I have also, in the past few weeks, seen the relatives of two different landlords ride ATVs and other off-road vehicles all over my dad's hay crop (and don't tell me it's just hay - it's a crop and it was damaged)."  These are real-life situations that could easily be avoided with a written agreement.

It's okay to trust your neighbours, but why not protect yourself and your business partners with a proper written contract?

Don't Fear Your Food: How to Get Accurate Information

Before I went to school to learn about agriculture, I followed the dreams everyone else had for me and set out on the path to become a teacher.  In pursuit of this goal, I earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, majoring in history.  This education taught me how to properly research to find accurate information regarding whatever topic I needed to write about.  I also learned from professors and other students that it can be very easy to make this information say whatever you want it to say, but in the end, using information in this manner will ultimately result in a loss of respect and a low grade.  When I first abandoned the teaching path I thought that the years spent completing this degree had been wasted.  Now I realize that completing a history degree taught me how to correctly access and use accurate, reliable information.

In the past few years as I studied agriculture and related topics, I began to see people accessing inaccurate information and then passing it on as truth.  I also saw people twisting accurate information to make it say horrible things.  The end result was almost always the same: the general public began to fear their food and had no idea how to get to the truth or who to trust.

I would now like to teach my readers a few things about accessing accurate information about their food.  As in my last blog post, I will do this through a question and answer format.

Where are you getting your information now?

When I first came across some of the alarming misinformation that is floating around regarding food production I wondered, "Where on earth is this coming from?"  I didn't take long for me to figure it out.  Consumers often don't have time to actively seek out information about everything they eat, so they get their information from the most convenient sources possible.  These include marketing campaigns (TV ads, unique selling points emphasized by companies, etc.), social media, television personalities, and various internet sources.  Those who take the time to dig a little deeper quickly come across web sites, books, articles, and other sources, many of which cause me to cringe when I see them.  These sources may sound legitimate, but for someone who is obsessive about finding accurate information, a few quick checks often reveal these sources to be untrustworthy.  

Please note that I am not saying that everything you hear is always wrong about everything.  There are some good sites and other sources out there.  I just want you to be able to identify whether a source is trustworthy or not.  Here are a few tips I learned from my time in school:

• Check credentials.  If the person or organisation giving out information is not connected in any way to food production, that is likely not an accurate source.  For example, movie actors are not trustworthy sources in regards to information about climate change.
• What does the source look like?  If a website is plastered with ads, it is likely not trustworthy.
• Blogs (even this one) and web forums are not trustworthy sources of information.  Ever.  Blogs and forums may be a good starting point, but make sure you do your own research beyond what the bloggers say.  A good blog should give you links to additional readings (but be sure to scrutinize those sites as well), unless it is an opinion or personal experience type of blog, which does not need to rely on external information and should definitely not be trusted.
• Is the article/site well-balanced, or is there bias?  Bias tends to twist information so that it is not reliable.
• Where does the website or publication come from?  Sources from established institutions (like government sites) are more reliable.

Are marketers trustworthy sources of information?

No.  Marketers are biased towards their product.  They want you to buy their product and will convince you to do so two different ways:

1. Marketers want you to be drawn to their products by a unique selling point.  For example, a marketer selling beef might say, "Buy our beef!  It is more delicious than other beef!"  That would not be a very compelling selling point, though, so they might try to be more unique and say, "Buy our beef!  It comes from cattle that are only fed native grasses!"
2. Marketers want to keep you from buying their competitors' products.  For example, a marketer selling beef might say, "Buy our beef, because our cattle are not grain-fed (like those other guys)."  The marketer here is not saying that grain-fed beef is bad, but he is implying that grain-fed beef is not as desirable as his beef.  This can cause consumers to ask, "What is wrong with grain-fed beef?"  A quick internet search will scare the consumer off from ever eating grain-fed beef, without having them ask, "What is wrong with grass-fed beef?"

Are farmers trustworthy sources of information?

The answer to this question will not satisfy you.  Here it is:  It depends.  It depends on the farmer's mood, on what kind of information you are looking for, and the expertise of the farmer.  Here are some hints for when you do go to a farmer for information about your food:

• Ask questions instead of making accusations and expecting the farmer to defend himself.  That will put him in a bad mood and he will either not answer you or explode into a rant that will scare you off from ever talking to a farmer again.
• Ask your questions to farmers with the appropriate expertise.  So if you want to know about dairy farming, ask a dairy farmer.  If you want to know about canola, ask someone who grows canola.  Don't expect a chicken farmer to have reliable information about raising beef.
• Don't ask farmers about the latest research.  We do our best to keep up and know what's going on, but research and technology is not our area of expertise.
• Talk to a few different farmers with different backgrounds.  Talk to someone who grows organic products, someone who has a large conventional farm, and someone who is a mixed farmer, to name a few.  Don't just get your information from one person and expect it to be well-rounded.

Are doctors trustworthy sources of information?

Again, the answer to this question is not satisfying: sometimes, sort of.  In recent months I've had quite a bit of contact with the medical profession due to personal health concerns.  One day I hope to write a blog about my interactions with medical professionals, but I'll try not to get side tracked right now.  Doctors know how our bodies work and what makes us sick.  They know a lot about research and understand more about science (especially chemistry and biology) than most people do.  They can be great resources in a one-on-one setting.  I'm going to let my bias show for a moment and say that I do not trust doctors who write about food or health in popular magazines and best-selling books or talk about those topics on television.  If I want information about my health, I will go to my doctor and talk about what is best for me.  Additionally, doctors usually know next to nothing about how food is actually produced.  They are not good sources of information regarding food production.

Where do farmers get their information?

Farmers get their information from a myriad of sources.  Most of us talk to each other to learn new things.  Young farmers go through a steep learning curve when they go through an agricultural college program.  Farmers of all ages can get informed on almost any subject at seminars and conferences throughout the year.  Many farmers also subscribe to various publications - magazines and newspapers, either in print or online - which keep us updated about new advances in agriculture.  We also can get a lot of information from the government, once we figure out where to look.  Finally, we can get information from sources that scare us.  These are people, organizations, publications, and documentaries that threaten our industry.  If we can be brave enough to listen to what these people are saying and to hear their concerns, then we can truly understand what issues are of importance to society and we can be ready to show the world how we are already addressing these issues.

What do I recommend you do if you want to learn more about your food?

If you want to learn more about your food, get information from as many sources as you can.  Talk to farmers, check out government statistics, watch scary documentaries, read agricultural publications that outline advances in the industry, and find as many sides of the story as you possibly can.  Most importantly, ask questions.  Be relentless in your questioning.  Don't let anyone off easy and don't just assume that certain people or organizations can be trusted.  However, if you go down that path, be ready to not understand everything.  Understand that this is a huge industry and no one person can ever hope to understand every aspect of it.

For those of you unsure about where to find agricultural publications and government information about the agricultural sector, these sites might get you started:

• Alberta Famer Express
• The Western Producer 
• Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
• Alberta Agriculture and Forestry 
• Beef Cattle Research Council 
• Top Crop Manager 

It can be difficult to figure out which sources are reliable.