More than 100 Angus enthusiasts gathered in Toronto, Ont., for the Canadian Angus Association national convention and annual general meeting in early June.
The annual Canadian Angus Foundation’s Building the Legacy fundraiser auction proved once again a striking finale to the convention. On June 8, supporters raised more than $139,000 for foundation programming. Thank you to all the donors and buyers at the auction for supporting the foundation.
During the convention, Ronnie Ford of Oyster Bed, P.E.I., was elevated from the position of president-elect to president. Tom deWaal of Prince George, B.C., moved into the past president position, and Greg Pugh of Edgerton, Alta., was chosen as president-elect. In addition, the board welcomed Paula Cornish of Indian River, Ont., who replaces retiring director and past president Graham MacLean of Watford, Ont.
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After announcing at the 2023 convention that the Canadian Angus Association would explore the market value for Angus Central through an active market listing, no offers acceptable to the association were presented over the past 12 months due to the softer current commercial real estate market in the Calgary area, higher interest rates and association expectations. The board is more comfortable with the firmed-up interest rates and business activity so Angus Central will be taken off the market at the expiry of the listing term and will remain our home for the foreseeable future. The board remains open-minded to all opportunities that are presented in the future.
The board will explore a more aggressive strategy and options to further pay down long-term debt quicker providing the best return on investment on active revenue.
The Canadian Angus Association’s commitment to research was also highlighted. In March, it was announced that Results Driven Agriculture Research (RDAR) awarded $3.8 million to the Canadian Angus Association to increase Canadian cattle producers’ ability to make data-driven decisions based on genomics to economically benefit their commercial livestock operations. The investment will be used to develop a genetic selection tool to equip producers with breeding data to select the best replacement heifers to improve their herds. On June 7, it was announced that Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, through the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, will support the Canadian Angus Association on a four-year, $4.2 million project in collaboration with Holstein Canada to develop new long-term phenomic systems to collect information on traits that affect producer profitability, animal health and welfare, and environmental sustainability. These two projects are the largest research projects awarded to a Canadian breed association.
Immerkar announced the launch of AngusWORKS, a white-labelled form of Telus Agriculture’s HerdTrax farm management program. Later this year, the association will launch AngusHOME, a new database program for managing the Canadian Angus Association herdbook. More information on both programs will be shared this summer.
At the convention banquet, three awards were presented for 50 years of continuous association membership to Harprey Farms and Melmac Angus Farms of Ontario, and to Justamere Farms of Saskatchewan. As well, past president Gary Harron was posthumously inducted into the Canadian Angus Hall of Fame.
The board of directors also made a surprise presentation to Betty Lou Scott of Upper Mount Thom, N.S., of a special lifetime achievement award in recognition of her nearly 50 years volunteering with the Nova Scotia and Maritime Angus Associations.
The Certified Angus Beef Canadian Commitment to Excellence award was presented to Gilchrist Farms of Lucknow, Ont. Gilchrist Farms includes Grant and Denise Gilchrist, Brad and Kristie Gilchrist, and Jess and Neil Froats.
The foundation also selected Lainie Muir of Glenella, Man., as the 2024 Robert C. McHaffie Junior Ambassador. The other finalists included Hanna Fitchett, Abby Anderson, Bella Davidson and Karli Crawford. Kaitlynn Bolduc of Cudlobe Angus in Staveley, Alta., was named the Outstanding Young Angus Breeder. Lexi Dietrich of Forestburg, Alta., received the Dick Turner Memorial Award.
