Manitoba Rural Adaptation Council

After getting his feet wet in the agriculture industry, Mark Sloane returned to the farm hoping to spend more quality time with his family.

“Spending time with family was a challenge when I worked full-time and farmed on the side and I did that for about 10 years. Now I’m back on the farm full-time. I work with my dad on the grain and cattle; I work with my wife on the seed; and I work with my brother-in-law on the consulting. And every time I’m in for a meal I can see the boys. I love every minute of it,” he says.

Sloane, 37, grew up on the family farm a mile down the road from where he currently lives near Clearwater, Man. He ventured to the big city of Winnipeg to attend the University of Manitoba. After receiving an Agriculture Degree, he worked for Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives (MAFRI), DuPont and Farm Credit Canada before returning to the farm about three years ago.

He now farms approximately 2,000 acres and has a 100-head cow-calf operation with his dad. Besides the farming operation, he and his wife Dawna are also associate dealers for Pioneer seed; and he and his brother-in-law Andrew are partners in a financial consulting business called Right Choice Management Consulting.

Most of Sloane’s hobbies off the farm are centered on his three boys, which includes coaching hockey and baseball. In the summer his family enjoys boating and camping. He also helps coordinate the local Canadian Foodgrains Bank Grain Growing Project.

Despite his hectic schedule, Sloane was interested in letting his name stand on the Manitoba Rural Adaptation Council (MRAC) board of directors when approached by director Colin Hudon.

“Colin spoke so highly of the work that MRAC was doing and also the people that made up the board. So I was really excited to join the board and be part of MRAC,” says Sloane, who is in his second year on the MRAC board of directors. “The first year was a pretty steep learning curve. At times it’s difficult to know where to be engaged. And you’re feeling out the dynamics of the board during the first year.”

When Sloane first joined the board he was sometimes guarded in his comments as there are several different areas of representation on the board, but he quickly learned to appreciate the comments coming from people who have a different background than him.

This diverse board may come in handy when helping people appreciate agriculture. Sloane believes agriculture is going to play a larger role in people’s lives in the coming years. “If we back up about 50 years, agriculture was only about food. And now we have fuel, bioproducts and nutraceuticals,” he says. “Increasingly, the science and technology in agriculture is allowing our industry to play a larger role. We (MRAC) need to help people understand the importance of agriculture.”

Sloane also wants to see rural communities thriving in Manitoba. “Again, if we back up about 50 years, a lot of the commerce that was generated by agriculture in our small communities stayed in those communities. And today that’s not case. We need to challenge ourselves to bring commerce back to our communities. And it doesn’t have to be agricultural driven,” he says, noting some communities such as Morden and Winkler have done a good job of this. 

This is part of the vision and strategy behind Sloane’s financial consulting business. “It’s a way for us to bring commerce back into our community,” he notes.

MRAC can play a role in building vibrant rural communities by being a catalyst, says Sloane. “To step out and make a big change requires significant risk. But through some of MRAC’s programming, we can help share that risk.” 

Another area where MRAC can possibly play a leadership role is with succession planning. Sloane often encounters this issue in his consulting business. This is a large issue facing agriculture today as more baby boomers prepare to leave the farm, he says.

“Doing a good job of succession planning is going to determine which farms will grow and prosper and which farms are going to struggle,” he says.

~ By Teresa Falk, MRAC Communications Officer

Photo by Teresa Falk.