The seven-member AgSmart Industry Advisory Group has been involved in making sure the upcoming two-day AgSmart event will give participants lots of relevant and timely information and demonstrations.
The group “provides support and advice to the AgSmart event management team in the planning and development of the educational programming to ensure industry relevance and a successful event, while acting as an ambassador for the show in the industry,” according to the event’s website and quoted below.
The group’s members are Kevin Bender, Eric Brodie, Kent Erickson, Tracy Gardner, Geoff Roy, Rob Saik and Doyle Steinke. AgSmart takes place at Olds College on Aug. 13-14.
- Kevin Bender is a grain farmer in the Sylvan Lake-Bentley region. He has been very involved in the agriculture industry in Alberta as a past director with the Alberta Wheat Commission, Western Canadian Wheat Growers and Alberta Canola.
- Eric Brodie was raised in East Central Alberta. He was in 4-H for 10 years and learned a great amount about agriculture and leadership in this program. Eric has been involved in all sectors of agriculture from ag retail to equipment, working with John Deere dealers as a combine and seeding specialists. He embraces innovation and technology in agriculture and sees the value of knowing what to do with big data.
- Kent Erickson is a fourth-generation farmer from Irma. He farms 4,500 acres along with an 80 head cow-calf operation. Kent continues his passion of moving agriculture forward for future generations. He was a founding director and past chair of the Alberta Wheat Commission.
- Tracy Gardner has served as business development manager for Olds Regional Exhibition for the past 10 years. Her passion for event production has been significant through her volunteer commitments with Calgary Stampede, 4-H and a board member of the Olds & District Chamber of Commerce. She is an advocate for community and industry collaboration, teamwork, results and relationship building.
- Geoff Roy is a fourth-generation farmer and marketing professional from Youngstown. As marketing advisor with Cervus Equipment John Deere, he’s ingrained in Alberta’s small-town communities with a focus on providing customer solutions through John Deere’s industry-leading equipment and technology.
- Robert Saik has 40 years of experience as a professional agrologist, entrepreneur and an international consultant who has worked with a wide variety of agriculturalists from Nigeria’s minister of agriculture to Bill Gates. Robert is an outspoken champion of agriculture.
- Doyle Steinke has spent the majority of his agri-business career managing equipment dealerships. With a keen eye for profitable crop production, innovation and cutting-edge technology, he has enjoyed success in the development of superior business models to reflect the present and future opportunities in agriculture across Western Canada and beyond.
