At Brandon's winter fair, consumers facing economic worries look to buy straight from the farm
Visitors aim to learn more about where their food is coming from, and stretch dollars, at Brandon ag fair
As the Canada-U.S. trade war drags on, some consumers are turning to local farmers for direct purchases in search of both quality and economic stability — including visitors to one of Manitoba's premier annual events.
With grocery prices climbing, Royal Manitoba Winter Fair co-chair Clint Swain says he's seeing more people at the Brandon exhibition trying to find out how they can buy directly from farmers, both to support Canadian producers and help keep cash in their wallets.
"The price of produce and meat is skyrocketing in the store. So I think more and more families are going to kind of look for that avenue," Swain said.
That includes his own family, who buy most of their beef directly from a producer they know through the Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba— the non-profit organization that hosts the winter fair.
"My family isn't immune to the rising cost either. So as a family, we're taking a look at what we can buy more and more directly from producers."
Experts say the trade war is likely to drive up grocery costs, and could also mean a smaller selection of goods as the importing of U.S. products slows down.
But the fair puts shoppers face-to-face with the farmers behind their food, bridging the gap between producers and consumers by offering insights on where the food comes from and how to source it affordably.
Simon Atkinson, a sheep livestock dealer and chair of the Manitoba Sheep Association, says he's seeing a growing interest in people wanting to purchase meat directly from farms, who want to know where their food is coming from while also cutting costs.
At this year's fair, which started Monday and wraps up Saturday, Atkinson said he got a lot of questions about direct sourcing Manitoba products. He thinks ongoing economic uncertainty will likely drive more people looking for stable pricing to buy directly from producers.
Cattle producer Melissa Atchison also makes some of her sales directly to grocery consumers.
Her southwestern Manitoba farm, Poplarview Stock Farm, has a six-month waitlist of customers looking to take home a quarter, half or full cow.
That can be cost-effective for some people, but she said there is an investment in having the right storage for meat, and being able to afford buying beef in bulk.
But the current climate has created a push to buy local at a level she's never seen before, said Atchison, with more people wanting to be sure their beef is Canadian — whether that's at the grocery store or buying directly from a local cattle producer.
"There has been a very big patriotic push to ensure that we're using Canadian products," Atchison said.
"I'm not sure whether it's related to economic uncertainty or it's that patriotism of wanting to support Canadian beef, but I will say there's just been super-strong support for the Canadian beef products."
Fair visitor Meradith Anderson said she likes connecting with different producers to better understand how she can best support them with her spending, which she said helps not just her budget, but farmers and the economy as a whole.
"Regardless of the tariffs and stuff that's been going on, we want to help," said Anderson. "We know that it's from here, the money goes back into the system."
The trip to the winter fair helped inform her family's shopping habits, so they can support people as close to the source as possible, she said.
Swain expects buying directly from producers will only become a more popular choice.
"Everyone is struggling right now. And with the U.S. tariffs, we don't know where we're headed here — not today, tomorrow, even for the next four years," he said.
"Everyone's kind of looking to kind of get their feet in the sand and kind of formulate a plan for the future."
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