'Friendly competition' between farmers expands as overall quality of crops improves

A friendly competition between farmers in the Maritimes has proven to be a winner. 

The Yield Enhancement Network, or YEN, competition is expanding to include soy beans this season, and has also added a new prize for the most efficient use of fertilizer. 

The initial goal was to help researchers and farmers work more closely together to improve yields — with the competition for bragging rights thrown in to spice things up.

Along the way, the entire grains industry has had a boost, as farmers learn from the best practices of the winners, and try them on their own farms. 

"The goal was to basically bring all of the yields up for our cereal crops. Cereals tend to be more of a rotation crop, with less focus compared to potatoes," said research scientist Aaron Mills from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

"What we wanted to do was shift the focus to those cereals, and try to improve yield and quality."

Mills said there are two main categories: highest yield, and the highest calculated percentage of potential yield.

"Our modellers model the amount of sunshine, and the amount of rain, and calculate what your biological potential would be on that field," Mills said.

"The percentage of potential is basically the farmer against himself, and how well did you do with the cards that you were dealt for that year."

Data goldmine

The top three in each category are asked to share what they did on their farm to achieve their winning results.  There are P.E.I. winners in each category, as well as winners for the Maritimes. 

"Competition always tends to spice things up a little bit," Mills said.

"Honestly, I think the biggest thing about the competition is growers are sharing their information, and they're learning from each other, and we're capturing the on-farm innovation."

Since 2019, the competition has grown from 40 to more than 100 fields this season. 

Mills describes the competition as "a goldmine for data" for him as a scientist.

"Overall yields have gone up in the province, and quality has gone up as well," Mills said. 

"We have growers who started out four years ago and their crops were just fair, and now they're either placing, or coming close to placing in the top three."

Overall yields have gone up in the province, and quality has gone up as well​​​​​—Aaron Mills, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada 

Spencer Ellis farms wheat, barley, soybeans and corn in Brae, P.E.I., and has been part of the yield competition

"When I first started farming on my own, getting respectable yields was a struggle, so I figured, if we could network, and if I could learn some things that would be beneficial," Ellis said.

"Improvement every year since I entered the competition. Last year being my best yet, and we'll see what happens this year."

Ellis is excited that soybeans have been added this year.

He said the competition is making the farmers who participate better.

"I think they're paying a lot more attention. It goes from a second thought to maybe something they'd focus on primarily," Ellis said.

The main goal is to boost our yields and our return on our investment​​​​—Spencer Ellis, YEN competitor 

"It's a friendly competition, and we have quite a bit of fun with it amongst ourselves, some side bets and whatnot," Ellis said.

"But the main goal is to boost our yields and our return on our investment."

Permanent competition

Alan Miller grows soybeans, winter wheat and barley, and is also the research co-ordinator for the Atlantic Grains Council, which runs the annual competition.

"I think it helps the industry overall. Our buyers are interested in this," Miller said.

"I think it's going to be a permanent competition, and probably supported by industry in the long run." 

Miller said the council is also open to expanding even more in the future, with soybeans this year and corn next season.

"Corn is one of the fastest growing crops as far as acres grown in the Maritimes. So that will be a very important one and it will take a while to absorb that and get it working right," Miller said.

"So we'll focus on corn and soybeans for the next couple of years, and then who knows, if canola acreage grows, maybe canola could be added."