Lesley Kelly is a farmer, entrepreneur, and mental health advocate who farms with her family in Watrous, Saskatchewan. As the voice behind High Heels & Canola Fields, she bridges the gap between farmers and consumers by dispelling agricultural myths and fostering meaningful conversations about food and farming. Her passion for advocacy began while building a snack food company using her family’s grain, inspiring her to create an online community of over 100,000 followers to share stories, build understanding, and strengthen agriculture’s connections.

Lesley is a leader in advancing mental health in agriculture. As a trained peer supporter and co-founder of the Do More Agriculture Foundation—a Canadian charity dedicated exclusively to farmer mental health—Lesley has been instrumental in breaking down stigma, increasing access to mental health resources, and supporting farmers across North America. Since 2018, the foundation has trained thousands of farmers in mental health awareness and resilience. Her efforts have been recognized through numerous accolades, including the Farm and Food Care Champion Award, the YWCA Women of Distinction Award, and the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal. 

Beyond her farm and advocacy work, Lesley serves as a Director for Saskatchewan Wheat and co-hosts the podcast What The Farm, where she dives into topics at the intersection of agriculture, leadership, and rural life. In her spare time, Lesley is running to the hockey rink with her two sons, learning to cook for a hungry harvest crew, or spending time with her husband. 

Lesley’s goal is simple but powerful: to build stronger communities through connection, compassion, and collaboration, ensuring a brighter, healthier future for both farmers and the agriculture industry as a whole.

Links mentioned in this episode:

Do More Ag: https://www.domore.ag/

Do More Ag Crisis and Support Resources Page: https://www.domore.ag/crisis-contacts

High Heels & Canola Fields: https://highheelsandcanolafields.com/

“Without the Farm, There is No Farmer” The National Farmer Crisis Line is a free, confidential service available 24/7.  The phone number to call for this service is 1-866-FARMS01 or 1-866-327-6701.  

The Manitoba Farmer Wellness Program offers confidential, free, counselling services to Manitoba farmers, farm families and employees. 1(204) 232-0574

Manitoba Farmer Wellness Program: https://manitobafarmerwellness.ca/

The research programs and daily operations at MBFI would not be possible without the funding from the Province of Manitoba, Government of Canada, and Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, as well as the partnership with Manitoba Agriculture, Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) and Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC).

We encourage you to follow MBFI on social media, or check out the website for more information on project findings and results, upcoming events and more!

Instagram: @MBBeefandForage

Facebook: @MBBeefandForage

X (Twitter): @MBBeefandForage

Website: www.mbfi.ca 

Email address: [email protected] 

Mary-Jane’s Phone Number: 431-255-0011

Josh Dillabough is a dedicated natural area manager for the Nature Conservancy of Canada, he’s been with the organization since 2010. When not pursuing efforts to protect critical natural habitat or being coerced into media interviews or podcasts, he endeavours to be a loving husband and dad. Josh is an outdoor enthusiast that enjoys hunting, fishing, paddling and thick rib-eyes hot off the grill.

Gordon Beddome is a cow-calf producer who lives near Shilo, Manitoba.  His previous work at the Research Station at Brandon started his interest in the research side of cattle production.  Gord has rented and grazed the native pastures at the Yellowquill Prairie Preserve for 25 years and has learned a lot about grazing native range in that time.  

In today’s episode, we are talking about the Yellow Quill Prairie Preserve, which is owned by the Nature Conservancy of Canada.  The Yellow Quill Prairie Preserve is an intact native mixed prairie grassland.  Josh shares some information about what NCC is and what their aim is, as well as the history and significance of this piece of land.  Gordon shares information on the grazing history of this land, from his 25 years of experience renting and grazing cattle here.  Gordon also shares a bit about his grazing plan, stocking rate, grazing rotation and things he has to keep in mind when grazing native pastures.

We chat about some of the species at risk that call this pasture home and how Gord sets up his rotation to ensure the best care is given to the native plants and wildlife. Along with this, we discuss some of the other challenges that come with this land.  Brush encroachment, leafy spurge and areas of bush pasture are all items that can create challenges.  Gord shares his experience working with nature, use of prescribed fire and how he has tried to manage these challenges.

To contact Josh call 1-877-231-3552  Ext. 4303

Links mentioned in this episode:

Nature Conservancy of Canada: https://www.natureconservancy.ca/en/

Facebook: @Nature Conservancy of Canada/Conservation de la nature Canada

X (Twitter) : @NCC_CNC

LinkedIn: @Nature Conservancy of Canada/Conservation de la nature Canada

Instagram: @ncc_cnc

The research programs and daily operations at MBFI would not be possible without the funding from the Province of Manitoba, Government of Canada, and Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, as well as the partnership with Manitoba Agriculture, Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) and Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC).

We encourage you to follow MBFI on social media, or check out the website for more information on project findings and results, upcoming events and more!

Instagram: @MBBeefandForage

Facebook: @MBBeefandForage

X (Twitter): @MBBeefandForage

Website: www.mbfi.ca 

Email address: [email protected] 

Mary-Jane’s Phone Number: 431-255-0011

Tyler Fulton and his wife, Dorelle, along with their kids Evan and Mae own and operate Tyton Farm Ltd, a 600 head cow/calf/backgrounding operation south of Birtle, MB. 

The farm operates about 6000 acres in prairie pothole country, which consists of mostly tame pasture, hay, and some annual crops. Tyler has spent most of his off-farm career in the field of livestock price risk management after he received a degree in Agribusiness from the University of Manitoba.  He is passionate about improving the tools and programs available for cattle producers to manage risk on their operations.

Tyler currently serves as a Director with Manitoba Beef Producers and has newly taken on the role as the President of the Canadian Cattle Association.

In today’s episode, Tyler gives us a broad overview of the current tariff situation and where this stands at our April 11, 2025 recording date.  We discuss the current state of the Canadian government and how this puts Canada at a higher risk during the uncertainty of the tariff situation.

We are hoping today to steer away from speculation of what might happen with future tariffs, or what we think might be going to happen. Instead, Tyler, shares some information about the work the Canadian Cattle Association is doing to advocate for the Canadian Beef Industry given this situation. We discuss the timeline of how quickly implementation of tariffs would impact primary producers in the beef sector.

While there are a lot of unknowns and uncertainties, there are some things producers can do to mitigate risk, like using the Agristability Program, using Advance Program Payments and Livestock Price Insurance.  Tyler shares information about all three of these risk mitigation strategies.

Tyler gives some reflections on the trip he took to Washington to meet with members of the House of Representatives and Senators and their staff, as well as USDA representatives and the takeaways from these conversations, which were positive and hopeful.

We recognize that the uncertainties of the tariff situation is another thing on the minds and shoulders of our Canadian Farmers.  The Beef & Forage Roundup Podcast will be releasing a mini series through the month of May on the topic of Mental Health Awareness in Agriculture, which coincides with the 2025 Mental Health Awareness Week in Canada which is May 5-11th.  Through the month of May, we will be sharing stories of producers’ mental health journeys, as well as sharing information about resources that are available at no cost to farmers, farm families and farm employees here in Canada.  We all know someone who is struggling with their mental health and we are hoping to help reduce the stigma of asking for help.  

To contact Tyler, reach out on social media at: @etfulton on X or by searching for Tyler Fulton on Facebook and Instagram.  You can also reach him on his cell phone at: 204-842-3353.

Links mentioned in this episode:

For the most up to take information on tariffs, visit the Canadian Cattle Association’s Action News: https://www.cattle.ca/news-and-events/action-news

The research programs and daily operations at MBFI would not be possible without the funding from the Province of Manitoba, Government of Canada, and Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, as well as the partnership with Manitoba Agriculture, Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) and Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC).

We encourage you to follow MBFI on social media, or check out the website for more information on project findings and results, upcoming events and more!

Instagram: @MBBeefandForage

Facebook: @MBBeefandForage

X (Twitter): @MBBeefandForage

Website: www.mbfi.ca 

Email address: [email protected] 

Mary-Jane’s Phone Number: 431-255-0011

Mary-Jane leads a dedicated team at MBFI to advance Manitoba’s beef & forage industry through engaging stakeholders, evaluating on-farm innovation, and extension for sustainability of farmers, the public, and the environment. She deeply values the opportunity to collaborate with producers, researchers, education providers, extension specialists, conservation groups, and all stakeholders in field-testing management practices and growing understanding of improved production in Manitoba. Mary-Jane holds a PhD from Purdue University in soil microbial ecology in agricultural systems, is a Professional Agrologist, and Certified Crop Advisor. Her experience in ecology and field agronomy gives her a unique perspective on the challenges facing agriculture today. 

To start off today, Mary-Jane shares some of the things she considers when planning winter feed for MBFI’s cattle herd.  We then discuss some of the alternate winter feeding ideas they have used at MBFI to reduce winter feeding costs and how this might vary year to year based on the growing season.  Knowing how high winter feed costs can be, we chat about ways to reduce feed waste, and which strategies have yielded the most and least “waste.”

Mary-Jane also shares information on feed testing. Beef Cattle Research Council  has an excellent resource page on feed testing practices, you can find the link below.

We also discuss the 2024 silage variety trial and what the preliminary outcomes of this research, as well as what is next to come for this in the 2025 growing season.

For more info on winter feeding strategies and analysis tune in to:

Beef & Forage Roundup Episode #15: Extended Grazing at Brookdale Farm with Shawn Cabak

Beef & Forage Roundup Episode #16: The Cost of Overwintering Cattle & Feed Calculator with Ben Hamm 

Beef & Forage Roundup Episode #18: Bale Placement & Binding with Dr. Mary-Jane Orr 

Links mentioned in this episode:

BCRC Feed Quality, Testing & Analysis: https://www.beefresearch.ca/tools/feed-testing-analysis-for-beef-cattle/

MBFI YouTube Webinar Series: https://www.youtube.com/@MBBeefandForage

CowBytes Information Link: https://www.beefresearch.ca/cowbytes/

MB Ag Extension Contact Information: https://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/crops/crop-management/forages/contacts.html

The research programs and daily operations at MBFI would not be possible without the funding from the Province of Manitoba, Government of Canada, and Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, as well as the partnership with Manitoba Agriculture, Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) and Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC).

We encourage you to follow MBFI on social media, or check out the website for more information on project findings and results, upcoming events and more!

Instagram: @MBBeefandForage

Facebook: @MBBeefandForage

X (Twitter): @MBBeefandForage

Website: www.mbfi.ca 

Email address: [email protected] 

Mary-Jane’s Phone Number: 431-255-0011

Dr. Christy Morrissey is a Professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Saskatchewan. Her research focuses on issues related to agricultural pesticides and other chemicals and the use of birds and insects as indicators of ecosystem health. 

Dr. Morrissey has published over 95 highly cited journal articles and book chapters and in 2020 was named to the Royal Society College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists. Her work has also been featured broadly in the national and international media and documentaries (CBC, BBC, National Geographic, Nature of Things, and The Messenger film). 

She is currently co-leading the NSERC funded Prairie Precision Sustainability Network Marginal Land Solutions project and the Bridge to Land Water Sky Living Lab to implement Nature-based solutions to improve sustainable agricultural production.

To start off today, Christy shares a bit about her background and her interest in agricultural pesticides and the impact of environmental contaminants on birds and insects.

We chat about her work with the Prairie Precision Sustainability Network and how they are looking at the the environmental and ecological threats to cultivating marginal farm land, and solutions to reducing these through the seeding of marginal areas.

She also talks about the challenges does that cultivation of this land offers to producers/farmers, both ecologically and economically.

If listeners are interested in finding out more or want to become involved in this project, please visit https://www.prairiepsn.ca/.

The research programs and daily operations at MBFI would not be possible without the funding from the Province of Manitoba, Government of Canada, and Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, as well as the partnership with Manitoba Agriculture, Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) and Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC).

We encourage you to follow MBFI on social media, or check out the website for more information on project findings and results, upcoming events and more!

Instagram: @MBBeefandForage

Facebook: @MBBeefandForage

X (Twitter): @MBBeefandForage

Website: www.mbfi.ca 

Email address: [email protected] 

Mary-Jane’s Phone Number: 431-255-0011

Joey Pankiw grew up on a family farm in the Red River Valley. Joey is a graduate from the University of Winnipeg with a B.A. in Geography, and obtained a MSc. in Geography from the University of Regina. He started working with the Seine Rat Roseau Watershed District in 2019 as a Watershed Assistant and also held the ALUS/Grow Coordinator position before becoming District Manager in 2022.

In today’s episode, Joey gives us an overview of what the ALUS Growing Roots program is and what the goals of this program are.  He describes the thought process behind the moto “Farm the best, leave the rest” in relation to the Cultivated Cropland aspect of the project, which aims to improve water quality by reducing nutrient run off, reduce soil erosion, provide carbon sequestration and provide wildlife and pollinator habitat.  Joey also discusses the changes they are seeing in areas where this program has been implemented and what impacts this has to the environment.

Along with the Cultivated Cropland aspect of the program, Joey shares information about the Class 4 and Class 5 Forage/Grazing Land programs, including the annual payment, contract length and amount SRRWD pays towards the establishment cost of these forages.

He wraps up with some information on other programs that are available in this watershed district, including the Preservation Project and The Pasture Riparian Fencing Project.

For more information about the programs available in your watershed, contact your local watershed district today.

To contact Joey 

Seine Rat Roseau Watershed District Website: www.srrwd.ca

Email: [email protected]

Office Phone Number: 204-326-1030

Instagram: @seine_rat_roseau_watershed

Facebook: Seine Rat Roseau Watershed District

X: @SeineRatRoseau

The research programs and daily operations at MBFI would not be possible without the funding from the Province of Manitoba, Government of Canada, and Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, as well as the partnership with Manitoba Agriculture, Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) and Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC).

We encourage you to follow MBFI on social media, or check out the website for more information on project findings and results, upcoming events and more!

Instagram: @MBBeefandForage

Facebook: @MBBeefandForage

X (Twitter): @MBBeefandForage

Website: www.mbfi.ca 

Email address: [email protected] 

Mary-Jane’s Phone Number: 431-255-0011

Justin Girard is the Manitoba Program Manager for Young Agrarians, a peer to peer educational resource network for new, young and aspiring farmers. He is also the team lead for the Young Agrarians Apprenticeship Program, a program that sets up aspiring farmers with their first farm job and provides support to both the apprentices and the seasoned farmer mentors. Justin grew up on a farm, worked on farms, and farmed himself and is excited to help carve out opportunities for the next generation of land stewards.

In this episode, Justin tells us what Young Agrarians is and the missions and goals of this very farmer education focused organization.  He also shares about his role and some tasks within the Manitoba section of YA.

One of these roles has to do with the Apprenticeship Program through YA, and Justin shares how this program works, the number of farms included in the program for 2025 and how farms can be involved. 

Young Agrarians offers an array of courses and conferences.  Today, we are focusing specifically on the “How to Hire Farm Workers Course.”  This program discusses human resources on the farm from creating job ads, to the hiring process, retaining great employees and working together on the farm.  The course also discusses onboarding, skills training, communication and farm culture.

To contact Justin email: [email protected]

Visit Young Agrarians on their social media platforms: @youngagrarians 

Links mentioned in this episode:

To find out more about the course or to sign up, visit: https://youngagrarians.org/shop/e-learning/self-paced/how-to-hire-farm-workers/

Young Agrarians Home Page: https://youngagrarians.org/

The research programs and daily operations at MBFI would not be possible without the funding from the Province of Manitoba, Government of Canada, and Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, as well as the partnership with Manitoba Agriculture, Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) and Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC).

We encourage you to follow MBFI on social media, or check out the website for more information on project findings and results, upcoming events and more!

Instagram: @MBBeefandForage

Facebook: @MBBeefandForage

X (Twitter): @MBBeefandForage

Website: www.mbfi.ca 

Email address: [email protected] 

Mary-Jane’s Phone Number: 431-255-0011

Carson Callum is the General Manager with Manitoba Beef Producers.  Carson joined MBP in 2019, and comes with an extension background in agriculture.  He has a Master’s of Science in Agriculture, specifically related to beef cattle. Carson has worked in many areas of the ag sector, and the beef industry is near and dear to him.  He grew up on a small beef farm south of Miami Manitoba.  He now lives in Winnipeg with his family, which includes his wife Britni, and sons Cohen and Sullivan. Carson admits his favorite role in life is fatherhood, but sure enjoys working on behalf of the beef industry as well.

Today we are chatting about livestock inspection and traceability in Manitoba.  Carson shares what the proposed system looks like in Manitoba and when producers could expect implementation to occur.  He also tells us about the process, cost and what paperwork will be included with this change.

We also chat about the current holes in the traceability and inspection system in Manitoba, and the reasoning behind making this change.  We chat specifically about cattle theft and fraud, and some tips for producers to protect themselves against animal theft. 

If you would like to find out more, this will be a topic at the AGM on Feb. 20 & 21 in Winnipeg.  Register online or call the MBP office if you’d like to attend.

To contact Carson, please email him at [email protected] or call him at the office at: 204-772-4542

Links mentioned in this episode:

Manitoba Beef Producers: https://mbbeef.ca/

Manitoba Beef Producers Newsletter Sign-up: https://mbbeef.ca/news/

RealAg Radio Podcast: https://www.realagriculture.com/podcasts/

MBP Fall District Line Up Information: https://mbbeef.ca/events/district-meetings-manitoba-beef-producers/

MBP Events Page: https://mbbeef.ca/events/

The research programs and daily operations at MBFI would not be possible without the funding from the Province of Manitoba, Government of Canada, and Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, as well as the partnership with Manitoba Agriculture, Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) and Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC).

We encourage you to follow MBFI on social media, or check out the website for more information on project findings and results, upcoming events and more!

Instagram: @MBBeefandForage

Facebook: @MBBeefandForage

X (Twitter): @MBBeefandForage

Website: www.mbfi.ca 

Email address: [email protected] 

Mary-Jane’s Phone Number: 431-255-0011

Brent VanKoughnet M.Sc. P.Ag. is Owner / Manager of Agri Skills Inc. a company that

specializes in agricultural innovation and human resource development services. Agri

Skills provides market development consulting services, custom skills development and training programs, and field scale precision trial services to several major manufacturers and retailers in western Canada and the northern United States. He completed a Masters degree in Agricultural Economics from the University of Manitoba in 1992, manages the family farm in Carman and is currently project lead for an ambitious Soil Health Network initiative with Assiniboine College.

This is a quote from the  Weston Family Soil Health Initiative Webpage (2024) “Loss of biodiversity on agricultural lands is occurring at an unprecedented rate due to agricultural intensification and habitat loss. Research shows that Canada’s agricultural lands offer an immediate and large-scale opportunity to mitigate further biodiversity losses, and by promoting and increasing soil organic matter, we can help support more adaptive and resilient agricultural lands.” 

On Feb. 15, 2023, Assiniboine College released a news bulletin that stated, “The Weston Family Soil Health Initiative, which seeks to expand the adoption of ecologically based beneficial management practices (BMPs) that increase soil organic matter to improve biodiversity and resiliency on agricultural lands across Canada, has granted Assiniboine Community College $1,680,827 for a five-year project to enhance soil ecosystems in Western Canadian agriculture.”

This has resulted in a project now known as the Soil Health Network.  In this episode, Brent shares information about the project and how they are using farmer peer groups to determine where the questions are in agriculture and where more research is needed.

He tells us what can be found on the Soil Health Network website (link below), how the SHAPE tool works and the resource bank that is being developed.

We also talk a bit about feeding the growing global population sustainably.

Links mentioned in this episode: www.soilhealthnetwork.ca 

The research programs and daily operations at MBFI would not be possible without the funding from the Province of Manitoba, Government of Canada, and Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, as well as the partnership with Manitoba Agriculture, Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) and Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC).

We encourage you to follow MBFI on social media, or check out the website for more information on project findings and results, upcoming events and more!

Instagram: @MBBeefandForage

Facebook: @MBBeefandForage

X (Twitter): @MBBeefandForage

Website: www.mbfi.ca 

Email address: [email protected] 

Mary-Jane’s Phone Number: 431-255-0011

Kristen Phillips is a mother, agronomist, farmer and she is the General Manager of Manitoba Ag Days.  Her and her husband Garret have 3 beautiful daughters, Leah, Bailey and Jordyn.  They farm ~ 4000 acres in partnership with Kristen's parents Doug and Denise Williamson.  Kristen loves spending time with her girls and you will often find them out scouting fields, playing catch in the front yard or swimming in their pool.  Kristen is the head leader of the Brandon Explorers 4-H Club and a leader in the Poplar Hill 4-H Club as well.  Kristen is passionate about agriculture! Her motto is "You have to Scout to Know!" 

To start off today, Kristen tells us a bit about her background in agriculture and how her position as the General Manager of MB Ag Days has changed over the years.  Along with that, she gives us a bit of history on the Ag Days Show and how it has evolved over the past 48 years.

The 2025 Ag Days show is coming up next week on January 21 - 23rd at the Keystone Centre in Brandon, Manitoba and is Canada’s largest indoor farm show.  Expecting 35,000 - 40,000 attendees, the show sells early bird tickets online which are available until midnight Jan 20th, and at the door for in-person sales.

Along with displays, vendors and a packed speaker line up, attendees can visit the Produced on the Prairies Market, which is new for 2025.

Along with the show, there are many events occurring outside of the “business hours,” as the Ag Days Board and staff realize how much business happens outside of the traditional business hours.  For more information on all that is going on, visit the Ag Days website and follow them on social media.

Or find MB AgDays at: https://www.agdays.com/

Ticket Sales: www.agdays.com/ticket

Facebook: @MbAgDays 

Instagram: @MbAgDays

X (Twitter): @MbAgDays

YouTube: @Manitobaagdays6005

This year at Ag Days, MBFI is hosting the Women in Beef Event with a keynote presentation on Building Positive Public Perception in Beef TogetHER with speaker Amie Peck, Public and Stakeholder Engagement Specialist Canadian Cattle Association.  Email [email protected] for more information or to RSVP today!

The research programs and daily operations at MBFI would not be possible without the funding from the Province of Manitoba, Government of Canada, and Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, as well as the partnership with Manitoba Agriculture, Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) and Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC).

We encourage you to follow MBFI on social media, or check out the website for more information on project findings and results, upcoming events and more!

Instagram: @MBBeefandForage

Facebook: @MBBeefandForage

X (Twitter): @MBBeefandForage

Website: www.mbfi.ca 

Email address: [email protected] 

Mary-Jane’s Phone Number: 431-255-0011