“Maybe hemp will never quite be another
canola, but it sure is a solid crop that we
should be incorporating into our farms.”
www.pro-ag.com
1-800-806-2737
– Chris Dzisiak
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Agricultural, Lawn and
Garden Equipment
1.204.745.2054
www.greenlandequipment.com
32100 Hwy #3 South
Carman, MB
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Craig Mackie: cmackie@pro-ag.com
the same community after many years of set-up, and is
equipped to process both grain and fibre.
One new possibility for the hemp industry has come
with the legalization of drug-type cannabis. While Chris
says security and contamination concerns make it unlikely
that hemp producers would add marijuana to their operations,
there is definite potential in cannabidiol, or CBD. The
compound, found in the buds and leaflets of hemp plants, is
becoming popular as a treatment for pain, inflammation,
and anxiety.
“The Parkland Industrial Hemp Growers started to
screen varieties about four years ago in anticipation that
something like this might eventually happen,” Chris says,
“and we have a couple of lines that have higher levels of
CBD. We can turn those into marketable quantities of seed
and grow field-scale plots of buds for processing.”
The legalization of cannabis brings another very welcome
development: a relaxation of some of the regulations
and licensing requirements that have been so onerous for
producers over the years.
“We were always careful to work with them,” Chris says
of his relationship with Health Canada. “That's important
with almost anything in life. You're not shoving it at people
or getting angry if it doesn't go your way. We've always took
that approach; let's work together to get this done.”
Now with an eye toward retirement, Chris is beginning
to scale back some of his activities. His wife officially retired
in 2011, but has been working as a substitute teacher, a principal,
and even briefly as an EAL instructor in China.
Chris is looking forward to joining her in getting off the
farm a bit more, particularly in visiting the vacation home
they own in the Bay of Fundy.
“We're still farming a couple of thousand acres,” he
says. “But it won't be long before we collapse that to half to
make room for a little bit of fun.”
Looking back on his career he's proud of the role he
has played in the development of an exciting crop with a
lot of potential.
“Maybe hemp will never quite be another canola,” he
says. “But it sure is a solid crop that we should be incorporating
into our farms.” FV
MEMBER PROFILE
8 § Manitoba Farmers’ Voice § Winter 2019
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