28 The Business of Ontario Agriculture Better Farming | June/July 2024 Finding the right team is credited as a key to success for David and Roger Buurma in Watford. The Buurma family owns Bacres Grain and LaSalle Agri and grows just over 5,000 acres of crops between Strathroy and Thamesville. “My family got invested in farming when my father started buying farms during the recession in the ’80s and rode the wave as farms became more valuable. He bought a few farms every year until about 2008, and in 2012 my brother and I took over,” says David. “We owned some farms at that time. We sharecropped our father’s farms and we have one other brother we sharecrop with. We rent about 15 to 20 per cent of the land we run.” Since taking over the farm, David has picked up another project. “The fertilizer business started with my father looking for an alternative source of fertilizer high in phosphorus and organic matter,” he explains. David’s father found an opportunity to use fertilizer derived from biosolids. The fertilizer is in pellet form and is sourced from water resource facilities across North America after the product has been processed to eliminate microorganisms. “The opportunity came along for him to use the product and he saw the effectiveness. He made a contract to buy all the fertilizer from a facility in Watford’s enterprising Buurma family: Roger, Harry, and David Buurma. Karen Kuykendall photo Nutrient Loss THE RIGHT PEOPLE IN THE RIGHT ROLES ‘We believe it’s important to understand your employees.’ By Emily Croft UP CLOSE
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