‘Promoting Ag & Leadership’

Monday, December 30, 2024

JFAO President Reflects on His Role & the Association

By Mary Loggan

Carson Wagner was elected the 81st president of the Junior Farmers’ Association of Ontario (JFAO) in March.

As he heads into the final months in his current role, the sixth-generation farmer says he’s been proud to have taken on the leadership role and help grow and promote the agricultural industry.

In fact, growth and diversity were key goals last spring when he was elected.

Where it started

Growing up on a farm, Carson graduated from Ridgetown College in 2015 with an Associate Diploma in Agriculture.

He and his parents operate a 55 dairy-cow herd in New Hamburg. They also crop 170 acres of beans, corn, hay, and rye.

Carson plays an active role in farm maintenance and decision-making when managing the farm.

“My dad and I split the decision-making and work as a team,” he says.

It’s a skill he says he acquired through participating in JFAO.

“Being part of the association has greatly impacted my role on the farm. I have developed skills I wouldn’t have gained otherwise, especially when it comes to time management.

“I learned a lot about leadership and getting out of my comfort zone by taking on different roles.

“I don’t think I would be as confident in my leadership today if I hadn’t been involved with the association.”

The 29-year-old hopes to eventually take over the farm from his parents and keep it running for generations to come.

Carson also points out that his parents are JFAO alumni, so joining felt like a natural decision.

“It’s great to see the lifelong connections made through the association. My parents still get together once or twice a year with friends they met through JFAO. There’s always a large group of them – so it is interesting to see how those friendships have lasted over the years.”

Active roles

Before becoming president, Carson also participated in other leadership roles within JFAO.

In his second year of membership, he became president of his local (Oxford) Junior Farmers’ Club and was treasurer for five years afterward.

“These roles gave me more confidence, pushing me to take on bigger responsibilities.

“From there, I became a member of the executive committee, which eventually led to my decision to run for president,” he says.

“My official duties as president are to attend meetings with our executive, try to make it out for other club meetings, and attend provincial events.

“I have also had the opportunity to get to know people at the OFA quite well. I was previously the OFA representative, and they made sure to involve me in events.”

Future of ag

Carson says that farmers need to stay connected to each other, and being involved in JFAO is one way to do that.

He explains, “It’s a great opportunity for young farmers to connect with others in the industry.

“It’s nice to chat with farmers from all over the province and compare what happens in their area to what happens in ours. It’s interesting to see the differences.

“I think joining the association is beneficial because of the social aspect. You can make many connections professionally and personally. I have made many friends all over Ontario and even some overseas.”

In addition to keeping farmers connected, Carson also hopes to encourage others from non-agricultural backgrounds to join and get involved in the industry.

He says, “At events like farm shows, we get the opportunity to connect with farm kids – but also others interested in learning more about agriculture.

“We have members coming out to meetings who live in towns and cities. They hear about JFAO through friends – and word of mouth keeps spreading.”

“Even though people may not come from a farm or have a farming background – they seem to enjoy coming to meetings and learning more about farming and agriculture.”

Carson stresses the importance of bringing more people into the industry.

“This is a great opportunity for people to get involved in agriculture. Our farming community is shrinking, and we want to bring more people into the industry.”

“We want to encourage more people to come out!

“Some of the goals we’re working on is to expand our reach. We are working to diversify our members and hopefully keep them involved in agriculture.”

Of course, “It’s not only about learning agriculture,” he says, but also about becoming a confident leader.

“I like to push people to step out of their comfort zone to try and take on leadership roles within JFAO.”

In doing this, he hopes to help encourage members to take on more leadership roles outside the association and become an active part of the industry.

“It’s important to ensure we do everything we can to promote strong ag leaders and grow the sector for future generations.”

Christena Jenkins, communications director at JFAO, says, “Carson is a great leader who is helping to build stronger relationships with farming groups and promote agriculture and leadership to younger generations.

“He has been a great addition to the JFAO executive.” BF