Canadian efforts to strengthen U.S. relations during an era of tariffs and trade disruptions prompted a visit of agriculture officials from four key American states to Olds College of Agriculture & Technology.
“The bilateral agricultural trade between Canada and these states was over $15 billion in 2024,” said Steven Buchta, Vice-Consul and Trade Commissioner for Agriculture for the Consulate General of Canada in Denver, Colo.
“We have a lot of strong commercial ties between Canada and the U.S., and agriculture is a key part of that. Americans also face very similar challenges in terms of farming, so I wanted them to see the training, technology and research at Olds College.”
The delegation included California Secretary of Agriculture Karen Ross, Idaho Director of Agriculture Chanel Tewalt, Oregon Director of Agriculture Lisa Charpilloz Hanson and Washington Director of Agriculture Derek Sandison.
They are part of the Western Association of State Departments of Agriculture, which held a regional meeting July 8 to 11 in Whitefish, Mont. Their subsequent tour of Alberta included the Calgary Stampede and visits to the province’s potato and cattle feedlot industries near Lethbridge, along with a forage producer at the Kainai First Nation.
The delegation’s stop on July 14 at Olds College allowed them to learn about one of the top 15 research colleges in Canada, said Buchta. He is a former student who took part in a course at the College’s National Meat Training Centre when he worked at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.
“Olds College has come up in conversations as a leader in agricultural technology in Canada, particularly in the field of artificial intelligence. As one of the instructors said, it has one-of-a-kind level technology all in one place, so I wanted to make sure the U.S. delegation could see it, and they were impressed by it.”
They visited the Olds College Smart Farm, a living laboratory within the campus totaling over 3,000 acres. It is a working farm that integrates cutting-edge research on crops, livestock and agricultural technology, including artificial intelligence, with hands-on education.
“What makes Olds College special is how we connect the latest research with real-world, industry-led solutions,” said Todd Ormann, Vice-President of External Relations and Research. “We make sure the next generation of producers has what they need to tackle today’s big challenges, including the increasing global demand for food.”
Washington state’s Sandison said agricultural trade and tariffs are top of mind on both sides of the border, but the two countries also need to explore how to work together on common problems.
“We want to foster a better understanding of our mutual interests and challenges as we serve our farmers and ranchers in Washington state and our other states. Can we learn from you and hopefully, can we provide some perspectives that might be of help to you?”
He listened as PhD student Maurizio Comandone of the University of Guelph explained his research measuring efforts to reduce nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions through precision agriculture at the Smart Farm. He said the greenhouse gas is about 273 times more potent than carbon dioxide.
It is emitted by microbes in soil acting on sources like nitrogen fertilizers used in agriculture to promote crop growth, said Comandone. “It’s a huge problem when we’re talking about climate change.”
His research is part of the Canadian Nitrous Oxide Network (CANN2ONET), a four-year national initiative led by the University of Guelph that received $7.9 million in federal funding in 2024. It aims to help Canada reduce fertilizer-related N20 emissions to 30 per cent below 2020 levels by 2030.
Ormann said efforts to minimize the environmental impact of farming by lowering fertilizer use, such as technologies used in precision agriculture, could also help producers boost their profits by making their operations more efficient.
“A lot of the funding for the technology that we test here at the Smart Farm is dedicated to the environmental side, but from a producer perspective, it’s more about efficiency. You have to know your audience when you’re talking about this kind of research.”
Sandison said the cost of production, including fertilizer, has become extraordinarily high for producers in his state. “One of our responsibilities is to help figure out how we deal with this problem and keep our farms viable.”
He was impressed by what he saw at Olds College. “We’re looking at all the ideas around how we address the issues that are affecting the bottom line of farmers and ranchers, including regulations, and we’re trying to identify the specific strategies that would help resolve these problems.”
The visit on July 14 followed a previous tour by a delegation of U.S. state senators and representatives on July 8.
Buchta said Olds College will likely be included in future trips to Canada by American agricultural officials hosted by the federal and provincial governments. “There’ll be more of these visits to come.”
The Smart Farm is working towards providing producers with real-life applied research to help them make informed decisions about implementing technology in their own operations.