For nearly four decades, the community of St. Jean Baptiste has been the place for “Canada’s Biggest Little Farm Show.” Now in its 38th year, St. Jean Farm Days is still going strong.
The annual event drew hundreds of local producers and exhibitors to the Centennial Hall on Jan. 8-9, to connect with other farmers, ag specialists, and dealers from across the region.
Once again, visitors enjoyed the same great food that Farm Days is known for, including a continental breakfast and homemade cuisine featuring the region’s signature pea soup and open-faced sandwiches.
This year, however, marked a significant change as the Knights of Columbus, who have prepared and served the food at Farm Days for 37 years, stepped down.
Gilbert Sabourin, who heads up the organizing committee along with Brunel Sabourin, Jennifer Sabourin, and Wayne Klassen, explained the transition.
“Our parents were a part of the original Farm Days, and we’ve stepped up over the last few years. The average age of the Knights was getting up there. A lot of them moved away from town, so they disbanded the group last summer. This was their main fundraiser all those years. Anything they made went right back into the community, so it’s kind of the end of an era.”
St. Jean-Baptiste has proudly held the title of “Soup Pea Capital of Canada” for decades. Although that market has since shifted to Saskatchewan, the region is still famous for its traditional soup.
“Morris Bigway had a meeting with my dad, recipes for the traditional pea soup and the ham sandwiches were shared, and they did a fabulous job. They duplicated everything. Why fix something if it’s not broken?” Sabourin noted.
He says the frosty weather on both days of the event played a role in boosting attendance.
“Most of the time, it’s correlated to the temperature. The colder it is, the more people attend. If it’s minus 35, not too many people want to start their grain augers and their grain trucks, so they come here,” Sabourin said. However, he also acknowledged that the demand for grain was high. “But now the elevators want grain. They have train cars they want to send down to the States in case there are tariffs coming. Lots of people are hauling grain right now.”
Visitors at Farm Days also had the opportunity to network with other producers and 51 exhibitors about what’s going to be important to their farm operations this upcoming season. One of the big sellers of the show, Sabourin added, is that attendees know they’ll get to talk to familiar faces.
“We work hard to get experts who can present on current topics that are relevant to local producers. The people who can help them are all right here. With some of the larger shows, such as the three-day event in Brandon, it might be harder to connect with your person on the day you’re there. Here, they’ll be there.”
The event also featured a full speaker program with topics relevant to the agricultural business.
