PEOPLE

Tom Robinson grew up in Nova Scotia. Although his dad had left farming, Tom wanted to get into the business after he finished high school, so in 2003 his dad purchased a farm in Prince Edward Island, as quota could be obtained there at much less expense. This farm had old buildings, which were demolished to make room for a new facility, and a freestall barn with a double-six parallel milking parlour.

Gezinus Martens is an innovative thinker, always looking for better ways to accomplish things. “My drive is always being innovative and being progressive,” he says.

Vodka distilled from an unwanted milk product is selling out within days of production. The Ontario company looks to scale up across Canada.

In Canada and around the world, dairy production researchers are a prolific source of new knowledge, necessary for the progress and profitability of the sector. Government and industry invests millions of dollars in research and expects to be able to measure an impact at the farm level.

Ashley and Richard VanderKooi both grew up in the Fraser Valley area of British Columbia on dairy farms. Ashley’s family raised Holsteins and Brown Swiss; Richard’s family had Holsteins only.

Clarke and Nancy Gourlay had been living in Switzerland for several years, where they had experienced magnificent Swiss cheeses.