ST. PAUL - The 2025 Alberta Open Farm Days held on Aug. 16 and 17 provided an opportunity for the public to learn about local food production, specifically in the St. Paul region.
Participants in the region included Caouette & Sons Implements, the Backroad Farmhouse Roasting Co., the St. Paul Museum, and K-Cow Ranch.
At K-Cow, the Wirsta family welcomed guests who were eager to learn where their food came from.
Kevin Wirsta, who founded the ranch with his wife Janice, said, "I think it's great that we're getting such a great turnout of people interested in knowing where their beef or their carrots or their potatoes or their vegetables are coming from, how it's handled, and how they are locally produced."
Wirsta believes there is a growing disconnect between consumers and food production, and events like Open Farm Days help bridge that gap. For many urban visitors, for example, it was a chance to understand not only how food is grown and processed but also how deeply farmers care for the land and their communities, he said.
"This is a prime opportunity to show, display, and feel and touch where their products come from and how environmentally friendly we are to our land that we raise and grow our kids on," he said.
Sean Dolan, president of the St. Paul and District Ag Society, shared similar thoughts. He said the event, beyond showcasing farms, is also about education - giving people a look of the food system behind the scenes.
"You get to see what [production] actually looks like from a producer standpoint," he said.
"Knowledge is power - always," and the more people know about their food production, the more it strengthens community understanding and support for agriculture, added Dolan.
