Canada’s small farmers rely on livestock auctions and fairs to spread the word about products and grow their customer base, over the last 9 months almost all these fairs have been cancelled or moved online. Some like the Royal Agricultural Fair were able to keep the same heart and shows intact, but the lack of live interaction with animals and customers is taking a toll on small and medium farms across the country.
The latest hit to the fair circuit has been in Manitoba. The Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba has just decided not to proceed with the Royal Manitoba Winter Fair. In hopes of helping support Canada’s rural fair industry the #SavetheFair campaign has been started to raise money to bring back the agricultural tradition in the years to come.
Supporting local is becoming more necessary to preserve the small businesses and farmers in communities around Canada. The hope is that small farms around Canada will be able to survive long enough that when the markets finally open back up and promotion can be done more freely that they will bounce back.