Neil Kimmy isn’t new to farming by any means – he’s been farming his 5500-acre operation for over 20 years – but unlike many of his neighbours, the farm life didn’t choose Neil - he chose the farm life. Having left his home city of Edmonton with wife, Nadine, in the 1990s, back then they were the first generation of Kimmys to farm the operation just outside of Millet, AB. Today, the two now have three grown children who have embraced the responsibility of keeping it going.

The Kimmy household is filled with the sounds of laughter and play from their four grandkids as sons, Colten and Branden, and son-in-law, Petr, sit with Neil to discuss the farm. Each of the men share a common quality – a genuine sense of practicality that governs every decision they make on the farm, where the Kimmys grow canola, wheat, peas and barley.

“All my kids had to take a trade before coming back to the farm full-time,” says Neil, “We’re all electricians, and Colten has also moved on to become a pilot.”

The trades were intended as a backup plan in case the family had to pull out of the farm. Instead, the opposite happened – the farm is growing every year, and the skills learned back at trade school have helped them to keep it that way.

“I did the electrical in the shop,” says Colten, “And we’ve done the cold storage as well, that kind of thing.”

That sense of practicality extends to the canola crops, too. With clubroot confirmed in farms nearby, the Kimmys are focused on keeping their land clear of it.

Their days include research, strategic planning, market analysis, genetics, chemistry and lots of hard work. When the Kimmys choose to grow canola, they choose DEKALB® brand seed.

Visit DEKALB.CA for more info or call 1-84-GO-DEKALB

INTRODUCINGTHE KIMMY FAMILY

THE KIMMY FAMILY

4TH GENERATION

” “ When it’s time to go, it’s

time to go. If you don’t adopt that philosophy, you’re going to lose.

DEKALB® MARKET DEVELOPMENT

COOPERATOR* IN MILLET, AB

*Farmers who conduct DEKALB® Market Development trials are provided with seed at no charge.

Monsanto Company is a member of Excellence Through Stewardship® (ETS). Monsanto products are commercialized in accordance with ETS Product Launch Stewardship Guidance, and in compliance with Monsanto’s Policy for Commercialization of Biotechnology-Derived Plant Products in Commodity Crops. These products have been approved for import into key export markets with functioning regulatory systems. Any crop or material produced from these products can only be exported to, or used, processed or sold in countries where all necessary regulatory approvals have been granted. It is a violation of national and international law to move material containing biotech traits across boundaries into nations where import is not permitted. Growers should talk to their grain handler or product purchaser to confirm their buying position for these products. Excellence Through Stewardship® is a registered trademark of Excellence Through Stewardship.Performance may vary from location to location and from year to year, as local growing, soil and weather conditions may vary. Growers should evaluate data from multiple locations and years whenever possible and should consider the impacts of these conditions on the grower’s fields. ALWAYS READ AND FOLLOW PESTICIDE LABEL DIRECTIONS. Roundup Ready® technology contains genes that confer tolerance to glyphosate, an active ingredient in Roundup® brand agricultural herbicides. Agricultural herbicides containing glyphosate will kill crops that are not tolerant to glyphosate. DEKALB and Design®, DEKALB®, Genuity®, Roundup Ready® and Roundup® are registered trademarks of Bayer Group, Monsanto Canada ULC licensee. ©2018 Bayer Group. All Rights Reserved.

Neil Kimmy isn’t new to farming by any means – he’s been farming his 5500-acre operation for over 20 years – but unlike many of his neighbours, the farm life didn’t choose Neil - he chose the farm life. Having left his home city of Edmonton with wife, Nadine, in the 1990s, back then they were the first generation of Kimmys to farm the operation just outside of Millet, AB. Today, the two now have three grown children who have embraced the responsibility of keeping it going.

The Kimmy household is filled with the sounds of laughter and play from their four grandkids as sons, Colten and Branden, and son-in-law, Petr, sit with Neil to discuss the farm. Each of the men share a common quality – a genuine sense of practicality that governs every decision they make on the farm, where the Kimmys grow canola, wheat, peas and barley.

“All my kids had to take a trade before coming back to the farm full-time,” says Neil, “We’re all electricians, and Colten has also moved on to become a pilot.”

The trades were intended as a backup plan in case the family had to pull out of the farm. Instead, the opposite happened – the farm is growing every year, and the skills learned back at trade school have helped them to keep it that way.

“I did the electrical in the shop,” says Colten, “And we’ve done the cold storage as well, that kind of thing.”

That sense of practicality extends to the canola crops, too. With clubroot confirmed in farms nearby, the Kimmys are focused on keeping their land clear of it.

“We’ve grown clubroot-resistant hybrids since they came out,” says Neil. “We don’t have clubroot, and we don’t want it.”

This year, the family is growing DEKALB® 75-42 CR canola. After the hybrid impressed them during their DEKALB® Market Development trial last year, the family decided to go all in this year and seed it throughout their operation. Out the front window, all you can see are clean fields of strong-standing yellow flowers. Those fields have been a team effort - between the guys, as well as with their DEKALB® Agronomist, Jarrett Jackson.

“We’ve had excellent support over the last 20 years from our DEKALB® reps,” says Neil.

“We just feel the partnership has been awesome.”

That partnership has become more important as the years go by, and the farm – and the family – grow larger. Even with all their manpower

combined, there are a lot more acres than there are Kimmys. “One year, our rep combined with us past midnight,” recalls Neil. “All night the combines didn’t stop rolling. We needed to drag someone along, and the DEKALB® reps don’t mind.”

That’s the thing about an outlook based in practicality – sometimes you’ve just got to do what it takes to get the job done.

“When it’s time to go, it’s time to go,” says Neil. “If you don’t adopt that philosophy, you’re going to lose.”

Keep an eye out for part two of the Kimmy's story, coming next issue, or read it online at DEKALB.ca/kimmy

We thank the Kimmys for choosing DEKALB® brand seed for their farm and wish their entire family & operation a safe and successful harvest this year and for many years to come. Check out the results of the Kimmy’s canola Market Development trial on DEKALB.ca this fall.

INTRODUCINGTHE KIMMY FAMILY

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THE KIMMYS’ LARGE FAMILY MEANS THERE ARE A LOT OF HANDS – BIG AND SMALL – WORKING TOGETHER TO MANAGE THE FARM.

See your seed dealer today and ask about how you can maximize your savings in the DEKALB® Bonus Rebates and Real Farm Rewards™ programs before November 15th, 2018.

#FinishStrong • 1-84-GO-DEKALB • DEKALB.ca

FINISHING

DEKALB® CANOLA: LOCALLY BRED & TESTED, SO YOU CAN FINISH STRONG AT HARVEST.

STRONG