Terry Aberhart's agricultural journey began on the family farm where he nurtured his lifelong passion for the land and the agriculture industry. With years of experience working on the farm and then leading the future growth of Aberhart Farms, he founded an agronomic consulting firm, Sure Growth Solutions Inc. in 2005 - earning the 2009 Business Builder of the Year and the 2011-2012 Canadian Agri-Coach of the Year awards. In 2015, Terry, alongside his brother Dan and father Harvey, co-founded Aberhart Ag Solutions Inc., a company that has played a pivotal role in introducing Bio-Sul Premium Plus, a recycled elemental sulphur product, to the market. During this same year, Terry co-founded Convergence Growth with friend Warren Bills, and together they continue working to advance business technologies across health, food, and agriculture.

Terry's commitment to progress is unwavering, being a Farm Management Canada Board member for the past 6 years, attending progressive programs such as Strategic Coach, and implementing the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) throughout his companies to advance his leadership skills and business acumen. With the support of his family, including his wife Lichelle and their six children, the 19,000-acre grain farm thrives as a beacon of agricultural excellence, utilizing new technologies and innovations to advance the future of the industry. Terry's journey is marked by a relentless pursuit of growth and innovation, including his latest endeavour, Pristine Ingredients, a groundbreaking solution bridging the gap between organic and conventional production methods by using modern farming technology to produce high quality and sustainably grown foods. Throughout all his endeavours, Terry carries with him a strong commitment to family, community, and a belief in an abundant future for the agriculture industry.

Curtis is a fourth generation farmer in Fairview, Alberta along with his wife, three children and his parents. In addition to his farm connection, Curtis is a Director of Investment Risk Assurance with the Internal Audit Department of AIMCo.

Curtis has a passion for lifelong learning, having obtained a Masters in Agriculture Economics from the University of Alberta, as well as being a CFA Charterholder and a Professional Agrologist.

Derek Brewin began his agricultural career as a farmhand on his family’s mixed irrigation farm near Purple Springs, AB. In 1986 he graduated with a BSc in Agricultural Economics from the University of Alberta and began a position as a Credit Advisor to farmers with Farm Credit Corporation (FCC). In 1989 Derek took educational leave from FCC to pursue a MSc in Agricultural Economics at the University of Saskatchewan. After that he worked for Agriculture and Agri-food Canada as a Policy Economist and then worked a stint at the Canadian Wheat Board before returning to academics. In 2000, he moved to State College, PA, to pursue his PhD in Agricultural, Environmental and Regional Economics at Penn State University.

Since 2003, Derek has been working as a teacher and researcher in the Department of Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics at the University of Manitoba. Starting in January 2017, he has served as Head of that department.

His recent research has focused on the economics of rotations, grain and oilseed markets, grain transportation and innovations in plant breeding. He is an award-winning teacher of agricultural finance, marketing and risk management. Derek has served on numerous boards and committees. He is a Past President of the Canadian Agricultural Economics Society. He has served as a Senator at the University of Manitoba, as a member of Manitoba’s Agricultural Risk Task Force and as a director of the Manitoba Rural Adaptation Council.

Erin has spent all her life involved in agriculture. From grain farms, agritourism, marketing communications, sales and now policy, she understands the many facets of the industry in Canada and a number of different countries.

Erin completed her masters of Food and Agribusiness Management in France, focusing her thesis work on the necessity for agricultural companies to maintain a social license to operate.

Currently her work centers around public trust in agriculture, with a focus on communication and analysis of environmental and management concerns that people have about agriculture.

Sustainability, and how that is defined both inside and outside of agriculture, is a critical concept for agribusiness moving forward, whether they like the term or not. Having lived and studied in different countries and attending CFS meetings in Rome in 2019 has allowed Erin to consider varied viewpoints from an empathetic standpoint. Her personal and work experience give her a unique perspective on the challenges agriculture businesses face. She is inspired to listen and learn from what has worked in the past but is also excited to explore new options and solutions for advancing the sector.

Erin is one of those people who truly loves agriculture. Both as it is and for what it can become, and her goal through her involvement in the Farm Management Canada Board of Directors is helping the organization and agricultural sector at large continue to flourish.

Business Development Officer, New Brunswick Department of Agriculture, Aquaculture & Fisheries

Sylvain is a business development officer within the Government of New Brunswick’s Department of Agriculture, Aquaculture and Fisheries. Sylvain has been New Brunswick’s representative to Farm Management Canada’s Provincial-Territorial Ministry Network for nearly a decade and is proud to serve as the Network’s elected representative to the Board of Directors.

Sylvain is passionate about advancing business management skills and practices in agriculture.

Sylvain spent his youth on a large family farm in the Province of Québec, where he acquired tremendous experience in the agricultural sector.

Sylvain graduated in Agricultural Economics from the Macdonald Campus of McGill University and went on to obtain his CMA and CPA designations. Committed to lifelong learning, Sylvain has taken advantage of numerous professional development opportunities including Business Risk Management from the Université de Moncton, Commercial Credit from Moody’s, and Production and Operations Management from Athabasca University.

Before coming to the Department, Sylvain worked as a farm business consultant, as a senior manager in the feed industry, in banking, in education and other industries. As General Manager for a large integrated farm in New Brunswick, Sylvain learned firsthand the importance of having a diverse set of business skills and practices to lead a successful farm business including strategic planning, operational policies, accounting, and information technology.

Sylvain lives in Fredericton with is wife Bette. He loves spending time with his family and son Alexandre. He has been involved in sports all his life (and still to this day). Every year he grows a large garden of fruits, vegetables and flowers that he named his “Lab of Experiments”. His most recent volunteer work was being an Executive member of the YMCA’s Men Club in Saint John NB and reading French to youth at the local library.
siness management practices and program development.

Jim Selman is a seasoned business manager and advisor who is passionate about serving Canada’s farmers and the Agricultural industry in general.

Core to Jim’s broad industry exposure is his experience as Director of Stakeholder Relations, reporting to the National Board of Directors of the Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC). Jim advised the Board on strategic issues and drove critical business growth initiatives such as the market launch and processor acceptance of the Blue Cow DFC Logo, the program design and the promotional partnership period of NAFTA re-negotiation, Canada’s Food Guide redesign and member challenges to the DFC federated model.

Jim currently serves as Head of Business Development for Trendi. His focus is working with farmers, processors and packers to address food waste solutions. Prior to joining Trendi, Jim held senior management roles in leading Canadian marketing services agencies and built and managed his own consulting agency advising corporations and brands on business building tactics and organizational strategic planning.

Jim’s diverse background and passion for Agriculture in Canada combined with his experience with the governance challenges and operational realities of a national volunteer board of directors, positions Jim well to be a valued voice and contributor to Farm Management Canada’s board of directors.

Heather’s passionate about education and committed to enhancing efforts to encourage better business management practices for a sustainable and truly remarkable agriculture industry in Canada. Before joining Farm Management Canada, Heather was a project coordinator within the Business Development Centre of the University of Guelph Kemptville Campus.

Heather grew up in South-western Ontario and now lives in Ottawa, Ontario.

Heather can be reached by phone at (613) 237-9060 or by email at heather.watson(at)fmc-gac.com.

Over the years, Mathieu has taught comprehensive risk management for agriculture, providing training to hundreds of producers and farm advisors across Canada, given guest lectures in Canadian universities and colleges, and published various articles and papers. He’s also spoken about risk management at various national and international events like the International Farm Management Association (IFMA) Congress.

Mathieu has completed a degree in accounting. He also holds a technical degree in agriculture and international development from the University of Guelph and a bachelor of business administration from L’Université du Québec à Montréal.

Contact Mathieu by phone at (613) 237-9060 or by email at mathieu(at)fmc-gac.com.

Heather can be reached by email at heather.oakley(at)fmc-gac.com.

Nick is dedicated to building partnerships and connections within the agriculture industry to help meet the needs of farmers from coast to coast. He is also passionate about reaching the next generation of farmers to help foster business management practices as they graduate and join the work force.

Nick is also a proud graduate from the University of Guelph.

Nick can be reached by phone at (519) 217-4601 or by email at sponsorship(at)fmc-gac.com.