SaskCanola’s License to Farm didn’t break any box office records as it made its debut to an audience at the Roxy Theatre in Saskatoon last week, however it sure made an impact.

Executive Director Janice Tranberg says they have had so much positive feedback on the documentary from the viewings at the theatre, the Crop Production Show and its online debut.

She says one comment from a Saskatoon area farmer, really stuck out to her.

She came up to Tranberg and shared with her how grateful she was to see a film dispelling myths about food production and encouraging farmers to stand-up and talk with consumers about what they do.

“Her kids go to school in Saskatoon and it hurts her when they come home from school and tell her stories about some of the things they do on the farm that she knows aren’t true,” says Tranberg.  “She’s passionate about farming and that really hurt her to hear what her kids are learning and as she is telling me this story she actually welled up and actually had a little bit of a tear coming down her face and that just touched me so much.

Tranberg points to this as the perfect example of how much passion there is in agriculture.

Social media has exploded with chatter about the 30 minute documentary that was a year in the making and included conversations with farmers, scientists, professors, consumers and environmentalists on the importance of earning social license in modern agriculture.

Tranberg says the film also features a call to action to farmers to stand up and tell their story about how they produce food.

“Farmers can be effective advocates by engaging in meaningful conversations, opening the doors to their livelihood, and building trust with their communities. License to Farm is designed to give farmers the tools and information they need to continue to earn consumer support and strengthen relationships with the people who eat the food that they produce.”

It is SaskCanola’s hope that this will help to close the gap between food producers and consumers.

“We want License to Farm to be part of the solution.  We want to help them find their voice and we want them to advocate for themselves about their passion about farming.”

For more on License to Farm click here.