Here's how Agribition has grown over its 50-year history
Agribition 2021 will draw to a close on Saturday night after a week of celebrating the show’s 50-year history.
The annual event attracts international attention to Saskatchewan through a united passion for agriculture.
It was the 25th running of Agribition in 1995 when Chris Sutter explained the reasoning behind establishing Canadian Western Argibition in 1970, after years of having to travel to Toronto to show cattle.
“Nobody was interested,” he said to BBS news at the time. “There were city people and it was basically a horse show. And it didn’t just appeal to me and I thought we could do much better out here.”
25 years later, his eldest son Spence Sutter, spoke at the official opening of the 50th Canadian Western Agribition.
“My parents would very proud of this celebration of 50 years today,” he said. “I’m sure the show has grown beyond the expectations of all the founders that organized this.”
Even though it has grown, many things have stayed the same according to former CWA president Marilyn Sharpe.
“One of the things that hasn’t changed is the hype in the city about Agribition,” she said. “I even found when I stepped off the plane into the airport, there were Agribition greeters there and it was just so nice to feel welcome.”
The community support and interest in Agribition hasn’t floundered in its 50 years of operation. Current CWA President Chris Lee has been involved in Agribition since its start in 1971, and he still sees some of the same producers that have been coming since the start.
“Definitely there’s a few of the old guard still here,” he said. “And they’re like me, you’ve got to move with the times and move with the trends. And certainly, the trend of the livestock industry has changed over 50 years.”
A result of the growth Agribition has seen is the amount of support the community has to offer. On a Thursday night sale, a donated heifer calf from Chris Lee raised $72,000 for STARS Air Ambulance and the Cancer Foundation of Saskatchewan.
Lee says Agribition was the right venue to turn to in order to give something back to these organizations that have assisted him and his family.
“The people at the cancer clinic are so amazing we just knew we had to give something back,” he explained. “We didn’t know how to go about doing but we came up with this plan and it was a way for us to generate some money and definitely make an impact to those two organizations.”
As Agribition approaches the end of its 50th edition, many are looking forward to the event prospering for another 50 years.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Why these immigrants to Canada say they're thinking about leaving, or have already moved on
For some immigrants, their dreams of permanently settling in Canada have taken an unexpected twist.
DEVELOPING Live updates from the Trump hush money trial: Stormy Daniels, bookkeeper testify
Adult film star Stormy Daniels is on the stand a second time Thursday as former U.S. president Donald Trump’s hush money case continues in Manhattan. Follow live updates here.
Ontario family receives massive hospital bill as part of LTC law, refuses to pay
A southwestern Ontario woman has received an $8,400 bill from a hospital in Windsor, Ont., after she refused to put her mother in a nursing home she hated -- and she says she has no intention of paying it.
Here are the ultraprocessed foods you most need to avoid, according to a 30-year study
Studies have shown that ultraprocessed foods can have a detrimental impact on health. But 30 years of research show they don’t all have the same impact.
Ontario man frustrated after $3,500 paving job leaves driveway in shambles
An Ontario man considering having his driveway paved received a quote from a company for $7,000, but then, another paver in the neighbourhood knocked on his door and offered half that rate.
BREAKING Sheldon Keefe out as head coach of Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs have fired head coach Sheldon Keefe. The team made the announcement Thursday after the Original Six franchise lost to the Boston Bruins in seven games in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Boeing 737 catches fire and skids off the runway at a Senegal airport, injuring 10 people
A Boeing 737-300 plane carrying 85 people skidded off a runway at the airport in Dakar, Senegal's capital, injuring 10 people, according to the transport minister, an airline safety group and footage from a passenger that showed the aircraft on fire.
Breast cancer screening should start at age 40, Canadian Cancer Society says
The Canadian Cancer Society says all provinces and territories should lower the starting age for breast cancer screening to 40.
Man accused of killing two children at Quebec daycare to stand trial in April 2025
The man accused of murdering two children and injuring six others after a city bus crashed into a Montreal-area daycare is scheduled to stand trial over five weeks beginning in April 2025.