Operations Today
Farm Present (Into The Twenty First Century)
The Twenty First Century has certainly brought changes into our lives. The first decade saw the farm evolve from mixed farming operations to straight grain. BSE (mad cow disease) made it no longer profitable for us to be in the cattle business and certainly Earl, who was up in years, had been the main cattle man in the family and was ready to slow down. The scope of operations grew and families changed. We saw the addition of GPS (Autosteer) and marvelled at how efficient the system was. What a way to lessen operator fatigue!
Adrian married Tracy (Holland) and within the space of five years added three more little Mulligans into the family fold (Bailey, Riley and Morgan). They moved onto the home quarter and built a new house in 2008. Meanwhile, as one generation expanded, another contracted, as Rhonda and Murray’s children (Layna, Brock, Bryce and Lauren) all moved out of the house ready to start their own lives. Bryce tried his hand at construction before deciding that he wanted to return to the farm. Tri M Farms pursued an alliance with Rahr Malting and grew barley for Sapporo Breweries in Japan. Things were growing and changing.
Adrian's kids and a couple of friends love being around the farm. They are taught early NEVER to go around running equipment!
Some changes are good while others are difficult. February 28, 2011 Earl passed away suddenly leaving a huge void in all our lives. Life is a circle. As of 2019 Murray and Rhonda have 6 precious grandchildren which make the losses easier to take. Bryce built a home on one of the other quarters showing his intention to stay in the area. He shares this home with his wife, Maron. Ruth, at 90, lives independently in her own home which is directly across from Murray and Rhonda’s and close by to Bryce and Adrian. She continues to take a keen interest in the farming operations although she rolled her farming interests to Bryce and Adrian in 2014. It was time to let another generation try their hand at the farming game! Layna (Murray and Rhonda’s oldest daughter) went to NAIT and got a certificate in Radio/Television Arts. She married Jeff Haley and they have three children: Austin, Alexa and Nixon. Brock has a degree in Political Science. He married Virginia Chavez in October 2015. They have two children: Anna and Teddy. Lauren married in 2016 after receiving a Masters in Social Work and moved to Vancouver Island. She and her husband Greg have a daughter, Ellis. Adrian is coping (sometimes not too well) with the fact that 2 of his children are now teenagers and his youngest will turn 13 in January 2020. The time flies!
Loading canola in 2015.Mulligan Trucking has streamlined into its own operation. We have 6 trucks hauling predominately fertilizer and C-Cans although we still haul some grain. Earl always said in business you were either expanding or retiring and so far no one is ready for that chapter! In 2015 we started growing malt barley for Lagunitas Breweries. This connection came through Rahr Malting. Lagunitas is a craft beer with their main offices being in Petaluma California. Fifteen farms (predominately from Alberta) supply all of their barley needs. It has been an exciting association.
Our upgraded dryer integrated with a grain handling system.Three consecutive very wet and difficult harvests coupled with increased dryer load growing malt barley for Lagunitas was behind the decision to upgrade our dryer and integrate it with a grain handling system.
The dryer is an 1800 bushel/hr Neco natural gas fired unit. Bin storage of 150,000 bushels. The dryer is connected to the bin system with 2 legs and the dry bin is connected to the rest of the system with a Lambton grain pump. Capacity is 10,000 bushels/hr. This system is designed to improve energy efficiency, reduce man power hours and contribute to a higher standard of safety.
A project of this magnitude does not come together without a number of skilled people. Among these were: Skyway Grain Systems, Flaman Nisku who supplied and installed the grain dryer, and Legal Electric with whom we have enjoyed a long association with. We can't wait to put this system into action!
Tri M Farms is also proud to have research sites (Alberta Agriculture) on our land or land that we farm. Research holds the key to better farming practices and it is an honor to watch these talented agricultural professionals at work.
Our roots run deep. Deep into the land and deep into the community. Murray once said that farming is an honorable profession. We are proud to be a part of this.
A special thank you to Sturgeon County for their article about us on Agriculture Corner.
Video courtesy of Skyway Grain Systems: