HAZEL DELL, Sask. — Triple S Cattle Company, located near Hazel Dell, is a second-generation cow-calf operation. The family purchased its first Gelbvieh bull in 1993 and bought its first purebred heifers in 2004. Since that time, they have increased their herd and diversified the genetics. Brett and Krystal Spray and their family specialize in purebred Gelbvieh cattle and are working on growing their herd and farm operations.
“The Gelbvieh breed exemplifies easy-fleshing, moderate-framed cattle with great maternal traits that provide excellent outcross genetics. With black and red sires available, we can provide lots of options for any cattleman. In our own commercial herd, we run black and red Gelbvieh bulls on a mix of Charolais, Black Angus and Gelbvieh-cross cows. Visitors are always welcome to come for a pasture tour and get to know our family,” stated the family.
The entire family works together, from putting in the crop to harvesting and putting up hay for the winter season. They currently farm 4,500 acres and are looking at some major expansions. The couple has just recently started marketing their purebred Gelbvieh bulls, which have netted a good return, with interest growing in the breed. They have also [sentence incomplete in original].
“My dad, Brian Spray, who started the family farm, still helps out on the farm, as do all three of my daughters and my wife,” said Spray. “Since my dad started, we have moved the original site to our current location due to the space and lack of land. The hay this year is great, with an above-average crop. The grain crops also look very promising despite the wet spring we had; we were fortunate, though, and did not experience the devastating floods as some communities and landowners did. We are looking at expansion to continue growing, but labour and land prices are always a challenge. This year I partnered up with Jeff Pinder from Okla. He is supplying his labour and I help provide him with some equipment for his own farming practice that he is just starting up.”
Spray has been part of numerous boards throughout the years, including the Gelbvieh board, Melfort 4-H Club and APAS. He has been an APAS board of directors member for District 4 North since 2020.
He is a firm believer in APAS's vision and the future of agricultural producers in Saskatchewan. The Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) has been the voice of Saskatchewan’s farmers and ranchers since 2000.
APAS is Saskatchewan's only democratically elected, producer-run, non-partisan, grassroots general farm organization.
It works on behalf of its members to address the most important issues facing the province's agriculture sector, including rail transportation, carbon taxation, business risk management, seed royalties and water policy, to name a few.
APAS represents Saskatchewan as a member of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture and advocates on behalf of Saskatchewan agricultural producers to all levels of government.
APAS learns from its members about the most pressing problems farmers face, develops innovative policy solutions and promotes them to government and industry leaders. Its work leads directly to programs, policies and legislation that better serve farmers. APAS was formed in 2000 when a handful of Saskatchewan farmers came together to create an organization that gives Saskatchewan producers a stronger voice in policymaking.
There are currently 140 rural municipalities involved in the programs.
For Spray, his commitment to the programs that are offered has helped him be more efficient and become more sustainable in his own operations.
