SASKATOON — A Saskatchewan farming operation is among the top winners of Nutrien’s 2025 Hometown Yield Challenge, announced on Monday, Jan. 12. The other recipient was from Alberta. The award is given to top-yielding farmers in the Prairies.
Derrick Farenick from the North Saskatchewan Division bested competitors from the other two prairie provinces throughout the growing season to achieve top yields while supporting community organizations of their choosing.
The yield challenge winners will choose a community organization that will receive $20,000. Farenick chose the Lord Asquith School Breakfast Club, with the money boosting their program of supporting students through daily meal services.
Farenick worked with Nutrien’s Purdue branch manager and sales agronomist Colin Perillat. Choosing a school breakfast program underscores the initiative's local focus, enabling farmers to direct their winnings toward causes that matter most in their communities.
Nutrien Canada Retail Operations vice president Jesse Hamonic said the challenge, now in its second year, is more about yield performance and showcasing how agronomic services and proprietary products can deliver strong yield results while maintaining long-term land health.
“Involvement with and investing back into our communities is something that our team is passionate about, so it’s extremely rewarding to be able to team up with our farmers to make this happen,” said Hamonic.
“Thank you to all the farmers who participated in our second year of the Hometown Yield Challenge. We are very pleased with the results of this year’s challenge, and we’re excited to build upon last year’s success by supporting new community organizations selected by our winners.”
As part of the competition, participants were required to map field boundaries using Nutrien’s Echelon platform, grow at least 80 acres of a Proven Seed hybrid, and apply phosphorus treated with Loveland Products’ ATLAS XC.
Alberta and Manitoba farmers were also recognized by Nutrien, which said that the challenge continues to gain momentum across the Prairies. In total, Nutrien donated $55,000 to five community groups selected by the highest-yielding farmers.
The top two yielding farming operations each directed $20,000 to a community organization of their choice, while three runners-up selected organizations to receive $5,000 each.
Ian Korpan of the North Alberta Division chose the Lavoy Action Society as the other winner. The runners-up were Manitoba’s Brent Gillis (Baldur School), north Alberta’s Lyle Trevor and Dustin Farkash (Vermillion and District Housing Foundation), and south Alberta’s Mitch Kratchmer (Blackie and District Agricultural Society).
