227. Reid Allaway on Going Electric with Your Farm Equipment

Curious about how to go electric with your farm equipment? On this episode of the Thriving Farmer Podcast, Reid Allaway is joining us from Quebec, Canada. He is the Director of Infrastructure and Machinery at Ferme Coopérative Tourne-Sol which has 9 members and about 15 employees who are all passionate about healthy food, gardening, seed production, and ecology.  You’ll want to hear how Reid has converted many of the machines on their farm to electric while also spearheading their Elec-truck conversion campaign. By working together and following agro-ecological principles, the team has succeeded in creating a democratic, diverse, and sustainable company. Their mission is to generate agricultural products of the highest quality that respect the standards of organic farming and the principles of agro-ecology; to build strong community ties in their region; and promote organic agriculture as a viable food production system. Tune in today to hear all about this French Canadian farmer’s unique approach to his profession! You’ll hear: How Reid got into farming 2:38 How Reid got into the tooling and electrification aspect of farming 9:56 Why rear-mount cultivation is not as effective 16:49 When electric equipment stops being practical 34:16 The challenging aspects of putting together electric wheel drive devices 45:09 The crops they are growing with walk-behind cultivation 47:18 Reid’s favorite farming tool 1.02:47 About the Guest: Reid Allaway is a farmer, tinkerer and dad working at Tourne-Sol Co-operative Farm in les Cèdres QC with his wife and a multitude of co-workers and friends. Being part of a coop farm has allowed Reid to pursue his interests in appropriate technology for farmers and farming down the avenues of collaborative design and tool building and also the electrification of tools and machines for small farms. Reid also works with Thiessen Tillage Equipment on tool design and distribution of appropriate tools for small farms. Resources: Website: https://www.fermetournesol.qc.ca/en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/reid.allaway Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reid_in_qc/ Farm Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fermetournesol/   The Thriving Farmer Podcast Team would like to thank our amazing sponsor!   Real Organic Project is a farmer-led movement that provides an add-on certification held by over 1,000 certified organic, family-owned operations across North America. Real Organic Project strives to uplift farms working within the spirit, not just the letter, of organic principles. Real Organic certified farmers use practices that are centered around the foundational organic principles of soil-based crop production and pasture-based livestock agriculture. To remain accessible to all types of farmers, Real Organic Project fundraises year round to keep this certification available at no cost to farmers. You can apply today at realorganicproject.org/thrivingfarmer.