From a Cheerios Box to Nutrien, the Journey of a farmer

From his office in Winnipeg Jesse Hamonic smiles as he recalls his humble beginnings in agriculture.

“I grew up on a grain farm in St. Malo, and when I look back on it, I was going to be a farmer no matter what,” Jesse said. “I just knew I wanted to be in the industry, but it took a different turn, and I would never have guessed I’d be doing this.”

Jesse is the Canadian regional manager for Nutrien Ag Solutions and is responsible for our retail business across Canada, including 100 locations in Saskatchewan with one large fertilizer terminal, two large distribution warehouses, as well as our seed breeding program in Saskatoon. Jesse highlights the connection that Saskatchewan has when it comes to Nutrien’s success across the globe.

“Internationally, Saskatchewan is renowned for agriculture and bringing innovation to the Canadian ag industry and the world. For 65 years Nutrien has been part of the fabric of Saskatchewan, and I am proud of all the wonderful colleagues we have servicing our grower customers in small and large farm communities across the province,” he said.

Jesse worked several years for a supplier throughout North America before beginning his journey with Nutrien.

“Ultimately I found that working for a supplier, the further you go up the further away you get from the farmer and my whole burning passion of working in agriculture is being close to the farm and doing things that help the farmer,” Jesse explained.

Which leads to Nutrien’s purpose of Feeding the Future ringing true to heart for Jesse.

“At a young age it was exciting to think that even a small Manitoba farm could help contribute to feeding people around the world and I think it’s one of the most noble professions,” Jesse said. “When I was 7 or 8 my dad explained to me how our oats were in a box of Cheerios, and in my mind there’s a direct correlation to what we harvested. I went to school and told my classmates how this came from our farm, and I had a sense of ownership of the food.”

Jesse’s father Gerald was his mentor and inspiration when it came to life on the farm, but life changed when Gerald passed suddenly due to a major heart attack when Jesse was a teenager.

“My dad always said it was our farm, it was never his farm. I was going to be the fifth generation of our family on this land,” Jesse said with a smile.

By the time of his father’s passing, the life of agriculture was already engrained in Jesse’s DNA. Combine that with the discovery of business through the Junior Achievement program in elementary school and his future was set.

“I was in grade three when I began, and it opened my horizon to thinking about business. I was passionate about business and how we also support folks in rural communities,” Jesse explained.

Jesse has used that passion to do what he can to shape the next generation, volunteering with the 4H program, Junior Achievement and, in the US, the Future Farmers of America (FFA).

Jesse is also a proud supporter of his younger brother Travis and his foundation. Travis, an NHL player, created a foundation to specifically support kids who lost a parent. On occasion Jesse has had the chance to meet some of the families and kids.

“It’s very rewarding thing to watch and support him with that,” Jesse said.

Family tops the list for what he is most proud of, but his Métis heritage isn’t far behind. When he returned to Canada two years ago, Jesse really started to think about the Indigenous community in farming and how Nutrien coincides with those beliefs.

“I’m extremely proud of what we do as an organization because it speaks to where we are as a culture. If you just bring your best version of yourself and if you work hard and are dedicated, you have a place at Nutrien and not every company can say the same,” Jesse said emphatically. “I hope we continue to grow, and I think there are significant opportunities.”

Family remains the top priority for Jesse as he beams when talking about his two daughters, six-year-old Ella and Kendall who is 4.

“I’m a proud father, a girl dad. I think about what is the world that we want for them. I would like them to work in agriculture in the future.”

For now, Jesse takes the values learned as a young man on a southern Manitoba farm and applies them to his role at Nutrien and focuses on helping the farmers.

“You show up and in the community of farming, farmers look out for each other and support each other,” Jesse said.