AgTalk, an on-line forum for farmers feeling stressed, is proving effective in addressing mental health crises, according to executive director Merle Massie of the parent operation DoMoreAg.
Farmers can access AgTalk without revealing their identity, and Massie said that has resulted in more frank revelations of how farmers are feeling.
The 2025 annual report showed that 73 per cent of people who joined AgTalk are not engaged in formal mental health support, meaning AgTalk is their only outside support.
“Thirty-eight per cent of them report past thoughts of suicide or self-harm. These people are not feeling well,” she said.
“Eighty per cent reported their mental health as poor or very poor, and 42 per cent said that they shared something on Togetherall that they’ve never shared with anyone else.”
The statistics show people of all ages have joined.
DoMoreAg has additional on-line sites, including one on divorce.
Massis made her comments during a presentation at Canada’s Farm Show in Regina.
