Bill Wilson, host and producer of Prairie Farm Report

Web Version

Click here for Full PDF

Prairie Farm Report Has It All
“Our most popular themes are titlesassociated with farm shops, cattle handling facilities, inventions, & viintagemachinery.”


If you watch the Prairie Farm Report (PFR) on RFD-TV you are bound to see the amazing ingenuity of farmers and ranchers on display. This weekly half hour show is in its 21st year in Canada and the northern plains States. It’s been airing for just over 2 years on RFD-TV.

Series founder and host Bill Wilson who held an active interest in a family grain and livestock operation in western Canada established Ag-Com Productions in 1983 to begin production of the Prairie Farm Report (PFR). “Our primary purpose back then and still to this day in our 20th year is to showcase machines, ideas and concepts that are often developed by farmers and ranchers in order to help keep their operations viable” Wilson says. Soon after launching the PFR, surveys and ratings indicated that 75% of farm families watched the PFR every week. This instant series popularity led Wilson and his company to develop one of the world’s most unique private agricultural video/DVD collections.

Wilson says that programs relating to on-farm or ranch innovations are undoubtedly our most popular. “Viewers started to request video dubs of episodes we were airing in the late 1980’s so we thought we’d start to build a library of titles at that time”. Since then, the library has grown to 50 titles will each tape or DVD averaging around 60 minutes in length. Unlike many farm video libraries, the Prairie Farm Report Video/DVD Library (PFRVL) contains videos shot and assembled on broadcast quality equipment. The contents of each video are also researched, written, shot and post produced by television professionals.

The PFRVL is built around several themes with videos on: farm shops, farm built inventions, cattle handling systems, grain handling set-ups, diversification ideas, farm yard design and maintenance, vintage machinery, crop diversification, livestock diversification, farm toys, livestock feed handling along with several stand alone titles.

“Our most popular themes are titles associated with farm shops, cattle handling facilities, inventions and vintage machinery” says Wilson. According to Wilson the most rewarding part of shooting the Prairie Farm Report is the time spent visiting with farm and ranch families as they proudly describe how they met a certain challenge on their operation by building something that no one else has thought of. “We also feature plenty of inventions and ideas that you can purchase on dealer lot, however they’re often built for a fraction of the cost of something manufactured for the masses”. Wilson notes.

While the content of the PFRVL is shot in western Canada and the northern plains States Wilson says they’ve sold tapes and DVD’s to rural folks in every State of the Union and every Province in Canada. “It doesn’t matter if you are working cattle in Alberta or Alabama, a low cost, home built cattle handling system with some never before seen features is going to be of interest to you”. The same holds true for many inventions and the restoration of old machinery. “Viewing our vintage machinery videos can be a pretty emotional experience for some retired farmers as they relive the excitement of trading in a team for mechanical horsepower” says Wilson. In fact, the Prairie Farm Report will be launching a new series recently on RFD-TV focusing on old restored machinery. This new series called “Machinery of the Past” will allow both old timers and younger timers to appreciate the work of those who collect and restore old tractors, trucks and machines. Currently in the PFRVL there are 5-1 hour commercial free titles to choose from relating to vintage machinery. “It’s just amazing to profile someone in their mid 80’s who can fire up a tractor built in the 1920’s as if he’s starting a modern pick-up truck” Wilson says. The PFRVL vintage titles often profile farmers who have re-built a tractor from essentially a pile a junk.

The PFRVL also has a number of titles of interest to cattle producers. There’s a package called the “Cattle Handlers Special” which is made up of 4-1 hour titles on cattle handling facilities. “We’ve met many farmers and ranchers over the years who have used our videos as a source for their own homebuilt cattle handling system” Wilson says. The cattle handling titles have been bought by thousands of farmers and ranchers who can see systems built with a variety of materials both indoor and outdoor. The PFRVL also has a 3 title set called the “Livestock Feed Handlers Special”. These videos display dozens of machines and concepts designed to help make the handling of everything from large square and round bales to small square bales easier.

Farmers also find a lot of value in the PFRVL’s farm shops series of titles consisting of 5-1 hour videos. This package which is called “Shops Galore” contains tours of nearly 50 shops and sheds of all shapes and sizes and is a must see for anyone designing a new work shop. Many farmers find everything from unique low cost heating systems to door designs to interior fixtures by watching the PFRVL’s “Shops Galore” package. As one farmer said recently it’s a lot easier making a design change to your shop before the concrete is poured then after it is poured.

Since farmers and ranchers often live where they work, having a well laid out and colorful farmyard is often a priority. The PFRVL has a package of 3 titles known as the “Gardeners Special” where rural residents can tour several colorful, well planned farmyards. “While some folks work many hours to keep their yards looking good, in Today's higher stress rural environment, it can often be a therapeutic exercise for them” Wilson says. The 3 titles on farmyard design and maintenance gives anyone planning a new yard site or renovating and existing one several ideas in terms of flower selection, fish ponds and shrubbery.

The PFRVL also has 8 titles devoted to “On-Farm Inventions”. This package consists of well over 100 inventions the Prairie Farm Report has recorded over the years. “Titles from the PFRVL are quite affordable, especially if you buy them in larger quantities as the cost for each title after you purchase one title in a single order averages around $15.00 USD. plus you also save on shipping charges” Wilson says..

To learn more about the PFRVL keep watching the Prairie Farm Report and Machinery of the Past series’ on RFD-TV in the coming weeks, or visit www.farmvideos.com or call 1-800-667-8888.