Regina entrepreneur, 25, works to innovate agribusiness in sustainable way
CBC is celebrating the province’s new generation of leaders, success stories and change-makers under the age of 40. The 2024 Future 40 winners come from all walks of life, backgrounds and industries.
Regina’s Arslan Azeem may be only 25 years old, but he’s already made significant moves to innovate the agriculture industry in Saskatchewan. Much of his inspiration comes from his family’s farm, and a relentless entrepreneurial spirit.
Azeem has a long list of goals when it comes to improving agribusiness: “Making sure that different people at different parts of the supply chain are compensated fairly. Making sure that the products we export have proper food transparency so we can track where they originate from, and the health metrics.”
With his family’s agribusiness in his toolbox, Azeem’s current work involves studying the feasibility of a new food development centre and smart farm.
He is also looking for ways to lower the cost of exporting Saskatchewan crops.
Azeem said his passion for innovating the agri-business began in university. Between 2018 and 2022, Azeem served as president of Enactus Regina, a student entrepreneurship hub at the University of Regina.
Meet CBC Saskatchewan Future 40 2024 winner Arslan Azeem
During his time in the role, Azeem helped raise and invest around $50,000 in youth-led social enterprises, educational opportunities and student events. That included a $20,000 student investment fund in 2019.
Under his leadership, Enactus Regina’s annual student volunteer hours increased from less than 4,000 to a peak of 14,000. During this time, several social businesses were started by students in fields such as sustainability, pandemic prevention and education.
Azeem said he subscribes to the idea of “conscious capitalism,” which he learned about at the Enactus National Exhibition in Toronto in 2018.
“[It means] basically starting our own projects in a way that solves environmental and social goals — so, at the same time you start your own business and create jobs, you can also pursue whatever your passions are, whatever issues the world faces.”
We are kind of seeing less and less people in the industry. But at the same time corporations [are] becoming larger and larger. So I would say we definitely need more youth in the industry.– Arslan Azeem, Entrepreneur, Regina
This, Azeem said, is why his mindset began to shift.
“Back in high school I was a bit more interested in the making money part. But then I sort of shifted more toward the, ‘OK, what legacy do I want to actually live in the world?'”
Preserving the heritage of grain elevators
Azeem is never short on projects. One project included starting a social venture in collaboration with the Canada Revenue Agency to teach financial literacy to more than 400 trades students on the Prairies.
But his new project is especially close to his heart. Azeem established a partnership with the University of Calgary’s department of archeology to digitize his family’s grain elevator in the village of Markinch, Sask., this summer.
“I’m creating a 3D model of the elevator to tell its story and heritage. I’m hoping to attract investors so we can preserve the building,” he said.
Azeem said this will act as a publicly available digital education tool, and will be the first ag-project of its kind in Saskatchewan. He hopes digitising his family’s grain elevator is just the beginning, and that many others will follow.
Young people needed in agriculture
Azeem said the agriculture industry needs more young people — passionate farmers and entrepreneurs to take farming into the future.
“It’s a big issue. I would say that as time goes on, we’re kind of seeing more and more farms either turn into larger corporate farms or, you know, they’re being bought up by finance firms based in, like, New York or Toronto,” Azeem said.
The young entrepreneur said he is seeing these large companies begin to have an ever-growing monopoly on the industry.
“We are kind of seeing less and less people in the industry. But at the same time corporations [are] becoming larger and larger. So I would say we definitely need more youth in the industry.”
One of the kind of ideologies I subscribe to is something called ‘solarpunk,’ which is this idea of using technology and combining it [with nature] in a way where we kind of build a very sustainable world.– Arslan Azeem, Entrepreneur, Regina
Azeem said that part of “conscious capitalism” and innovating the farming industry means addressing how climate change affects farming. He said that while many people his age can feel helpless when it comes to climate change, he is optimistic for the future of agriculture.
“One of the kind of ideologies I subscribe to is something called ‘solarpunk,’ which is this idea of using technology and combining it [with nature] in a way where we kind of build a very sustainable world.”
Azeem said there is a great deal of technology that can help those in the industry “achieve a better world.”
“Over the last 10 years, we’ve seen a lot of mass mobilization and self organization in a way that I think is really going to help not only this current generation, but future generations solve the problems of today and tomorrow,” Azeem said.
“I am an optimist. I do believe that we are going to start seeing more and more of a shift. But you know, it’s one of those things that does require patience.”
