QOSHE - Opinion: Conserving grassland can save our farms In the heart of Canada’s farmland, a quiet crisis is unfolding. Droughts are drying up fields, shrinking yields , and mounting losses for farmers. In 2021 alone, Manitoba lost $75 million in crop sales . Alberta’s drought insurance payouts in 2023 broke records, exceeding $326 million — tripling payouts from catastrophic droughts in 2021. Yet, an overlooked solution lies beneath our feet: grasslands.