Emma Robinson looks ahead to her year as Huron's Queen of the Furrow
BY SCOTT STEPHENSON
After being crowned the 2026 Huron County Queen of the Furrow, there was only one way Emma Robinson wanted to celebrate her big win: a weekend of working with the hogs in her family’s barn!
An odd choice for some, but it just felt natural for Robinson, who has spent much of her life so far surrounded by all things agricultural. She studied agriculture science at the University of Guelph, where she immersed herself in any part of campus life that had to do with farming. “I loved Guelph,” she confessed. “My favourite part of Guelph was actually the clubs that I was involved in there.” She joined organizations like College Royal, the Student Federation of the Ontario Agricultural College, the Swine Club and Tractor Tug for Tots.
But, after university, Robinson has set her sights firmly on a future in farming. Her family’s hog farm is already in the process of planning for the next generation to take the reins. For now, she’s still working in the farrowing barn, but expects her responsibilities to grow as she settles into a post-university life.
Robinson is already raring to take on that bigger role. “I’m ready to come home and farm,” she announced. “I’m excited to see where the opportunities take me with the home farm, for sure - it’s just my parents, and my grandpa, so now I’m kind of the next generation.
Prior to her recent victory, Robinson had already been watching the throne for a while. “I’ve really thought about wanting this for the last two years,” she told The Citizen. “Last year I was just a little bit too busy with other commitments, but I still knew I wanted this.”
Of course, the crown comes with plenty of new responsibilities, but Robinson has a clear idea of the one thing she hopes to accomplish during her reign: getting more people talking about agriculture! “I want to connect with the broader community and educate people about agriculture,” she explained. “Whether it’s in the city or on the farm, or the young kids in town… just education about agriculture, for anybody!”
Robinson’s Queen of the Furrow victory also continues a remarkable run of successful Queen competitors hailing from Huron East. It’s an auspicious list of champs that includes previous Huron County queens Maranda Klaver, Rachel Gras and Mackenzie Terpstra. Robinson believes that’s no coincidence. “The Seaforth competition does a really good job of getting girls started, and then they go on to Huron County to compete,” she theorized. “Having that background really helps encourage young ladies to get involved.”
For Robinson, competitions like Queen of the Furrow are about much more than winning - they’re opportunities to build confidence, meet people and find a voice. “I try to remember that it’s all fun at the end of the day,” she declared. “It’s a good experience just to even get up there and get yourself out there.”
That philosophy helped when she faced perhaps the most intimidating portion of the competition. “The hardest is definitely the impromptu question,” Robinson admitted. “It’s super stressful to get up there and not know what your question’s going to be and have to answer it on the spot.”
The field-furrowing portion of the competition was another tough challenge. Robinson has certainly plowed here and there over the years, but she’s the first to admit she isn’t exactly an expert. That didn’t stop the determined young farmer from climbing onto a tractor and turning over some soil.
Robinson’s enthusiasm extends beyond the competition itself. She sees the Queen of the Furrow program as a way to encourage young women to become involved in agriculture and their communities. “I think it’s really important to get young ladies involved in their local communities and agriculture as a whole,” she told The Citizen. “I think at the core of it all is the community and the traditions of agriculture and I don’t think that will ever go away. Just passing it on from generation to generation is still going to continue.”
That may be the most important job Robinson has taken on as Queen of the Furrow - ensuring the next generation understands why those traditions are worth carrying forward.