Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Young Farmers - Lend Your Voice to the Future of Agriculture!

CFBMC News Release

Earlier this week, the Minister's office announced the honourable Jean-Pierre Blackburn is seeking input from across Canada on the key challenges and issues facing young and future farmers.

CFBMC would like to give you, its partners, an opportunity to contribute your ideas.
- What should be done to assist new and upcoming producers?
- How can the federal government (Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada) help new and young farmers start their business and capture more opportunities to grow and diversify their businesses?

Your suggestions, recommendations and comments will be compiled and incorporated into a briefing note, which we will present to Minister Blackburn on behalf of ourselves (CFBMC) and our partners.

Your responses can be emailed to info@cfbmc.com. Please include 'Blackburn' in the subject line.

We also encourage you to share your demographic information - Are you a...young/beginning farmer, established producer, consultant? What region of the country do you reside in?

The official Press Release regarding Blackburn's initiative is below.



MINISTER BLACKBURN TO DISCUSS ISSUES FACING YOUNG FARMERS


OTTAWA, Ontario, November 9, 2009 - Farmers, agriculture students and academics from across the country will get an opportunity to discuss the key challenges facing young farmers and the future of agriculture through roundtable discussions with Minister of National Revenue and Minister of State (Agriculture) Jean-Pierre Blackburn over the next few weeks.

"I believe Canada's young and future farmers have a unique perspective on the issues facing the agriculture industry," said Minister Blackburn. "These dialogues will be valuable in helping to bring their voices to the forefront and ensure their ideas are put into action."

The roundtables will focus on identifying key issues for young people who want to farm and on charting solutions that will help new and young farmers start their business, capture more opportunities to grow and diversify their businesses.

"We want to be sure that the programs we deliver hit the target for Canada's young farmers," said Minister Blackburn. "These roundtables will allow us to exchange with the experts themselves and ensure their ideas are given due importance in the elaboration of future policies."

This week and next, Minister Blackburn is holding roundtable meetings with farmers, agriculture students and academics in Ontario, Nova Scotia, Quebec, Saskatchewan and British Columbia as part of an ongoing commitment to get input directly from farmers when developing agricultural policies.

Views: 186

Replies to This Discussion

Here are the needs I think most young farmers have that if a program could help address them, we would see more young farmers...

1. Access to capital - hard to get started in such a capital intensive industry.
2. Training and support - access to others to help solve problems.
3. Revenue - Market price stability - it is difficult to build equity when profitability is so difficult...

Is there anything else that would help?

RSS

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

Alberta Biotech to Strengthen Environmental Performance in the Energy Sector

Genome Alberta, with support from the Government of Alberta, is pleased to announce five new projects, with a total value of $2.9 million to accelerate broader application of genomic technologies for improving environmental outcomes in Alberta’s energy sector. Genomics is the big data science that allows us to study the genetic material in all living things. Leveraging machine learning and AI tools allows us to understand how things function at a molecular level including how microbes contribute to environmental processes like reclamation, enhance recovery of oil while lowering emissions intensity and interact with hydrogen through production, transportation and storage. The Genomic Innovations: Energy and Environmental Solutions initiative supports collaborative projects between academic research and industry to scale genomics innovations from the lab and support their real-world deployment for broader benefit. This initiative brings energy companies and researchers together to brid

Replenish Nutrients Secures $250,000 in Sustainable CAP Funding to Support Beiseker Facility Scale-Up

Replenish Nutrients Holding Corp. (CSE: ERTH) (OTC: VVIVF) ("Replenish" or the "Company"), a leader in regenerative agriculture solutions, is pleased to announce that it has been approved for a grant of up to $250,000 funded by the governments of Canada and Alberta under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (Sustainable CAP) Value-Added Program. The funding is designated for the Beiseker Granulation project, supporting the Company's previous 2025 capital investments in fertilizer processing equipment at its Beiseker, Alberta facility. This facility recently achieved significant operational milestones, reaching sustained production rates of 4–5 metric tonnes per hour as it transitions toward full-scale commercial operations. The facility's targeted output is approximately 2,000 metric tonnes per month once final conveyance, load-out systems, and 24-hour operations are fully implemented. Supporting Diversification, Innovation and Growth The Sustainable CAP Value-Added Pro

Alberta Insect Pest Monitoring Network

Quality assurance, market access and yield are key to the success of Alberta’s agriculture industry. Surveillance and monitoring for insects provides a key piece to this success by gathering information about established species populations and new invasive threats to the cropping industry. This information can play an important piece in support of pest related trade discussions. This work helps us to understand insect populations and range expansion of the targeted insects so that industry can understand the risk and potential damage. The information gathered from pheromone traps, field insect collections and counts or damage assessment is used to create forecast maps and make control recommendations. The data from the surveys is used for more than just creating forecast maps though, it can be used to direct insect pest research priorities or researchers can use the collection of samples in their studies. The Alberta Insect Pest Monitoring Network coordinates, manages and carries ou

Cleanfarms Recognized as a Best Workplace in Canada for 2026

Cleanfarms is proud to announce it has been identified among the top organizations on the Best Workplaces™ in Canada list for 2026. Ranked 69th out of the top 100 in the group of companies with under 100 staff, this recognition highlights the organization’s strong commitment to its staff and reflects the positive workplace culture that supports its mission to provide sustainable solutions to farmers across the country. The ranking is based entirely on employee feedback gathered through the Great Place to Work® Trust Index™ survey, which evaluates key factors such as trust in leadership, respect, camaraderie, and pride in one’s work. The results represent the experiences of more than 600,000 employees across Canada, highlighting organizations that consistently deliver inclusive, high-quality workplace environments. For Cleanfarms, this recognition is especially meaningful because it reflects the voices of its team members working across Canada in just our third year of participating i

Public feedback welcomed for updating Beef Code of Practice

Canada's Beef Code of Practice is undergoing its most significant update in more than a decade. The code, last updated in 2013, sets national expectations for cattle care and animal welfare. One of the most noticeable changes in the draft is a stronger focus on how cattle cope with adverse weather. For the first time, heat and humidity are clearly addressed. "There is a recommendation pertaining to accessing adequate water during heat events and also strategies to support cattle and I will note that this is heat and/or humidity, recognizing that the two operate very much in tandem." said Dr. Leigh Rosengren, Chief Veterinary Officer with the Canadian Cattle Association. Nutrition and water management are another focus. Dr. Rosengren notes there will be strengthened expectations around monitoring body condition and taking action before cattle become too thin. "We did emphasize in the code that there is a requirement for corrective action to be taken for beef cattle with a body cond

© 2026   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service