Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

CFFO Blog's Blog – February 2011 Archive (4)

The CFFO Commentary: Seminar Series to Focus on Improving the Farm Regulatory Process

By John Clement

February 25, 2011



Ontario’s farmers are fed up with the heavily regulated business environment in which they operate their businesses. At the same time, society and government have become overly cautious, trying to out-smart common sense by putting more and more costly rules and regulations in place that are burdening our farming community.



This year’s CFFO Seminar Series is entitled Enough is Enough and examines the case for an improved regulatory process.… Continue

Added by CFFO Blog on February 25, 2011 at 6:59am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Have We Learned Anything From Agricultural History?

By Henry Stevens

February 18, 2011 

I’m a firm believer in paying attention to the lessons of history. With that in mind, I took great interest in some speeches from past CFFO leaders that our staff recently uncovered when searching through the organization’s archives. And it’s led me to ask, “Have we learned anything from history?”

One of the speeches was written by then Vice-President, Sid Sikkema, in 1986. Sikkema had attended a workshop entitled “The Globalization of…

Continue

Added by CFFO Blog on February 20, 2011 at 11:26am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: The Pile of Reports on Canada’s Agricultural Potential Grows Higher

Plans for national or provincial food strategies have become hot commodities in recent years. In addition to the CFFO’s Goals for an Ontario Food Strategy, other farm groups and think-tanks have either issued reports or are in the development stages.



A new report from the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute is the latest foray into this marketplace of ideas. Entitled Canada’s Agri-Food Destination, the report highlights growing problems for Canadian agriculture. In addition to… Continue

Added by CFFO Blog on February 11, 2011 at 6:50am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Water, Water Everywhere ... But We Need to be Stewards

By Nathan Stevens

February 4, 2011



A recent Water Innovation Forum focused on the importance of water for agriculture and food. The people of Ontario are blessed with tremendous access to fresh water and this has instilled the belief that we live in an area of water abundance. The reality is that while there is a considerable amount of water available for use, wise stewardship of this resource is needed to ensure that we do not create a “Tragedy of the Commons” with our water… Continue

Added by CFFO Blog on February 4, 2011 at 6:41am — 1 Comment

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

$15.1M to Scale Whole-Cut Plant-Based Protein

A $15.1 million investment led by Protein Industries Canada will scale a breakthrough manufacturing platform for whole-cut protein alternatives, strengthening Canada’s food system and creating new value for Canadian-grown crops.

Syngenta Canada names Matt Legg as head of professional solutions

Syngenta Professional Solutions North America and Syngenta Canada have named Matt Legg as head of Syngenta Professional Solutions (SPS), Canada, effective June 1, 2026. In his new role, Legg will lead the Canadian SPS business and be responsible for driving strategy, customer success, and portfolio growth across the Canadian market. "Matt is a customer-focused, solutions-oriented leader with deep technical expertise and a genuine passion for the professional solutions industry," says Dave Ravel, Head, Professional Solutions, North America. "His ability to connect technical knowledge, market insight, and commercial priorities has consistently delivered meaningful value for our customers. Matt's strong industry background and proven leadership make him exceptionally well positioned to guide our Canadian SPS business into its next chapter." Legg brings more than 25 years of experience in the turf industry, including five years of dedicated SPS experience with Syngenta, to this leadershi

Ag Canada Bumps New-Crop Canola Ending Stocks Estimate Higher

Agriculture Canada has raised its 2026-27 canola ending stocks forecast from last month, although the outlook is still tight overall. In updated monthly supply-demand estimates released late Thursday afternoon, new-crop canola ending stocks were pegged at 1.319 million tonnes, up from the April estimate of 1.064 million but still well below the slightly downwardly revised 2025-26 ending stocks of 2.72 million. Even with this month’s increase, projected 2026-27 canola ending stocks would still be the lowest in 10 years, Ag Canada said. The higher new-crop canola ending stocks estimate is due to a 300,000-tonne reduction in this month’s export forecast, which falls to 7.5 million tonnes. The 2026-27 canola crush forecast of 13 million tonnes was left unchanged from April but remains a new record high. In its accompanying commentary, Ag Canada did note that seeding of the 2026 canola crop is off to a slow start in some parts of Western Canada due to cold and wet conditions, but i

Seeding progress made, despite mixed precipitation

Seeding is muddling along as 29 per cent of the provincial crop has been planted so far, according to the latest crop report from the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture. While it's up from 16 per cent last week, it's really behind the five year average of 55 per cent and the ten year average of 52 per cent. Crop Extension Specialist with the Ministry of Agriculture Davidson Ugheoke says farmers in the south made the bulk of progress with the southwest at 55 per cent complete and the southeast at 41 per cent complete. The west-central region is at 30 per cent, the northwest 16 per cent, the east-central at 11 per cent and the northeast is still lagging behind at just three per cent complete. "A couple of my colleagues drove around the province, (and) you could see some action in some places, so by this time next week, I think we should have significant numbers up." said Ugheoke. A weather system last week brought strong winds and mixed precipitation through the province, with som

U.S. flour consumption continues long slump

Flour consumption continues its decades-long slide in the United States, according to a new report. Per capita wheat flour consumption fell to 126.6 pounds in 2025, continuing a trend that started around the turn of the century, according to the Wheat Sector at a Glance report produced by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service. That is well below the 146.4 lb. of wheat flour consumed per person in 2000. That is not great news for Canadian farmers. The U.S. was Canada’s fourth largest wheat market from 2021-25 , accounting for an average of seven per cent of sales. Jane DeMarchi, president of the North American Miller’s Association, said there are several reasons why consumption has tumbled. It began with the widespread adoption of low-carbohydrate diets, such as the Atkin’s Diet. The rise of the gluten-free movement exacerbated the problem. There was a brief reprieve from the downward trend during COVID-19, when people started eating comfort food at home

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