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AALP's Blog – July 2016 Archive (11)

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AALP Class 16 Interacts with Leaders in Canada and the United States

Guelph, ON, July 25, 2016 - Over 10 days in early July, the future agricultural leaders that make up the current Advanced Agriculture Leadership (AALP) class were exposed to interactive learning through their North America Study Tour (NAST).



The 2016 NAST included stops in Eastern Ontario, Quebec, New York State, Washington DC, Maryland and Pennsylvania focusing on production challenges, unique marketing initiatives, environmental obligations and the evolving concept of social…

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Added by AALP on July 28, 2016 at 4:02am — No Comments

Heading home

As we pack up the bus for the last time open, we begin to prepare for the long ride home. Many are excited to see their family and friends, to share their experiences during our NAST and to get back to normal life.

We start off our journey with off the cuff (impromptu) speaking, responding to questions about our thoughts regarding specific speakers and stops along our travels. We hear members reflect on the importance of the relationship between Canada and the USA, our…

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Added by AALP on July 13, 2016 at 7:00am — No Comments

Learning the RULEs of Leadership at State College, Pennsylvania

Today marks our ninth stop on this “Amazing Race across North America.” We’ve parked our bus at Penn State University in State College, Pennsylvania, for a joint day of leadership learning with the RULE participants and alumni of Pennsylvania. RULE stands for “Rural Urban Leadership” and they’re currently in their 16th class of participants, just like us…

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Added by AALP on July 12, 2016 at 3:00am — No Comments

Day 8: Out with a bang! Battles, beers and baseball

The day started off early with a 6:30 departure from Alexandria, Virginia, with a two-hour drive to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Our in-flight service was compliments of Tom and Robin and consisted of snacks, moist towelettes and…

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Added by AALP on July 11, 2016 at 4:30am — 1 Comment

Day 7: Talking about the rural/urban divide

We started the day bright eyed, bushy tailed, and ready to learn!! First stop was at the Chestertown Town Hall where Nancy Nunn, Educator, Outreach, and Advancement Coordinator at the Harry R. Hughes Center for Agro-Ecology, and Kees de Mooy, Zoning Administrator for the Town of Chestertown, spoke to us about the history, troubles and opportunities of Chestertown.…

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Added by AALP on July 10, 2016 at 3:00am — No Comments

Day 6: A day at the Canadian Embassy

Our day began with a fabulous breakfast at the Crown Plaza hotel. We boarded the bus and were reminded a few times by our daily coordinators, Ann Vermeersch and Dylan Wiens, not to forget our passports for the Embassy. We arrived safely at the Canadian Embassy, driven, of course, by our spectacular bus driver Nancy, where we were reminded once again – do not forget your passports!…

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Added by AALP on July 9, 2016 at 2:30am — No Comments

Day 5: The rich history of Washington, DC

Thursday morning started with an early breakfast so Nancy could get us on the road and headed towards Washington to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.



Once on the bus, we all enjoyed some quiet time to catch a few zzzz’s for the first hour or so to help prepare us for the busy schedule we have over the next few days. Throughout the morning we had the opportunity to meet with our Issues Analysis Project teams to…

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Added by AALP on July 8, 2016 at 5:30am — No Comments

Day 4: From melons to margaritas

AALP Class 16 started Day 4 of our North American Study Tour in the New York State capital of Albany with a breakfast speaker. Jackie Lendrum from the New York Department of Environmental Conservation shared her experiences with water quality regulations and issues primarily with dairy farms in the state. Dairy is the…

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Added by AALP on July 7, 2016 at 7:30am — No Comments

Day 3: More farms and fun in Quebec

After participating in the famous local tradition that is Montreal International Jazz Festival, the class packed up and headed for the border, making stops along the way before crossing.

The first stop was La Ferme Quinn, a 150-acre…

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Added by AALP on July 6, 2016 at 5:00am — No Comments

Day 2: A day at the Farm

As the chariot pulled away from the Crown Plaza in Montreal this group of AALP participants knew they were in for an info-packed day starting off with McGill MacDonald Campus.

We all have our favourite post-secondary campus, but many participants on the…

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Added by AALP on July 5, 2016 at 4:03am — No Comments

Day 1: The journey begins

With blue skies and sun, we couldn’t have asked for a better day to start our North American Study Tour. The majority of the class gathered at the Rural Ontario Institute parking lot and we are thrilled to reunite with our classmates, and to see that our chariot is NOT a yellow school bus but in fact a coach bus. After Andy McTaggart confirms that all are present -- although it takes a couple of counts -- we start off on the first…

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Added by AALP on July 4, 2016 at 3:30am — No Comments

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

Choosing Malting Barley for 2027? Market Demand Could Be Key

Canadian malting barley acres are shifting toward newer varieties. CDC Churchill reached 13.7 per cent of Western Canadian acres in 2026, while AAC Synergy retained the top spot at 37.6 per cent. Recommended Varieties

China extends tariff relief for peas, canola meal

China has extended significant tariff reductions on Canadian peas, canola meal, lobster and crabs for another two years after a meeting in Beijing between Chinese officials and International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu. The announcement, part of a deal struck recently, removes a cloud of uncertainty that had been hanging over Canada’s agriculture and seafood sector. The tariff reductions, set to expire on Dec. 31, have been extended to the end of 2028, Sidhu said in a statement from Beijing. The suspended tariffs include 100-per-cent levies on peas and canola meal and 25-per-cent on lobster and crab. Shipments of these products for the first eight months of the year reached $1-billion, according to Sidhu’s office. “This extension gives farmers, producers and harvesters predictable access to the Chinese market, and it’s how we will grow our exports to China by 50 per cent by 2030 to create good-paying jobs and new opportunities for businesses across Canada,” Sidhu said.

Cyclists in another Ontario town worried they’ll lose some bike lanes

The Great Bike Lane Battle of Ontario™ isn’t just happening in Toronto. We’ve already seen several places in the province who are fearful that some of the Toronto removals, and plans to remove more or kibosh future lanes, might affect them. It began over two years ago when Premier Doug Ford’s government passed legislation that changed the way municipalities can create bike lanes. Essentially, the province can now dictate the way towns or cities can create cycling infrastructure that may reduce car lanes. The bill also quite specifically targeted several sections in the city which it planned to remove lanes. After a long legal battle—which included a Charter challenge put forth by cycling advocates, which was ultimately appealed and won by the province—the first round of lane removals began. The Ontario bike lane brouhaha In early October, crews set out to get rid of a 1.2-km section of protected bike lanes on Bloor Street West in the west part of the city. For days, cyclists and s

Eggs of invasive moth detected for the first time in Great Lakes region in Detroit, U.S. says

The eggs of an invasive moth known to be a voracious consumer of trees have been discovered for the first time in the Great Lakes region on a vessel in the Port of Detroit, according to U.S. Customers and Border Protection. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirmed the specimens came from two distinct subspecies of the flighted spongy moth complex native to Asia. The steel-carrying cargo ship had arrived in Detroit from South Korea via Hamilton. “It's very concerning because … spongy moth is one of those moths whose caterpillars feed on the foliage of a large number of tree species,” said Richard Hamelin, a professor of forestry at the University of British Columbia. He worked with the USDA and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency on a DNA test to differentiate the Asian and European varieties of the moth. “My guess is that this [is] being an alarm … bell … because … if there's one ship that had eggs, then … there was … some kind of a breakdown in the inspection or maybe t

Lambton County farmers near end of harvest thanks to favourable weather

Ideal fall conditions have allowed Lambton County producers to bring a smooth and successful harvest near the finish line. Lambton Federation of Agriculture President Mike Belan said the soybean harvest and winter wheat planting finished really well thanks to a long stretch of nice weather. He said area farmers, including himself, have made good progress harvesting corn since with average to above average yields being recorded. "We just finished up last week and I think probably, if you went around the county, we'd be probably 85 to 90 per cent wrapped up on corn harvest," said Belan. "The first part of November has been exceptionally well weather wise." Belan said everyone he talks to has been eager to collect their crops. "November's notorious for having a large snowfall or getting wet and staying wet for the rest of the month," he said. "So, you take advantage of the nice weather when you can." With flurries starting to show in local forecasts, Belan said extra effort is being

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