Ontario Agriculture

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September 2009 Blog Posts (6)

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Funding initiatives

This past summer has been an interesting one along the lakeshore. Living and farming in the Ashfield Twp area is particularly interesting each summer due to the influx of tourists that bring their stress and frustrations to the lakeshore for some quality recharge time. Smooth washing waves, romantic sunsets, green fields of crops, quiet countryside and tourist events.

In order to keep them coming some people suggest we need to improve our environmental standards when it comes to water… Continue

Added by Wayne Black on September 26, 2009 at 2:00am — 1 Comment

People Watching

Over the last several years I've been fortunate to be part of the Western Fair - the big fall fair in London. Each year I'm in the barns doing some livestock show announcing and new this year kids pedal tractor pulls. In between events barn staff tend to find each other for a visit and some people watching. You really do get people from all walks of life coming to the fair in the city and the one thing I've learned from all of them, is that people really don't know anything about agriculture.… Continue

Added by Andrew Campbell on September 14, 2009 at 1:30am — 1 Comment

REACH Grand Opening Gala and Open House

This past week I was fortunate enough to participate in two events at the new Regional Equine & Agricultural Centre of Huron. The first was the "black tie" Gala for invited guests in the new Riding Arena on Thursday night. A great list of sponsors made it a fabulous entertaining night that people will be talking about for quite a while. Not very often something like this happens in Huron County. The REACH staff made sure everything was as close to perfect as possible. It was also quite… Continue

Added by Wayne Black on September 12, 2009 at 2:04pm — 2 Comments

Pass the Mayonaise originally written for the September issue of the Rural Voice Magazine

Don't read this article on local food; go to http://www.eatrealeatlocal.ca/ and watch a short video. Seriously, watch the video, download it, send the link to all your friends and contact lists. It should be required reading for every politician and bureaucrat.

Pig farmers will have to examine these latest government handouts and determine if the glass is half empty or half full. I would like to thumb my nose at all government programs. They are all made up of half measures and ad hoc vote… Continue

Added by John Beardsley on September 10, 2009 at 4:20pm — 2 Comments

It Isn't Always Our Fault

Covering agriculture has meant I've been to a pile of meetings. Meetings on getting more profit on your farm, meetings on government regulations, meetings on just about anything you can think of in order to help you be a better farmer. One of the topics that comes up a lot for livestock producers is developing a consistent product. While this usually is directed towards beef producers today, at one time it applied to everyone. Processors and retailers say if you want a better price - they need… Continue

Added by Andrew Campbell on September 7, 2009 at 12:44am — 1 Comment

Unseen Losses By Stewart Skinner

Too often we get caught up in the economic impacts that the loss of an industry can have. We never talk about the social costs of the disappearing jobs. In my own community I have witnessed the devastation to the rural social fabric that follows a major loss of jobs. Children have left rural schools as their families search for better opportunities elsewhere; heck, we haven’t had a full slate of hockey teams in Wallace Township since I was playing peewee. I look at what my own family does in… Continue

Added by OntAG Admin on September 1, 2009 at 2:30pm — 1 Comment

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

Rural councillors reject rezoning land for controversial battery energy storage system

Ottawa’s Agricultural and Rural Affairs Committee has rejected rezoning a property near Dunrobin as a site for a massive battery to store electricity. Three of the five rural councillors on the committee voted against rezoning land on Marchurst Road from rural countryside to rural general industrial to allow for construction of the controversial battery energy storage system, or BESS. A BESS is a giant collective battery — in this case, a lithium-ion battery — used to store electricity and distribute it as needed. Under the proposal from Brookfield Renewables, the 15-acre site on Marchurst Road would be home to a substation, 256 battery containers with noise walls and a stormwater management system to capture runoff. Residents have concerns, including noise, potential fires and contaminated well water. They also say details are sparse about decommissioning the $650-million facility once it has outlived its 25-year life expectancy. The Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO),

FCC report highlights productivity as key to Canada's agricultural future

Canadian farmers could see significant income gains and new opportunities if agricultural productivity growth returns to historic highs. The Farm Credit Canada (FCC) report titled Reigniting agricultural productivity in Canada, estimates that boosting productivity growth to two per cent annually could unlock $30 billion in additional farm income, generate $31 billion in GDP, and create nearly 23,000 jobs across the country. Canada has long been a standout among global food producers. Over the past half-century, the agriculture industry has achieved significant productivity growth through better farm management, improved input efficiency and technological innovation. The report warns, however, that productivity growth has slowed in recent years, threatening the industry's competitiveness and Canada's ability to meet growing national and global food demand. "Canada's agricultural productivity growth has consistently outpaced other G7 countries for more than three decades, showing the s

Ontario’s manufacturing jobs fall to lower rate since 1976: budget watchdog

The Ford government's push to make Ontario a "manufacturing powerhouse" appears to be faltering, according to the latest data from the province's budget watchdog, which found manufacturing activity is at its "lowest level since 2015." The Financial Accountability Officer's (FAO) latest economic review found that manufacturing - which represents about 10 per cent of the province's economy - has faced a number of challenges, including pandemic-related shutdowns, supply-chain disruptions, shipping issues, auto plant retooling, slowing demand, and, most recently U.S. tariffs on Ontario’s exports. The result, the watchdog found, was a decline in manufacturing output in seven of the past eight quarters between mid-2023 to mid-2025, leading to 20,600 fewer jobs, representing a declining share of the province's economy. "Manufacturing jobs as a share of Ontario’s total employment recently fell below 10% for the first time since record keeping began in 1976," the FAO said. The report offers

Briefs: $110K hospice gift; Vet student scholarship; Pork conference

The contribution, one the last from the foundation, was made recently in memory of longtime Beattie Foundation president Jack Morrison, who died Oct. 26, the hospice foundation said in a release. The family has opted to donate remaining Beattie Foundation funds to local initiatives close to their hearts, with donations also going to the Chatham-Kent Children’s Treatment Centre and Chatham-Kent Health Alliance foundations, the release said. “Jack was determined to ensure that all arrangements and donations were taken care of before his passing,” his daughter-in law, Jill Morrison, said. “He was deeply passionate about the James A. Beattie Foundation, and I know he would be smiling, likely with tears in his eyes.” The Beattie Foundation, which has contributed $240,000 to the hospice over the years, “has long exemplified the power of quiet generosity, making a significant and meaningful difference throughout Chatham-Kent,” hospice foundation executive director Brock McGregor said. Eri

Eastern Ontario Reopens A Strategic Agricultural Gateway After 30 Years

Eastern Ontario has reopened one of Canada's most strategic agricultural gateways with the arrival of the Federal Montreal, the first bulk vessel fertilizer cargo to dock in the region in almost three decades. Its discharge – coordinated through a logistics partnership led by V6 Agronomy alongside the Port of Johnstown – reactivates a long-dormant section of the St. Lawrence Seaway and establishes a modern Prairie-Seaway trade corridor connecting Western Canadian producers to Eastern and international markets. This renewed corridor links inbound fertilizers with outbound grain, pulses, and agri-products through an integrated marine-rail pathway. The result is a Canadian-controlled logistics chain that improves rail asset utilization, strengthens national food security, and reduces reliance on foreign infrastructure for critical agricultural inputs and exports. "This moment marks the renewal of a corridor that has been dormant for nearly three decades," said Ryan Brophy, CEO of V6 Agr

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