Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

All Blog Posts (764)

Rise of the Asian middle class and the competition for animal protein

The size of the world population is among the most significant changes for the future. There are many challenges, as the media tell us on a daily basis, but there are opportunities. The first and the main of these opportunities is the population increase itself. In the coming four decades, there will be two billion more people to feed. Never before, has humanity seen such a demand increase. This means that farmers and food suppliers do not have to worry about a lack of market opportunities.…

Continue

Added by Christophe Pelletier on March 13, 2012 at 8:35am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Ontario needs a New Approach to handling Animal Welfare Concerns

By Nathan Stevens

March 9, 2012

 

Animal welfare is a growing concern for farmers and society. In particular, the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (OSPCA) is a topic of growing importance to farmers in Ontario. While there is no doubt that animal welfare issues are a serious concern and must be dealt with properly, the approach in Ontario when it comes to farming needs to…

Continue

Added by CFFO Blog on March 9, 2012 at 2:33am — No Comments

Hard to work off the farm

The "slow" pace of winter months has been keeping me exceedingly busy lately.  Between getting paper work in order for tax time, learning and repairing my new to me grain header, general repairs and maintenance I must find time to work a full time job.  With todays warm weather it was like torture to read the odd tweet about other farmers using the good weather to get equipment ready.  To make maters worse, the plant lost its computer network today, so it was a bit slow at times, those times…

Continue

Added by Gus Ternoey on March 7, 2012 at 2:05pm — 1 Comment

Twitter for Farmers - Great Ontario Twitter Accounts to Follow and Getting Started and How Twitter Can Help You on Your Farm

In this webinar from the Alberta Canola Producers Commission (@AlbertaCanola) , Rick Taillieu (@ricktlu) discusses why and how farmers are now using twitter as an important part of their business. This webinar…

Continue

Added by OntAG Admin on March 6, 2012 at 3:30am — 1 Comment

The CFFO Commentary: The CFFO Invests in Agricultural Education

By Paul Bootsma

March 2, 2012

 

Our society recognizes that education is an important factor in achieving success in our increasingly complex global economy. The next generation will need more knowledge in order to improve the economy both locally and abroad. The Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario agrees with this assessment and has initiated a new program in support of education in…

Continue

Added by CFFO Blog on March 2, 2012 at 3:27am — No Comments

Rick Mercer Visits University of Guelph Veterinary College. Click To Watch.

Added by OntAG Admin on February 29, 2012 at 1:17pm — No Comments

One week left in my smartphone/social media survey - would you participate?

I'm very excited at the response to the OMAFRA/University of Guelph survey on social media and smartphone use in Ontario agriculture. If you haven't participated, would you take a few minutes this week to answer it?  It can be found at http://www.ipsosresearch.com/omafra/.  We are looking for participation from all parts of Ontario agriculture -- and not just from smartphone or social media users.  If you don't use those…

Continue

Added by ontariotomato on February 27, 2012 at 9:25am — No Comments

My OMAFRA troubles and my advice to avoid them

Its never nice to hear of someone facing problems, but its useful to take advantage of the opportunity to avoid them yourself.  My opinion of OMAFRA is greatly tainted, but I am open minded enough to realize most problems could have been avoided.  

At issue is the loss of the farm tax rebate which holds municipal tax rates to, well, basically the equivalent of where they alway were.  Without the rebate, taxes quadruple.  As it stands today, my issue is only with the 2012 tax year.  So…

Continue

Added by Gus Ternoey on February 24, 2012 at 4:01pm — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: The Drummond Report calls for Serious Change in Ontario

By Nathan Stevens

February 24, 2012



The long awaited Drummond Report was released last week. The weighty report calls for a serious change in direction in this province. If implemented, all Ontarians will be impacted, including agriculture and rural Ontario.



The report points out that Ontario is not in a crisis... yet. There are a lot of good things that are being done, but we aren’t facing the reality of being a province in…

Continue

Added by CFFO Blog on February 24, 2012 at 4:32am — No Comments

The enemy to new farmers - OMAFRA

It has been a very busy couple of weeks.  Making headway on rebuilding my grain header, want to get that out of the way so I can start on the tractors and tillage equipment.  So although I was beginning to feel like I was making progress, in steps OMAFRA.  My farm doesn't qualify for the farm tax rate.  In the past, my father had recieved an exemption from the FBR system for religious reasons.  Having taken the decision to join the system rather than appose/avoid it, i opened up a can of…

Continue

Added by Gus Ternoey on February 21, 2012 at 2:45pm — 1 Comment

Farm Show at Western Fair in London. March 7-9, Will Be The Largest Ever. Agriculture Technology, Education, Entertainment.

Farm Show Rises Above the Rest with Agricultural Technology, Education and Entertainment

By Western Fair

Spring is only a snowflake away, or is it?  With a more than mild winter, many have been thinking about getting an early start this spring on everything from the backyard to the back forty. Last year’s Farm Show at Western Fair District battled a blizzard and organizers of the 74th edition are hoping the weather gods are good to them this year…

Continue

Added by OntAG Admin on February 21, 2012 at 1:26pm — No Comments

The Farmer - A more global view

Thanks to the insistence of my wife, this past week was spent in the luxury of a Caribbean resort in Jamaica.  But credit to a day long excursion to an inland coffee plantation I returned home with more than a tan.  In our high quality of life society it is sometimes easy to overlook that we are the worlds wealthy and the vast majority of people in this world can only dream of the lifestyles Canada's lowest paid get to live.  The farmers I saw didn't get the option to own their land, or even…

Continue

Added by Gus Ternoey on February 10, 2012 at 2:46pm — 1 Comment

AMI Video: Tony Lang, Lang Farms Road Map - Planning For The Year Ahead.

Added by OntAG Admin on February 9, 2012 at 3:16pm — No Comments

Daynard: Critique of recent attack by George Morris Centre on fuel ethanol

by Terry Daynard   www.tdaynard.com

Differences of opinion are always valuable, especially when supported by thorough and objective analysis. This is what one would expect of the George Morris Centre (GMC) which bills itself as Canada’s independent agri-food think tank. The centre has released a series of reports on fuel ethanol in recent years, all highly negative, and all much weightier in opinion than analysis. Unfortunately…

Continue

Added by OntAG Admin on February 9, 2012 at 1:45pm — 1 Comment

Farms.com Market School Video: How To Develop Your Grain Marketing Plan.

Added by OntAG Admin on February 8, 2012 at 3:36pm — No Comments

Winning hearts one million views at a time

by Owen Roberts, Urban Cowboy 

Agriculture has long wondered how to get the public and other decision makers to pay attention to it — to see it is different, new and exciting.

Well, here’s one approach that as of late has been endorsed a million times: Go back to your roots.

Last week, London-based Farms.com announced that an unassuming video put together last summer by one of its interns, Mackenna Roth, has…

Continue

Added by OntAG Admin on February 6, 2012 at 7:30am — 1 Comment

The CFFO Commentary: The CFFO Launches Business Management Pilot Project

John Clement

February 3, 2012

 

Farm business management groups have been used across Canada over the past few decades but there appears to be a renewed push to broaden their appeal. Although these groups can vary widely from sector-to-sector, most feature a small group of farmers working with a facilitator to compare individual production and financial records against those of peers. In the process, the aim is to grow and develop the management skills of all participants in the…

Continue

Added by CFFO Blog on February 3, 2012 at 3:42am — No Comments

Bureaucracy in Ontario Agriculture

The weekend was very productive, the work on the new combine is ahead of schedule, finished up a bit of preventative maintenance on some equipment.  All in an attempt to put off the paperwork.  Some things just can't be put off too long without dire consequences.  

Last year I purchased my home farm, or more properly put, I took ownership of a big mortgage.  With the transfer of land, however, MPAC, the municipal property assessment corp, requires new proof that my 100 acres is in…

Continue

Added by Gus Ternoey on January 30, 2012 at 12:20pm — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Red Tape Report Card shows Ontario is heading in the Right Direction

By Nathan Stevens

January 27, 2012

 

The burden of over-regulation is wearing thin for many farmers in Ontario. Red tape is being sighted as a key constraint for small and medium businesses across Canada. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) has made this issue one of their key issues, and published its annual report card on red tape in Canada earlier this month.

 

Perhaps…

Continue

Added by CFFO Blog on January 27, 2012 at 3:13am — No Comments

Monthly Archives

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

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

January-June Farm Cash Receipts Up 3.3%

Canadian farm cash receipts through the first two quarters of 2025 were up slightly from the same period a year earlier, thanks mainly to strong livestock returns. A Statistics Canada report Friday pegged total farm cash receipts in the January-June period at $49.6 billion, up $1.6 billion or 3.3% from the previous year. But it was livestock that led the way. Total livestock receipts rose 10.8% or $2.1 billion to $21.3 billion in the first two quarters, on account of higher prices for all livestock types except poultry. On the other hand, crop receipts were little changed – inching up $80.2 million or 0.3% - to $25.9 billion. Meanwhile, program payments declined, falling $584.5 million or 20% to $2.3 billion. While cash receipts increased for most crops in the January-June period, StatsCan said those gains were offset by reduced receipts for barley and lower liquidations of deferred crop sales in Western Canada. Total oilseed receipts through the first two quarters of 2025 wer

Alberta Harvest Advances; Yield Potential Improves

Alberta yield potential is improving as the harvest advances. Friday’s weekly crop report estimated dryland yields for major crops at 19% above the 5-year average and 11% above the 10-year average. That marks a 4-point increase in both indexes from the estimates last reported two weeks ago. Meanwhile, the harvest of major crops (spring wheat, oats, barley, canola, and peas) was pegged at about 8% complete as of Tuesday, up 6 points from a week earlier although still behind the five- and 10-year averages of 15% and 12%, respectively. The harvest of all crops was reported at 11% done as of Tuesday, versus 2% two weeks earlier. The average Alberta spring wheat yield is now estimated by the province at 50.6 bu/acre, with oats and barley at 71.8 and 69.1 bu. Canola is estimated at 39.7 bu/acre, and peas at 47 bu. “The extended period of rain and cool temperatures, which occurred while crops matured, appears to have been beneficial with multiple reports of yields surprising to the up

Pulse Market Insight #281

First StatsCan Crop Estimates for 2025 This week, StatsCan issued its first yield and production estimates for 2025 crops. These numbers are based on computer models using satellite vegetation images which, in our view, have been getting better at estimating yields. That said, these first estimates were based on the situation at the end of July; weather and crop conditions have changed considerably since then, some worse but mostly better. As combines got rolling this fall, one common theme we’ve been hearing from many parts of the prairies has been that yields are coming in better than expected. Rainfall was variable across the prairies but in all regions, 2025 was a much milder summer than the last 3-4 years when extended periods of extreme heat reduced yields. If these early positive results continue through the rest of harvest, we wouldn’t be surprised if these initial StatsCan numbers are the low-water mark for the season. For peas, StatsCan reported a yield of 36.6 bu/acre, up

Association of Equipment Manufacturers plans to lobby ahead of fall parliamentary session

Policies that help farmers adopt precision technology and maintain their right to repair are among priorities for the Association of Equipment Manufacturers ahead of the fall parliamentary session. The association says equipment manufacturers are looking to lawmakers to help them adapt in the midst of significant trade challenges and other issues like chronic labour shortages and an infrastructure deficit. Tariffs and the uncertainty surrounding them have led to higher costs for manufacturers. Aaron Wetzel, John Deere’s vice-president of production systems, said in July that the majority of their whole goods and components were exempted from tariffs under the CUSMA trade agreement. However, materials needed to make equipment may face tariffs — for instance, Canada’s 25 per cent tariffs on U.S. steel, copper and aluminum.

New traceability regulations coming for Canadian cattle ranchers

Canadian cattle producers are awaiting new federal traceability regulations following a two-year consultation process. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) released an “owner’s guide” based on early industry consultation. Amendments to the guide are anticipated, but have been delayed by the federal election. Rick Wright, the chief executive officer of the Livestock Markets Association of Canada, expects that it will happen in the first or second quarter of 2026, and after that, there’ll be a one-year soft launch of the enforcement of it. He says the lengthy implementation has been necessary. The regulations represent what he calls an essential emergency management tool in an era of increased global trade and travel risks. The updated regulations are designed to prepare for disease outbreaks by shortening the movement reporting window from 30 days to seven and introducing new requirements for premises identification.

© 2025   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service