Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

CFFO Blog's Blog (97)

The CFFO Commentary: Christmas and the Difference it makes for Farming

By John Clement

December 24, 2010



I'm not by nature a person devoted to creeds and confessions, but every once in awhile something will strike me as particularly meaningful in one of those documents. At this Christmas season, some of the words found in the beginning of the Heidelberg Catechism strike me as appropriate. The question is asked "what is your only comfort in life and death?"… Continue

Added by CFFO Blog on December 24, 2010 at 6:34am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary:Farm Policy Increasingly Needs to Pay Heed to the “Missing Middle”

By John Clement

The challenges of farm policy used to be simpler. Most farms in most commodities were about the same size and generated somewhat comparable farm revenues. But those days have been leaving us for awhile now, with new challenges emerging about how to deliver public support that is both fair and appropriate to changes in the scale of production. 

 Increasingly, farming and public interest groups are noting that we are starting to experience what could be called the…

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Added by CFFO Blog on December 17, 2010 at 7:00am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Farmers Matter and Need to Build Goodwill with Consumers

By Henry Stevens

There is general agreement in the farm community that a number of our commodities are in serious financial difficulty and face an uncertain future. There is also general agreement on why family farms in those sectors are facing such difficulties. Where there is less agreement is “how do we solve those problems and…

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Added by CFFO Blog on December 10, 2010 at 6:13am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: New Agricultural Opportunities in Bio-Products

By Nathan Stevens

There are some industry leaders that would argue that one of the greatest opportunities for farmers in the next 20 years will be the development of the bio-products sector. At a recent information session held by the Wellington…

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Added by CFFO Blog on December 3, 2010 at 4:45am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Future Safety Net Design Drawing Attention

By Nathan Stevens

The next Growing Forward agreement is starting to loom on the distant horizon and farm groups are developing new options that differ from the current program. James Rude of the Department of Rural Economy at the University of…

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Added by CFFO Blog on November 26, 2010 at 6:29am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: CFFO Releases Goals for an Ontario Food Strategy

As anyone who plays a lot of games knows, having a plan is essential to success. Whether one is playing a sport, a board game or a video game, having that plan of action greatly increases the chance of winning. This is also true in the business world where having a plan makes a huge difference between success and failure. The agriculture sector is no different. The CFFO has developed what it believes are the essential goals of a food strategy for Ontario.



Last winter,…

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Added by CFFO Blog on November 12, 2010 at 6:30am — No Comments

CFFO Commentary: CFFO Convention to Focus on Feeding the World While Supporting Family Farms



Questions involving world hunger and food production are keenly appreciated by the farming community. Most Ontario farmers are willing to work with others to ensure that no one goes hungry. But they also want to do so in a way that ensures farm markets are stable both here and…

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Added by CFFO Blog on November 5, 2010 at 5:50am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Listening to Farmers' Concerns Key to Good Representation

By Paul Bootsma

October 29, 2010

For groups like the Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario, there is no substitute for attending farm shows and catching the pulse of what farmers are thinking. This year’s farm shows…

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Added by CFFO Blog on October 29, 2010 at 5:18am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Moving Beyond "Random Acts of Stewardship"

By John Clement

October 22, 2010

I recently heard a long-time promoter of environmental goods and service (EGS) payments to farmers argue that it’s time to move beyond “random acts of…

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Added by CFFO Blog on October 22, 2010 at 5:09am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Personal Insight Into Need to Preserve Best Farmland

By Nathan Stevens

October 15, 2010

Sometimes it takes personal experience to really strengthen one’s believe in a core value of…

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Added by CFFO Blog on October 15, 2010 at 6:28am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Working as Colleagues Can Move Ontario Farmers Forward

By Paul Bootsma

October 8, 2010

Ontario farmers have a history of being open with each other when discussing business. Helping each other overcome difficulties and making improvements in production are often discussed…

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Added by CFFO Blog on October 8, 2010 at 5:53am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Tackling Agricultural Challenges Aided Through Leadership Training

By John Clement

October 1, 2010

I appreciate good leadership. Good leaders have a way of focusing people on critical issues and helping them to work together on finding solutions. Sometimes that involves pioneering a new way of doing things and forcing people to react, while at other times it involves pushing others from behind to bring forward…

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Added by CFFO Blog on October 4, 2010 at 4:00am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Competing Interests Arise in Land Use Planning Discussions

By Nathan Stevens

September 24, 2010




Good land use planning is critical for the success of agriculture. And with the current review of the Provincial Policy Statement underway, talks are heating up between farming organizations and those representing other interests in land use planning.



The CFFO is currently in dialogue with a collection of environmental groups, including Ontario Nature, Ducks Unlimited and Ecojustice,… Continue

Added by CFFO Blog on September 27, 2010 at 3:18am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Agricultural Entrepreneur Puts Focus on Farming for the Motor City

By John Clement



September 17, 2010




I’m watching with interest a Detroit-based entrepreneur whose vision for his city could throw many of our paradigms about urban agriculture out the window. Seeing Detroit’s huge amount of vacant land as an opportunity, the entrepreneur is setting out to assemble large parcels of vacant inner-city land and create a large-scale, for-profit agricultural enterprise.



The entrepreneur in question is John Hantz, the… Continue

Added by CFFO Blog on September 17, 2010 at 9:47am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: A Cloud Forms on the Horizon of Ontario’s Green Energy Future

The CFFO Commentary: A Cloud Forms on the Horizon of Ontario’s Green Energy Future



By Nathan Stevens

September 10, 2010




Glenn Fox of the University of Guelph recently shared his critique on the implementation of Ontario’s Green Energy Policy. His thoughts on the subject point to a serious test of the Province’s commitment to the development of renewable energy over the coming year.



The rationale that has been used to support the development… Continue

Added by CFFO Blog on September 10, 2010 at 5:28am — No Comments

The CFFO Commentary: Future of Farming requires Accommodating Differing Views

By Jenny Denhartog

September 3, 2010

The steady decline in the number of family farms in Ontario has been…

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Added by CFFO Blog on September 3, 2010 at 4:30am — No Comments

CFFO's Stevens: More Land Use Protection Needed in Provincial Policy Statement

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Added by CFFO Blog on August 26, 2010 at 10:30am — No Comments

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

Harvest is 53 per cent complete, falling 20 per cent behind the five-year average

Harvest progress in Saskatchewan is behind both the five- and ten-year averages at 53 per cent compete, which is still a 12 per cent jump from last week. The five-year average is nearly three quarters complete at 73 per cent, while the 10-year average is 62 per cent. The Saskatchewan Agriculture weekly crop report attributes this season’s shortcoming to the impeding rainfall that many areas received between September 9th and 15th. In the race to finish combining, the southwest region is the furthest along with 66 per cent of crops harvested. The southeast region follows behind with 58 per cent of the crop in the bin. In the west-central and northwest regions 47 per cent of crops have been combined, and in the east-central region harvest is 46 per cent complete. Things are progressing more slowly in the northeast with 42 per cent in the bin. Although the rain slowed progress for many, it also improved soil moisture conditions. When it comes to which crops are off first specific

CRSB Certified recognized as AgriInvest risk assessment tool

The Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB) has announced that its CRSB Certified program is now recognized as an agri-environmental risk assessment (AERA) under Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s AgriInvest program. This means that beef producers who are CRSB Certified and require an AERA to participate in AgriInvest can use their certification to meet that requirement for the government program. AgriInvest is one of the business risk management programs delivered under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (SCAP), the federal-provincial-territorial framework that supports Canada’s agriculture and agri-food sectors. CRSB Certification joins a list of eligible AERAs including an Environmental Farm Plan and Nutrient Management Plans. Risk assessment must be valid at some point during your fiscal year for which it is required.

Crop Report for the Period September 9 to September 15, 2025

Many areas of the province received rainfall this past week causing producers to briefly pause harvest. Harvest is currently 53 per cent complete, which is a 12 per cent increase from last week. The five-year harvest progress average for this period is 73 per cent, while the 10-year average is 62 per cent. Despite the rain slowing progress, it is welcomed by producers in dry areas as it will improve soil moisture conditions. The southwest region is the furthest along with 66 per cent of crops harvested. The southeast region currently has 58 per cent of the crop in the bin. Harvest is at the same stage in the west-central and northwest regions as 47 per cent of crops have been combined. The east-central region is currently at 46 per cent complete while the northeast has 42 per cent in the bin. Winter wheat and fall rye harvest is now complete. Field pea and lentil crops are very close to wrapping up at 96 and 91 per cent respectively. Triticale is at 75 per cent harvested. Leading

Buying Used vs. New Farm Equipment — What Farmers Need to Know

Daniel Stansbury of AG Revolution shares practical guidance on how farmers can decide between new and used equipment, with tips to minimize risk and maximize value.

Bayer releases new Raxil Rise cereal fungicide seed treatment

The product protects wheat, oats, barley, rye, and triticale

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