CFFO Blog's Page

CFFO Blog's Blog

Celebrate 60 Years of CFFO at this Year’s Annual Convention

The Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario turns 60 this year, and we want to invite our members, supporters, and friends of the organization to join us. This year’s convention will be held on Tuesday, December 2nd at St. George’s Hall in Waterloo, just minutes away from St. Jacob’s Country Market. This year’s…

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Posted on November 20, 2014 at 7:30am

CFFO Blog: Agriculture is Cornerstone of Growth within the Agri-food Sector

The CFFO is focused on how to generate additional jobs within the agriculture and agri-food sector. The Premier’s Challenge set ambitious goals for the sector which were renewed in the recent mandate letter to the Minister of Agriculture. The leadership within the industry needs to work together to generate new ideas to meet this challenge and help strengthen our great province.

The CFFO assessment is that there are limited opportunities at the primary production level to…

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Posted on November 14, 2014 at 1:17pm

CFFO Blog: Agriculture Can Benefit from a Long-Term Focus on Water Stewardship

The Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario is championing improved water stewardship as a key policy area that can move the Ontario agriculture sector forward. If we look at long-term challenges for agriculture, water stewardship is essential to sustainable production of food.

The CFFO believes that there are three game-changing factors that point towards the need for more thought on how farmers use water in Ontario. The first is managing the impacts of more erratic weather…

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Posted on November 10, 2014 at 1:00pm

CFFO Blog: The Farmers Story

by Paul Bootsma

Farmers need to get their story out to the public. The general public is the farmer’s customer and wants to know what farming is like in this decade. Agriculture, like all businesses, has evolved and changed, and today’s farmers are as likely to use a communication device as a shovel or a pitchfork.

Recently, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) released an article called Realities of Agriculture in…

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Posted on October 24, 2014 at 4:43am

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

Which Farmer’s Almanac Is Going Out of Print?

it’s not the iconic yellow-covered Old Farmer’s Almanac that’s closing its doors. The Farmers’ Almanac, based in Lewiston, Maine, will publish its final edition in 2026, marking the end of a 208-year legacy.

USask horticulture student honours peace by growing poppies

The display is a project of the heart for University of Saskatchewan (USask) horticulture student Corporal Fikret Ükis, who has been a member of the Canadian Armed Forces since 2018. “I thought it would be meaningful to have real poppies growing here on campus. They’re such a powerful symbol; simple, but deeply emotional,” Ükis said. It has been more than 100 years since the First World War and 80 years since the Second World War, and the world continues to see terrible conflict, he noted. “People sometimes forget that the freedoms and sovereignty we enjoy today were paid for by the sacrifices of those men and women,” he said. “It’s sad to see how fragile peace can be. The Ukrainians know this better than anyone right now; their sovereignty is currently under threat. Here in Canada, we take peace for granted, and we’ve forgotten how hard people had to fight during the First and Second World Wars, and how hard we still have to fight, to protect it.” Ükis said the poppy is a delicate

USask graduate investigates gene to improve the health of barley

Feeding the world requires healthy crops that can resist plant disease. Barley is the world’s fourth largest cereal crop in terms of production. This important crop is at risk worldwide from the fungus, Ustilago hordei, which infects barley with a disease called covered smut. This fungal infection starts on the surface of barley seed and causes the kernels of the barley plant to be replaced by masses of brown spores. Fan Yang’s research sought to identify a gene that can prevent barley yield loss from covered smut and thus improve economic returns to farmers. “My research focused on identifying a resistance gene, called RuhQ, within the barley genome that provides long-term resistance to covered smut,” said Yang. “I investigated how the pathogen infects barley seedlings and reduces grain quality and yield. I also explored which defense pathways are activated by the RuhQ gene to help barley defend against covered smut.” In July 2025, she successfully defended her PhD thesis, A study

Pulse Market Insight #286

Another Headwind for Yellow Peas The first quarter of the 2025/26 marketing year is now over and the pea market’s performance can be described as good, considering China’s 100% tariffs on Canadian pea imports, but not great. According to the CGC, farmers’ pea deliveries through 13 weeks were 1.13 mln tonnes, below the 5-year average of 1.21 mln and last year at 1.37 mln tonnes. Licensed pea exports totaled 865,000 tonnes, slightly above the 5-year average of 855,000, but trailing last year’s strong pace of 1.05 mln tonnes. In a “normal” year, this movement of peas wouldn’t be a big concern but the 2025 pea crop is nearly a million tonnes larger than last year, including 700,000 tonnes more yellow peas. Canada needs to export more peas, not less, in 2025/26 to avoid a large buildup in ending stocks. Unfortunately, the Indian government’s recent announcement of a 30% import tariff on yellow peas (from all origins), effective November 1, won’t help the situation. Several months ago, In

FVGC executive director plans to retire

The Fruit and Vegetable Growers of Canada (FVGC) president, Marcus Janzen, has announced that Massimo Bergamini will begin a transition from his role as executive director as he moves toward retirement. The Board is grateful for his leadership and for the organizational achievements made during his tenure.

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