Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Dairy Farm Sustainability Award winner, Clovermead Farms

The Whale family farms in Alma, Ontario and has been doing so for seven generations. Dedicated community members, their philosophy is not just to take care o...

Rating:
  • Currently 5/5 stars.

Views: 108

Get Embed Code

Latest Videos

Comment

You need to be a member of Ontario Agriculture to add comments!

Join Ontario Agriculture

Comment by OntAG Admin on July 18, 2014 at 4:33am

Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC) is pleased to announce that Clovermead Farms, Inc. in Alma, Ontario, owned and operated by the Whale family, won the Dairy Farmers Sustainability Award, sponsored by DeLaval Canada.

Clovermead Farms’ philosophy is not just to take care of the land, but to improve it. The farm is a living example of what happens when the triple bottom line is considered – environmental responsibility, social equity and financial viability.

“Since its inception in 2011, this award recognizes dairy farmers with innovative sustainable practices that improve the social, environmental and economic impact of dairy farming in Canada,” said DFC president, Wally Smith. “We are pleased to take this opportunity to award an Ontario family farm who are striving to protect and improve our environment.”

“Sustainability is an integral part of our dairy industry and DeLaval is committed to help dairy farmers’ efforts in becoming more efficient and profitable with less impact on the environment,” stated Andrew Ritchie, managing director, DeLaval Inc. - Canada. “DeLaval is proud to offer Canadian farmers with solutions to optimize efficiencies and sustainability on their farms.’’

Accepting the award today on behalf of Clovermead Farms, Inc. was Korb and Kelly Whale. Seventh generation farmers, Korb and Kelly, own this farm with Korb’s parents, Bruce and Deborah Whale.

“I am honoured to accept this award on behalf of our entire family,” said Korb Whale. “We are absolutely committed to continue using technology and techniques to produce food on our farm while improving the world we live in. We have the ambition of working towards a carbon-neutral farm.”

The selection committee, consisting of nine sustainability experts, was particularly impressed with the Whale’s efforts in producing electricity, bedding and high quality fertilizer by using an anaerobic digester that turns cow manure into biogas. Additionally, the Whale family is committed to maintaining a minimum of 10% of their land base as wildlife habitat and forest, with wildlife corridors made of tree rows to connect woodlots and streams.

The finalists' profiles and a video of the winners’ farm are available on the DFC website.

The other three finalists, Dykstra Farms, (Knowlesville, New Brunswick), Ferme Clobert Inc. (Saint-Bonaventure, Quebec) and Bakerview EcoDairy (Abbotsford, British Columbia), will receive a trophy and a $1,000 prize during the upcoming annual general meeting of their respective provinces.

Source: Dairy Farmers of Canada

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

How University of Iowa dropouts built a global ag tech company

Matthew Rooda began working in the swine industry at a young age. First, he helped his grandfather on a family farm, and later he worked with his father, who managed a commercial farm in Iowa. When it was time for college, he enrolled at the University of Iowa with plans to study genetics and biotechnology, and eventually planned to go to medical school to become an obstetrician. When Rooda met with the medical school admissions committee at the University of Iowa, he was told that he had to be different to stand out. He thought back to the experiences he had working on farms. Rooda told the committee he had experience with vaccinations, birthing assistance and management on farms. “They said, ‘That's exactly what we're looking for,’” he said. His junior and senior years of college, Rooda worked at nursing homes and he noticed more connections between farming and health care. He saw how nursing homes used technology and management practices to weed out inefficiencies in their car

MU Extension tackles persistent labor shortages in hog production

University of Missouri Extension specialists are working with the swine industry and temporary visa holders to help recruit, retain and develop agriculture professionals needed to address ongoing farm labor shortages. The TN visa program was established in 1994 under the North American Free Trade Agreement. The “TN” designation, short for Treaty NAFTA, refers to a professional nonimmigrant classification now governed by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. TN visas allow U.S. employers to hire specialized agriculture professionals from Mexico and Canada. Unlike programs such as H-2A, which focus on seasonal farm labor, the TN visa program supports year-round professional positions. That’s an important advantage for swine operations that require consistent staffing, says Magdiel Lopez, a livestock specialist with University of Missouri Extension who leads the project funded through checkoff dollars from the National Pork Board. TN visa holders typically meet specific educationa

Swine fever deaths surge in Spain amid fears of new virus strain

Spain has recorded a surge in the deadly African swine fever sweeping Catalonia as authorities bring in drones and helicopters to help contain the outbreak. The region’s department of agriculture announced on Monday that a further 18 wild boar have died from the highly contagious disease near Cerdanyola del Valles, bringing the tally up to a total of 47. The ministry said that the rise was due to wider testing in hard-to-reach areas, explored by air over the Christmas holidays. It emphasised that it was an “accumulation” of cases reported, and not a “sudden” spike. Spain ramped up containment efforts in December, bringing in sniffer dogs and the military to help track the spread. More than 620 boars have been analysed in recent weeks, with around eight per cent testing positive for the virus. Researchers believe the ‘Bellaterra’ variant could be a new mutation, after it failed to match with any samples held locally. The local government has downplayed the theory that it could have

Swine Innovation Porc unveils 4 Advancing Swine Research projects

Swine Innovation Porc is pleased to announce four research projects under its Advancing Swine Research Call for Proposals, a national initiative designed to strengthen the resiliency, sustainability and competitiveness of Canada’s pork sector. Supported by the Pork Promotion and Research Agency, the projects announced represent the first set of approved investments under a highly competitive, industry-guided research call. Additional approved projects will be announced as partner co-funding decisions are finalized. For the four projects announced, SIP will invest up to $488,347, mobilizing up to $1.18 million in total project funding to advance innovation across priority areas including housing systems, animal health, energy efficiency and product quality. “SIP is proud to lead this national research effort that channels research investments into meaningful, targeted impact for producers and processors,” said Mark Ferguson, chair of SIP. “This call delivered exceptional proposals fr

Pork producers address USDA's New World screwworm response

The National Pork Producers Council submitted comments on the USDA's draft response plan for a New orWld screwworm detection in the United States. NPPC's feedback addressed areas of the response including movement controls and movements to slaughter, treatment and physical examinations, among others. NWS is a flesh-eating parasite from female flies that lay eggs in wounds on warm-blooded animals, including pigs and people. According to USDA, animals that recently have given birth, suffered an injury, or had a surgical procedure such as tail docking or branding are most vulnerable. Even tick bites can attract NWS flies. The disease has moved from South America through Central America and into Mexico over the past few years, with a case recently being identified in cattle a few hundred miles south of the U.S.-Mexico border. It is endemic in Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and some South American countries. In May, USDA closed the U.S. southern border to imports of cattle from Mexi

© 2026   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service