Contest launched to find
Faces of Farming family

For the second year in a row, a contest is being launched to select one farmer or farm family to appear in the 2014 edition of the Faces of Farming calendar.  

While most of the calendar's participants are chosen with input from sponsoring commodity groups and agribusinesses, this is the second year that the contest will help select the farmer(s) that will appear on one of the pages.

Last year's winning entry was submitted by hog farmers Bob McMillan and Julie Moore and their family of Perth County. Their entry was chosen by a panel of urban reporters.
 

Farmers or farm families are encouraged to enter the contest by submitting both a family photo and short essay (maximum 500 words) describing their family. Candidates must make their primary income from agriculture. Their essays must include the following to be considered:

• Names and ages of all family members;
• Address including county or region of residency;
• A description of the farming operation including types of crops grown and/or livestock raised;
• History of the farm - number of generations farming, etc.;
• Any other details that make their story unique including community involvement, environmental initiatives, unusual hobbies, etc.;
• Why they'd be good candidates for the Faces of Farming calendar project.

All entries must be received at the Farm & Food Care office no later than Friday, May 31 when they will be judged. The winning farmer or farm family will participate in a photo shoot in July, receive complimentary copies of the calendar and two tickets and accommodation for the 2013 Ontario Harvest Gala and calendar launch planned for October 24, 2013 in Guelph.

Entries can be emailed to info@farmfoodcare.org or mailed to 100 Stone Road West, Suite 106, Guelph, Ontario, N1G 5L3.

 Breakfast on the Farm - June 22

834 tickets have now been reserved for Farm & Food Care's first Breakfast on the Farm event, presented in partnership with Egg Farmers of Ontario and Foodland Ontario. Breakfast will be guaranteed for the first 2,000 participants that register.

The event will be held Saturday, June 22, 2013 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Heritage Hill Farms of New Dundee. Free tickets are available through the Farm & Food Care website at www.farmfoodcare.org

If you're interested in volunteering for the event, Farm & Food Care is also looking for up to 200 volunteers for the day. You can sign up to help at the same website link.

Thanks to event sponsors:

• Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada
• Gay Lea Foods Co-operative Ltd.
• Gray Ridge Egg Farms
• Ontario Apple Growers
• Ontario Beekeepers' Association
• Ontario Fruit & Vegetable Growers' Association
• Oxford Federation of Agriculture
• P & H Milling Group
• Stratford Farm Equipment
• Stonaleen Farms
• Thomas Carberry Insurance Ltd.

 Farm Animal Care Advisory

Council meeting highlights

Members of Farm & Food Care's Animal Care Advisory Council met on April 29, 2013 with 13 member organizations taking part.

The morning's agenda included an update from Leslie Ballentine on activists groups and their tactics, with the group discussing where agriculture should focus efforts to make an impact.

In the afternoon, council members met with Dr. Paul Innes to discuss initiatives for consideration under Growing Forward 2 funding.

The afternoon wrapped up with a group discussion on the OSPCA and on tingle voltage.

Next meeting dates were set as follows:  June 27, 2013, September 30, 2013 and December 10, 2013.  

 Environment Advisory

Council meeting highlights

Members of Farm & Food Care's Animal Care Advisory Council met on April 18, 2013. Updates were brought to the group by:

• Chris Attema who shared regulatory changes that will bring greenhouse effluent under the Nutrient Management Act;
• Sam Bradshaw presented information on obsolete pesticide collection programs and a Manure Expo planned for August 21, 2013 near Guelph;
• Bruce Kelly presented information on WRAMI and other environmental programs being worked on by Farm & Food Care staff.

Jim Coneybeare from the Ontario Beekeepers Association and Paul Kozak, Provincial Apiarist with OMAF provided an update on the deaths of many hives of bees in the spring of 2012. Following laboratory testing, 80% of the samples of dead bees had levels of Neonicotinoid insecticides from coated seeds and Clothianidin from treated seed. He explained how various groups within agriculture are working to define the problem and make recommendations so that this does not happen again.

A motion was approved and sent forward to the Farm & Food Care Board to work toward arranging an annual or semiannual meeting between those that work within the Nutrient Management Act., OMAF, MOE and Nutrient Management Consultants to discuss common issues related to the practice of nutrient management.

The next meetings are scheduled for September 20 and December 13, 2013.

 Environmental Coordinator hired 

Micah Shearer-Kudel

 

Micah Shearer-Kudel has joined the staff of Farm & Food Care Ontario for a one year contract position in the role of Environmental Coordinator.

 

Shearer-Kudel is a graduate from the University of Waterloo with a degree in environmental studies.

 

As Environmental Coordinator at Farm & Food Care, he will be assisting Bruce Kelly with the Water Resource Adaptation Management Initiative (WRAMI) projects and other environmental initiatives.

 

He can be reached by email at micah@farmfoodcare.org  

Foundation Highlights
 

New Directors:
 

As a national charity, the Farm & Food Care Foundation is pleased to welcome three new directors - Adele Buettner from Saskatchewan, Kim McConnell from Alberta and Carolynne Griffith from Ontario.

In Memoriam:

Egg Farmers of Ontario recently made a $5,000 donation in memory of former federal agriculture minister Eugene Whalen who passed away earlier this year.  Whalen was well known and respected throughout Canadian agriculture. He was Minister of Agriculture from 1972 to 1984.

Shinny Shin Dig Hockey:

Participants in the 2013 Shinny Shin Dig

31 hockey players laced up their skates to score a few goals and help us reach ours on April 25.  In total, over $2,500 was raised to support Foundation initiatives. 

Thanks to RBC Royal Bank, Pullets Plus, the University of Guelph and the many businesses who donated prizes for their generous support.  

100 Stone Road West, Suite 106

Guelph, ON

N1G 5L3

519-837-1326

www.farmfoodcare.org

Twitter: @farmfoodcare

Email: info@farmfoodcare.org