Dig Deep Archive | Page 18

Looking abroad for local labour

Beamsville church welcomes temporary foreign workers into its community

By Jim Algie

For long-standing members of St. Alban’s Anglican Church in Beamsville, their outreach to temporary agricultural workers has meant “new life for the church,” Rev. Javier Arias said in a recent interview.

“We are giving some kind of service and support to the guys, but they are bringing to us a new life, you know, new blood,” he said. A native Spanish speaker of Colombian origin, Arias is a former Roman Catholic priest who joined the Anglican Church of Canada eight years ago.

All aboard: female representation in ag leadership

Innovation Guelph offers multiple programs to help women become involved on boards

By Kaitlynn Anderson
Staff Reporter
Better Farming

Women in agriculture – and other industries – can access a variety of resources to help them develop the confidence, skills and knowledge which can enable them succeed on boards.

Crossing the tracks: Alberta’s high-speed rail study

Lessons learned from an HSR rural assessment in Alberta

By Kate Ayers

Ontario is moving forward with plans to build a 370-kilometre (230-mile) $21-billion high-speed rail (HSR) system connecting Toronto to Windsor. The province plans to complete the project in two phases and estimates the second phase will wrap up in 2031.

Crossing the tracks: high-speed rail in Ontario

Concerned southwestern Ontario resident shares her thoughts on HSR

Linda J. Visser

Editor's note: Linda J. Visser, a concerned resident of southwestern Ontario, shared the letter that she’s sent to government officials about the proposed high-speed rail system connecting Toronto to Windsor. She encourages other concerned Ontarians to reach out to provincial and local representatives to discuss the issue.

Growing pains for farm families

Tracking farm fatalities in Canada

by JIM ALGIE

Farms are unique among industrial workplaces because people of all ages live on them. But children and elderly residents suffer “significant numbers of severe work-related injuries,” said the most recent report of Canadian Agricultural Injury Reporting (CAIR), an agency based in Winnipeg.

Keeping rural volunteerism alive

The IPM has depended on contributions from Ontario’s ag community for over 100 years

By Kaitlynn Anderson
Staff Reporter

Since the first International Plowing Match and Rural Expo (IPM) in 1913, the Ontario Plowmen’s Association (OPA) has relied on volunteers.

Beginning in Toronto at Sunnybrook Farm (now the location of Sunnybrook Hospital), the event has toured across the province, showcasing rural communities and their residents.

Mapping your way through precision ag

Sask. farmer finds profitability mapping allows him to maximize production and efficiency

By Kate Ayers

Profitability mapping has changed Saskatchewan farmer Terry Aberhart’s approach to crop production and how he manages the land. Together with his ag consultants, Aberhart analyzes his field data and gross revenue from across his fields.

Profitability maps can be generated using yield data and the cost of production for each field. These maps colour code zones of the field to indicate areas that are making money, losing money or, perhaps, simply breaking even.

Livestock producers face predator pressure

Farmers requesting financial support for reasonable care plans

By Kaitlynn Anderson
Staff Reporter

Wildlife predation is such a pressing issue for the province’s producers that the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA) may ask the government for more assistance.

Cultivating a level playing field

Ontario could take notes from lessons learned through other provinces’ organic regulations

by Kate Ayers

The Ontario government is reviewing the Organic Products Act, which would ensure that products for sale within the province could not be labelled or marketed as “organic” unless they are certified as such in conformity with the act. As the Ontario discussions continue, Better Farming provides an overview of the five provinces in Canada which have provincial organic regulations: British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Quebec.

Take control of charging water

Producers may be eligible for funding for erosion control structures

By Kate Ayers

Runoff and soil erosion are major issues in some areas of Ontario, and best management practices (BMPs) cannot always solely solve these problems, says Brad Glasman, manager of conservation services in the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority.