By Kate Ayers
Staff Writer
Farms.com
John Mason stays busy year-round with his construction company, marathon training and coaching – in addition to working on his family’s beef farm.
His parents Martin and Liz own a 100-acre farm in Oxford County. John has a few cows on the farm and puts in some sweat equity.
By Jim Algie
Better Farming
Oxford County has adopted plans to achieve 100 per cent renewable energy by 2050 for eight municipalities within this mainly rural and heavily agricultural region.
By Lauren Arva
Staff Writer
Better Farming
The multi-variety technology for soybeans is fundamentally sound, says Andrew Klopfenstein, senior research associate engineer at Ohio State University.
“We’ve had very few mechanical issues with any of the technology we’ve tested,” he says to Better Farming. “There’s tons of potential.”
The process of multi-variety planting for soybeans is very similar to that of corn, he explains.
By Kate Ayers
Staff Writer
Better Farming
Canadian livestock producers are caught in the crossfire of ongoing trade disputes between the United States and some of its trading partners.
Producers are forced “to make business decisions on how they manage their operations and act accordingly,” said Keith Currie, president of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture.
By Jim Algie
Hard cider taste tests at Vineland Research and Innovation Centre near St. Catharines show clear consumer preference for sweet fruity flavours over drier tannic ones, said Dr. Amy Bowen, research director of consumer insights at the centre, in a recent interview.
by Jim Algie
Systemic barriers remain to the full development of Ontario’s local food potential, several observers say.
Barriers highlighted during a series of recent Better Farming interviews include: challenges of access to capital, lack of co-ordinated distribution and the centralized purchasing habits of large, institutional food buyers such as hospitals.
By Kate Ayers
Staff Writer
Better Farming
Producers can take lead roles in digitizing and automating their operations, thanks to the introduction of open source software into the ag industry and the sophistication of electronic devices.
by Jim Algie
Among all Canadian provinces, Ontario had the largest number of farms reporting direct marketing, the 2016 census of agriculture said.
A total of 7,474 Ontario farms sold directly to consumers through such methods as farm gate stands, farmers markets and you-pick enterprises, Statistics Canada’s June 2017 “Growing Opportunity Through Innovation in Agriculture” article said.
by Jim Algie
A new capital pool for Ontario’s local food producers and related businesses seeks to solve at least one financial challenge facing entrepreneurs in the sector, said Sally Miller, Local Food and Farm Co-ops project manager.
By Kaitlynn Anderson
Staff Writer
Once rural landfills reach their capacities, communities can collaborate to repurpose these sites.
“Some places have successfully used landfills to create new local features, like parks,” Dr. Dianne Saxe, the environmental commissioner of Ontario, told Better Farming.