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In This Issue

  • Canada's Agriculture Day: February 15, 2023
  • FarmFood360 Program - Agricultural Adaptation Council support
  • Save the date: FFCO AGM and speakers conference April 13, 2023
  • Member forum summary
  • Nomination form for FFCO board member candidates
  • Media training sessions for members
  • Nominate a Food & Farming Champion for 2023
  • Member testimonial: Mushrooms Canada
Celebrate Canada's Agriculture Day
Canada’s Agriculture Day this year is on Wednesday, February 15, 2023. Raise your fork and acknowledge the ongoing effort and commitment made by farmers and producers across the country.

Follow Farm & Food Care Ontario (FFCO) on social media to engage in conversations about food and agriculture and get the word out across Canada using the hashtag #CdnAgDay.

Keep an eye on FFCO's social media channels for a contest announcement to be launched as part of Canada's Ag Day celebrations.
Farm & Food Care offices in Ontario and PEI are teaming up for Canada’s Agriculture Day and will feature two live virtual field trips to showcase Canadian farmers and the food they produce.

Celebrations start at:

·      10am EST: Farm & Food Care Ontario; Mushroom farm.
·      12pm EST: Farm & Food Care PEI; Dairy farm.

To watch, follow along on either @FarmFoodCareON or @FarmFoodCarePEI Facebook pages or on YouTube @FarmFoodCare.
FarmFood360° Program - AAC support

The Agricultural Adaptation Council (AAC) and FFCO are pleased to announce the launch of a two-year program to support AAC members with their public outreach activities.

The AAC FarmFood360° Program will assist AAC member organizations in creating Virtual Reality tour projects of their commodity association or agribusiness. The project will be funded through AAC’s Strategic Initiatives Fund and will support up to 50 percent of the cost of creating a series of five videos to be housed at www.FarmFood360.ca. Funds will be available for up to three members to participate in each of the next two years.

Using 360 cameras and virtual reality technology, the award-winning FarmFood360° website gives Canadians the chance to tour real, working farms and food processing plants, all without putting on boots or biosecurity clothing. The popular website, managed by FFCO, attracts about one million visitors each year. An additional component of each project, developed by Agriculture in the Classroom Canada, are curriculum-linked activities and quizzes for educators wanting to incorporate the tours into their student learnings. Those are also housed on the same website under a link titled “FarmFood360° in the Classroom”.

The application deadline for 2023 is Friday, February 17 at 4:30 p.m. (EST). Please contact Peter Katona at AAC for more information – [email protected]
Table Talk: Shifting Perspectives - FFCO's AGM and speakers' conference

FFCO's annual general meeting and speakers' conference will be held at the Grandway Events Centre in Elora on Thursday April 13, 2023.

The members-only business meeting will begin at 8:30 am with the full program following afterwards to start at 10 a.m.

Platinum, Gold and Silver level members will receive a full voting package in the coming weeks. Nomination forms for the Board of Directors can be found below in this newsletter.
FFCO board member nominations open

Elections for the FFCO Board of Directors will take place at the Annual General Meeting which takes place immediately before the Annual Conference on April 13, 2023. Six positions on the board will be up for election.

Each voting member (Platinum, Gold or Silver members in good standing) is entitled to nominate one candidate to the board (or have one elected seat) at any given time.

Nominations include three components: a nomination form, a biography and questionnaire, and a signed copy of the director responsibilities and obligations document. All nominations must arrive at the Farm & Food Care Ontario office by email by Friday, March 24, at 5 p.m. Send via email to [email protected]
2023 Champion Award: Call for nominees

FFCO is accepting nominations for its annual Champion Award. The award is presented to individuals, organizations or businesses who have taken initiative to help engage consumers about agriculture in our province. Nominees have used their skills to help inform consumers or correct misinformation about production practices, and done a measurable job of promoting our industry.

Nominations are to be submitted by March 11, 2023. If you know someone you think should be honoured, please review the nomination form.

Pictured: 2022 Food & Farming Champion Award winner John Drummond.
FFCO Member Forum meeting summary

On January 23, FFCO hosted the first Member Forum for 2023.
 
The morning featured a presentation from Donna Lange, Egg Farmers of Ontario on what it takes to develop and execute EFO’s campaigns like Who Made Your Eggs Today and Real Farmers Real Eggs. The key takeaway from the presentation was the amount of ongoing effort required to objectively review the impact of such work, and then to adjust campaigns along the way.
 
John Taylor of the Ontario Mutual Insurance Association gave an industry snapshot update of current challenges in farm insurance and the rising costs (and fewer offerings) of insurance products. 
 
The afternoon featured a presentation from Carolyn Stewart of Feed Ontario on how Ontario grown/raised/processed products are distributed through their network, with examples of partnerships provided by Bill MacTavish of the Food Bank of Waterloo Region and Stacey Ash of Ontario Pork on their donation programs. Egg Farmer Gary West Ontario also spoke on a program started in Oxford/Perth and Waterloo County schools to provide hard boiled eggs to students for healthy snacks.

The presentations highlighted the tremendous effort that all commodity groups and farmers are making to contribute to food security programs.

Member Forum meetings for 2023 (open to all Platinum, Gold and Silver members) will take place on June 14 and September 27.
Media training sessions open for member registration

In 2023, FFCO will return to hosting day-long, in-person media training sessions for its members. Two sessions have been scheduled for Thursday, March 30 (sold out) or Tuesday, April 4 in Guelph. The program is useful for board members and staff who speak regularly about issues related to their sectors. The day's agenda and topics will be geared towards the commodities represented by those participating.

The course will be co-facilitated by Kelly Daynard, Executive Director of Farm & Food Care Ontario and Bernard Tobin. Bernard Tobin, Real Agriculture.com's Ontario Field Editor, specializes in agriculture and food communications. He's a writer and journalist and has also worked for two of Canada's leading agricultural communications firms.

The cost is $400 per session. Space is limited to 10 people per course. If the courses fill up, additional dates will be added. Private courses are also an option for members.

Questions or to book a space, email [email protected]
Meet a Silver Member: Mushrooms Canada

Mushrooms Canada has been a member of Farm & Food Care Ontario since 2015. Year after year, we continue to see real value in our membership. The job of feeding Canadians, as well as the world, is no easy feat and it is essential that organizations like FFCO exist to help in bridging the knowledge gap around how food gets from the farm to our dinner tables. We are thrilled to be a part of impactful projects such as the Faces Behind Food campaign, in-person farm tours, Breakfast on the Farm and most importantly, the Farm Food 360 Virtual Farm Tour series. 

For many people, mushrooms are rather mysterious and consumers are curious about just how exactly mushrooms grow. One cannot drive by a field to see mushrooms growing neatly in rows and many people will never have the occasion to visit a farm, which is why Mushrooms Canada chose to work with Farm & Food Care Ontario to provide all Canadians with an opportunity to learn about mushrooms in a fun and virtual way. A picture is worth a thousand words and so a virtual 360-degree video must be worth a million words!

Mushrooms Canada is a voluntary, non-profit organization founded in 1955. Our members are dedicated to the production and marketing of fresh mushrooms in Canada. Membership includes mushroom growers, processors, spawn makers, suppliers and scientists. Mushrooms Canada advocates food safety, healthy nutrition and the proper care and handling of fresh Canadian mushrooms.  

~ Marianne Muth, Project Coordinator, Mushrooms Canada 
Become a Member

Did you know?
  • Your $350+ membership gives you access to a $50 FFCO resource credit annually?
  • Corporate members can access free training and workshops?
  • Your support makes our work possible!