September 2010 Edition
September 01, 2010
4-H Ontario embracing change
There’s some exciting news from the Ontario 4-H Council board of directors which recently voted in favour of lowering the starting age of 4-H members to nine years of age (prior to January 1 of the year the member joins).
The policy amendment will become effective as of January 1, 2011.
Ontario 4-H Council president Shonna Ward says, “This policy change allows the council to address three goals. The first is synergy with 4-H delivery partners across Canada. Second, it will enable younger siblings of current members to join sooner. Thirdly, it will support communities throughout Ontario with a younger entry point to outstanding youth leadership.”
A second announcement is the launch of a related 18-month pilot project called Clover Buds. During this pilot project, the 4-H Ontario staff will be identifying and selecting six community partners to run 4-H Clover Bud programs for 6-8-year-olds.
With existing programs located in other provinces and the United States to mentor from, organization representatives say it was time to launch and evaluate this alternate program option on a pilot project basis.
These are two examples of 4-H Ontario embracing change through a clear and focused strategic plan. The plan is designed to enable the organization to achieve its five-year goal of welcoming 10,000 members and 3,000 volunteers to the program.
The organization’s 100th anniversary will be marked in 2015, so the organization is inviting everyone to explore 4-H in advance of this historic occasion. For those interested in volunteering their services by running clubs in their own communities – whether in rural Ontario or the suburbs of a downtown urban centre – they can call 1-877-410-6748.
About 6,000 youth 10-21 years-old and a grass network of 1,800 trained, screened volunteers pledge their Head, Heart, Hands and Health as members of these clubs. The projects encompass agriculture, food, health and the environment, with 4-H Ontario’s Learn To Do By Doing clubs, camps and conferences boasting a 95-year history in developing competence, confidence, connection, character and caring within rural and urban youth.
For more information call 1-877-410-6748 or email inquiries@4-hontario.ca. The website is www.4-hontario.ca.
Fall FarmStart Explorer Courses
Exploring Your New Farm Dream: Is Starting an Agricultural Business Right for You? Thinking about starting your own farm business? Want to learn more about the opportunities and realities of farming?
This course is designed to help aspiring farmers learn what it takes to start and manage a commercial agricultural business, and decide whether this is the right path.
The course includes 4 evening sessions and one day of farm tours.
Grey Bruce Course
Where: Georgian College, Owen Sound
When: Tuesdays (6:30 pm – 9:30 pm), Sept 14, Oct 5, Oct 12
Farm tour: Saturday, October 2 (full day)
For more information: details to follow later this summer http://www.georgianc.on.ca/campuses/owensound/
GTA Course
Where: Brampton Fairgrounds (12942 Heart Lake Road)
When: Tuesdays (6:30 pm – 9:30 pm), Sept 28, Oct 5, Oct 19, Oct 26
Farm tour: Saturday, Oct 16 (full day)
Cost: $300
For more information and to apply visit: http://www.farmstart.ca/explorer.
If you have questions contact Gayl at gayl@farmstart.ca or call (519) 836-7046 x105
Eastern Ontario Course
There will be at least one course held in Eastern Ontario in the near future. Stay tuned for more information.
*This training opportunity is eligible for cost-share funding through the Growing Forward Business Development for Farm Businesses program in Ontario. For more information on program requirements, call 1-877-424-1300 or visit: http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/about/growingforward/busdev.htm
NFU launches Campaign for New Farmers
The current dominant model of agriculture has pushed out young people, say representatives of the National Farmers Union. This is no mystery to the few young farmers who are left in Canada.
The Campaign for New Farmers is the NFU’s reaction to an industry that has left the sector with few options.
The NFU says it’s about alternatives; about creating a voice and a vision for farming in the future; about reclaiming control over resources and contributing to a food system in a way that makes people proud to be farmers; about using creativity, resources and all the courage that can be mustered up to revive rural Canada and give hope to all people.
The Campaign for New Farmers is a network, a support system, a policy watchdog, and a resource for all those who are out there getting their hands dirty as they offer up alternatives.
The Campaign for New Farmers was officially launched in Ottawa, Ontario at the NFU Annual Convention in November, 2009. The idea stemmed from a summer meeting of NFU youth members from across the country who gathered together in Battersea, Ontario to exchange ideas and organize for the future.
The Campaign for New Farmers is a volunteer organization and has limited resources. Those who would like to donate time, expertise or funding to the Campaign for New Farmers, should please email cfnf2010@gmail.com.
Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show set to go
The country’s largest agricultural trade show and an important event for both new and established farmers – Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show – is slated for September 14-16 at Canada’s Outdoor Park in Woodstock, Ontario.
In addition to the programs, displays, demonstrations and innovative equipment that have made this a must-attend event, this year’s agenda showcases a number of new features including:
- A biogas demonstration
- A tillage equipment demonstration
- Precision seeding demonstration featuring automatic row shut-off
- Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) reading demonstrations
- Sheepdog demonstrations
An annual event that attracts visitors and participants from around the world, the show boasts more than 43,000 attendees and 700 exhibitors. It also has the Where Farmers Meet club.
More information is available by calling 519-822-2890 or 1-800-563-5441 (toll-free), faxing 519-829-1777, emailing info@outdoorfarmshow.com or visiting the website at http://www.outdoorfarmshow.com.
Innovation news from Nova Scotia
The Innovation Fund is a program that supports and promotes a market-oriented, consumer-driven agriculture industry by investing in initiatives that will improve the competitiveness and profitability of Nova Scotia’s agriculture, agri-food and agri-based product sector. The objectives of the Fund for 2010-2011 are to:
- support the development and adaptation of new and leading agricultural technologies;
- improve on-farm and post-farm profitability and competitiveness;
- accelerate the pace of innovation, and advance the commercialization and adoption of agri-based technologies, products and processes;
- increase industry’s ability to anticipate, identify, develop and capture new market opportunities.
Three categories are available under the Innovation Fund as part of the Canada-Nova Scotia Bilateral Agreement under Growing Forward, the policy framework for agriculture.
The Innovation Fund Category A: Technology Development 2000 supports technological research opportunities identified by the agriculture and agri-food industry. In addition, this category aims to increase industry’s awareness of the value of research and encourage industry’s participation in support of research.
The Innovation Fund Category B: Supporting the Innovation Capacity of Farmers funding is available to assist farmers, groups of farmers and commodity associations to support investments in the development or adaptation of technical innovations in primary agriculture, which contribute to on-farm profitability and competitiveness. Critical to the effectiveness of this category will be the dissemination of knowledge gained through these projects. Under this initiative, emphasis will be placed on smaller-scale projects not funded through existing programming.
Through the Innovation Fund Category C: Innovation and Commercialization of New Opportunities for Agri-Based Products, supports unique, emerging opportunities that are innovative, timely, have a strong potential for commercialization and that will be of substantial benefit to Nova Scotia’s agriculture, agri-food or agri-based products sector.
This category provides support to advance a technology that is approaching market readiness, as well as for pre-research activities to investigate and develop potential new innovations (e.g., products, processing, etc.), markets, and business opportunities.
The Canada-Nova Scotia Growing Forward Agreement is cost-shared 60:40 between the federal and provincial governments. Under the Agreement, the federal government will contribute $14.74 million over five years toward non-business risk management programming in the Province of Nova Scotia.
Through the partnership with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and the funding for programming under Growing Forward, the Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture is positioned to provide assistance in support of a profitable and competitive agriculture industry.
For more information log on to:http://bing.search.sympatico.ca/?q=Innovation%20fund%202010-2011%20Nova%20Scotia%20agriculture&mkt=en-ca&setLang=en-CA
or call the Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture, Programs and Business Risk Management Division at 902-893-6510 or 1-866-844-4276.
Listed below are some important links for new/beginning farmers. Check them out!
National:
Ontario:
Alberta:
New Brunswick:
Nova Scotia:
The Nova Scotia Ministry of Agriculture is developing a variety of resources under the THINKFARM program to meet the needs of beginning farmers in Nova Scotia. Visit http://www.gov.ns.ca/agri/thinkfarm/ to find links and information including:
British Columbia:
Saskatchewan:
Manitoba:
Prince Edward Island:
Quebec:
