GFO Newsletter for December 2012
GET THE LATEST NEWS FROM GRAIN FARMERS OF ONTARIO
Grains in Action
Grains in Action is a three day course for young agricultural leaders to gain knowledge, new experiences and build relationships. The group will visit end-use facilities to gain a better understanding of the value chain of corn, soybeans and wheat.
Grains in Action participants will leave the 2013 course with a deeper appreciation of all viewpoints of the grain industry- from the perspective of the grower, buyer, and end user. They will also establish valuable relationships with peers from across all 15 Grain Farmers of Ontario Districts, creating a strong support network for the future.
The 2013 courses will be held January 28 – 31 and February 19 – 22. If you, or someone you know, are interested in participating in the program, contact Valerie Gilvesy, Grain Farmers of Ontario Member Relations Coordinator, at 226-979-5581 or vgilvesy@gfo.ca. •
SWAC Satellite Locations
Grain Farmers of Ontario and John Deere will jointly be hosting four satellite locations for the 2012 Southwest Agricultural Conference (SWAC).
Walkerton – Huron Tractor Ltd
6 Durham Rd, RR4, Bruce Rd 3, Walkerton
Date: Friday, January 4, 2013
Time: 9:00am – 4:00pm
Admission: $25
Omemee – Green Tractors Inc
114 Heights Road, Omemee
Date: Friday, January 4, 2013
Time: 9:00am – 4:00pm
Admission: $25
Earlton – Green Tractors Inc
271429 Poupore Road, Earlton
Date: Friday, January 4, 2013
Time: 9:00am – 4:00pm
Admission: $25
St. Isidore – Green Tech
3905 Corbeil Road, St. Isidore
Date: Friday, January 4, 2013
Time: 9:00am – 4:00pm
Admission: $25
Lunch will be provided at all locations as well as on-site presentations from John Deere and Grain Farmers of Ontario. The following sessions will be broadcast live from SWAC and questions can be submitted in real-time to the presenters.
Session 1: Doing It Right Every Time
Session 2: 30% Residue: Science, Steel, Emotion
Session 3: 90 Bushel Soybeans
Session 4: Feature Speaker: Stephen Lewis, Feeding the World
Session 5: Glyphosate’s Unintended Consequences
Session 6: Market Outlook 2013
To register, please contact Anita D’Sylva at adsylva@gfo.ca or 519-767-4126 by December 14.
For information about SWAC visit: www.southwestagconference.ca or www.gfo.ca/swac.•
District Meetings 2012
Your 2013 annual District Grain Farmers of Ontario meetings have been called. The meetings are called to receive reports and elect the District Voting Delegates and Grain Farmers of Ontario Directors for the coming year and also to conduct such other business as may properly come before the annual meeting. Please note the date and location of your local meeting and plan to attend. All corn, soybean and wheat producers are welcome. For the complete schedule visit http://www.gfo.ca/AboutUsMain/GFOEventCalendar/DistrictGrainCommitteeMeetings.aspx. •
Farm Innovation Program needs renewal
Many projects funded through the Farm Innovation Program (FIP), a $12 million program that was part of Growing Forward, have now been completed. Grain Farmers of Ontario is optimistic that a renewal of FIP will be considered in Growing Forward 2 because of the tremendous impact it has on Ontario agriculture.
To date, a total of $2.3 million has been allocated to corn, soybean and wheat projects through FIP; and Grain Farmers of Ontario has used 100% of this allocation to fund a total of 29 projects. Some of the outcomes of the grain focused projects include the Corn Production Calculator, fact sheets about managing soybean cyst nematode (SCN), long term tillage and rotation trials, and a DNA barcode database of nearly 300 weeds of agriculture in Ontario.
The goal of FIP has been to increase the development, adaptation, assessment, and adoption of on-farm innovative technologies that help agricultural producers respond to changing demands. Each of the projects focused on real farm issues. New recommendations, or modifications to current production practices, have been developed that can significantly improve crop protection and yields for Ontario’s grain farmers.
Grain Farmers of Ontario is currently advocating for the renewal of FIP in Growing Forward 2. The funding is critical to continue conducting leading edge research dedicated to corn, soybean, and wheat production in our province. •
Taking Field Crop Variety Development to the next level
An initial review of research Letters of Intent (LOI) for a new Science Cluster is currently underway by the Canadian Field Crop Research Alliance (CFCRA). LOI were accepted through the end of October from researchers across Canada. Their projects were required to have the goal of either directly developing varieties for Canadian farmers or conducting supporting research toward genetic improvements.
Targeted for the recently announced five year policy framework Growing Forward 2 that will begin in March 2013, this Science Cluster will advance breeding in six key Canadian field crops: Canada-wide soybean and grain corn, and eastern Canadian winter wheat, spring wheat, oat and barley.
The CFCRA is an alliance of provincial farm organizations and industry partners founded in 2010 with an interest in advancing the genetic capacity of field crops in Canada. As a member of the alliance, Grain Farmers of Ontario is helping with this two stage review process. The organization believes it is important for our members to continue to support the development of public breeding programs because of the significant value they add to our industry.
This CFCRA Science Cluster is also an opportunity for Grain Farmers of Ontario to pursue a continued funding partnership with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) that will advance crop genetics through breeding and variety development. It will build on the success of our $5.7 million field crop breeding funding partnership with AAFC over the past three years under the original Growing Forward framework.
Projects selected are scheduled to begin next year and continue until 2018. •
Updates to SellSmart
SellSmart, Grain Farmers of Ontario’s mobile application for grain prices, has been updated. Ten new locations have been added: LAC in Elgin, Alliston and Kintore; Great Lakes Grain in McGregor, Haggerty, Straffordville and Milverton and Thompsons in Coatsworth, Pontypool and Rodney. The elevators have also been added to the Farm Market News which is available on the Marketing page of www.gfo.ca. •
