In the news
NEWS BITES THAT MATTER
Grain Farmers of Ontario joins the Vegetable Oil Industry of Canada
This month, Grain Farmers of Ontario joined the Vegetable Oil Industry of Canada (VOIC) organization. This national not-for-profit industry group represents 52,000 oilseed growers across Canada, seed developers, oilseed processors and suppliers of fats and oils to the food industry, and makers of oilseed-based food products such as margarine, shortenings, cooking oil, salad dressing, mayonnaise and dessert toppings.
VOIC promotes Canadian vegetable oil interests (including international interests that trade in Canada) – from farm to fork – with governments, media, opinion formers, health care professionals and consumers in order to:
- Raise awareness of the healthfulness of vegetable oils, vegetable oil-based food products and products made with vegetable oil among Canadian consumers and influencers of consumers’ opinion to drive product demand
- “Clean up” domestic regulatory barriers and policies to eliminate barriers to the vegetable oil industry in order to spur innovation and growth
- Encourage the federal government to adopt a stronger open market position in terms of internal and international trade. •
2012 Young Leaders Being Sought
Grain Farmers of Ontario is now accepting applications for the 2012 American Soybean Association and DuPont Young Leader Program. GFO will sponsor one couple or individual from Ontario to participate in this training opportunity.
The goal of the program is to train the next generation of leaders for the North American soybean industry.
The 2012 class of Young Leaders and their spouses will participate in a challenging and educational leadership experience at Pioneer headquarters in Johnston, Iowa in the winter.
The training will be completed next February in Nashville, Tennessee at the Commodity Classic.
All young Ontario soybean growers are encouraged to apply. If you would like to apply, contact Valerie Gilvesy at the GFO office at 226-979-5581 or at vgilvesy@gfo.ca.
The deadline for applications is August 5, 2011 and the application form is available at www.gfo.ca/youngleadersprogram. •
Crop Sen$e date change
Due to the late spring planting, the dates of the Crop Sen$e conference have been changed to August 18 to 20, 2011. Offered by 4-H, Crop Sen$e is focused on the business management side of cropping and it is open to 17 to 25 year olds. During the conference, topics such as marketing, production, financial management, human resources, social responsibility, succession planning, business structure and business strategy will be covered. These topics will be addressed through a variety of guest speakers, farm tours and presentations.
Applications are available at www.4-hontario.ca and the deadline to register is July 15, 2011. The event will be held at the University of Guelph Ridgetown Campus.•
