Ontario Grain Farmer - September 2021

20 An update on Grain Farmers of Ontario news and events 2021 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING All farmer-members are invited to attend the 2021 Annual General Meeting (AGM) being held online via Zoom on Tuesday, September 14. The AGM will provide an update on recent activities of the organization and a review of the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. For more information and to register, go to www.gfo.ca . ANNUAL REPORT Grain Farmers of Ontario's 2021 Annual Report is available online at www.gfo.ca or you can request a printed copy by calling the office at 1-800-265-0550 and providing your mailing address. The financial statements are included in the report and these should be reviewed ahead of your attendance at the Annual General Meeting so that you can ask any questions that you may have. The report also contains information about the activities of the organization during the last fiscal year. MAGAZINE SUBSCRIPTION CHANGES Farmer-members and industry associates who have changes to their mailing address or wish to cancel their subscription to the Ontario Grain Farmer magazine can contact Phaedra McIntosh, Grain Farmers of Ontario database coordinator, atpmcintosh@gfo.ca or 519-767-4130. PRIVACY POLICY Grain Farmers of Ontario is committed to responsibly collecting, using, and disclosing information in compliance with the provincial Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act and the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act. When you voluntarily provide us with any information, we will NOT rent, sell, or otherwise disseminate your information to ANY third party. ONTARIO WHEAT HARVEST QUALITY The Ontario Wheat Harvest Quality program results are now available. Go to https://gfo.ca/ market-development/exporters/ontario-wheat- quality/to find results from winter and spring wheat classes. Grain Farmers of Ontario’s joint venture with SGS Canada, Inc., the Grains Analytical Testing Laboratory (GATL), conducted this year‘s wheat harvest survey program. The program analyzes samples from across the province and wheat classes to help create a picture of each year’s harvest quality. The results are shared with millers and bakers as an initiative of the Market Development department to promote the increased usage of Ontario wheat. GRAIN FARMERS OF ONTARIO SUPPORTS VIRTUAL DIAGNOSTIC DAYS SERIES Grain Farmers of Ontario is pleased to support the 2021 Ontario Virtual Crop Diagnostic Days. This series follows the success of last year’s online videos and continues the long tradition of annual field events held at Ridgetown, Elora, and Winchester — just in a different format! A new field crop agronomy topic is presented every two weeks until October 26, 2021. Grain Farmers of Ontario farmer-members can access all content at no cost. Registration is only required if applying for CEU credits. Episodes are available at RealAgriculture.com/ontariodiagnosticdays and fieldcropnews.com . 2021 FARMER MEMBER SURVEY Grain Farmers of Ontario wants to hear from you! We are conducting a farmer-member survey from September 2021 to January 2022. The survey includes questions on demographics, member services, and the Ontario Grain Farmer magazine. A paper version of this survey was included with this magazine, but we encourage you to fill the survey out online at www.gfo.ca/survey. Complete the survey now for your chance to win great prizes! FROM THE CHAIR A Q&A with Brendan Byrne, chair of Grain Farmers of Ontario. We hear that the industry needs to be more collaborative — is Grain Farmers of Ontario actively working with other groups on key issues to have greater impact? Working with other provincial and national organizations is very important to Grain Farmers of Ontario and we actively look for collaboration opportunities. Recently, we have been working with the Ontario Federation of Agriculture on Line 5 and the carbon tax issues. We worked with Grain Growers of Canada to advocate for the signing of Bill C-206 (on-farm drying carbon tax exemption) in the summer, as well as taking a leadership role in a DON working group made up of many organizations, working with Canadian Canola Growers Association on the International Oilseeds Producers Dialogue, and bringing together our eastern Canadian grain grower groups for stronger advocacy. Strategic partnerships allow us to have a more unified voice when speaking to decision-makers, and shows an alignment and agreement in agriculture, which gives us a better position of strength to enter discussions. • Do you have a question for our chair? Email GrainTALK@gfo.ca .