A weekly press release prepared by the staff of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. If you require further information, regarding this press release, please call the Elora Resource Centre at 519-846-0941. Office hours: 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. For technical information, call the Agricultural Information Contact Centre at 1-877-424-1300 or visit the OMAFRA Website: www.omafra.gov.on.ca
NEW! GROW YOUR BOTTOM LINE – OMAFRA WORKSHOPS FOR ON-FARM FOOD SAFETY
Register Today. Food safety is no small task…
Find out how On-Farm Food Safety can positively impact your bottom line. Take advantage of OMAFRA’s workshops and get results. This one-day workshop will focus on five essential topics.
Increase your knowledge on: 1) Getting Started in Food Safety; 2) Hygiene and Sanitation; 3) Pre and Post Harvest Water Use; 4) Manure, Compost and Compost Teas and 5) Food Safety on Multi-Commodity Farms. Dates and Locations: Mar. 10, Markdale and Mar. 16, Elora . Producers: $45 plus HST; Non-Producers: $65 plus HST. To register call: 1-877-424-1300 or check the website: www.ontario.ca/foodsafety.
ENVIRONMENTAL FARM PLAN
by John C. Benham
Do you have a well that needs to be upgraded or one that needs to be abandoned and a new one drilled to replace it? If you had a fire involving your fuel storage, would you be able to prove to your insurance company that it met all the required standards? What about tree planting for a windbreak or shelterbelt?
On Wednesday, Mar. 16 an Environmental Farm Plan workshop will be held in Arthur at 10am to 3pm and will be completed Wednesday, Mar. 23. Completing the EFP workbook and having it approved, will qualify you to receive financial assistance to do improvements such as these and many more. Please don’t put off signing up since space is limited and it is already at 75% capacity.
For further information and to sign up, call John Benham at 519-846-3394.
GROWING YOUR FARM PROFITS
by John C. Benham
On Friday Mar 25, the first day of the two-day Growing Your Farm Profits will be held in the Elora OMAFRA meeting room at 9:30am. The second day will be held on Friday, Apr. 1. Lunch and refreshments will be provided at no cost. This is an opportunity for you to look into upgrading your farm business management. Such things as computer training, bookkeeping, succession planning assistance and marketing opportunities will be discussed. You will not be asked to provide any confidential information at the meeting. It is an opportunity to hear how other farmers have handled a situation that you may be experiencing. You will have the opportunity to complete a workbook similar to EFP, come up with an Action Plan and then financial assistance is available to help you in some cases, hire a consultant and take courses or attend a meeting or conference. For more information and to sign up, call John Benham at 519-846-3394.
COMING EVENTS:
Feb. 22 Linwood Agricultural Day – Linwood Community Centre, sponsored by Jones Feed Mill and the Linwood, Metzger & South West Veterinary Clinics. Each vet clinic will have a booth and vets available to talk with attendees. Refreshments and lunch will be provided. For more information, contact Paul Pletsch at Jones’ at 1-800-265-8735.
Feb. 22 Swine Liquid Feeding Association “Solutions for Success” – Registration & refreshments; exhibits start at 8:45am Program runs 9:30am – 3:30am at the Arden Park Hotel, Stratford. Cost: Members $50 and non-Members $80. This includes proceedings, a hot noon buffet lunch. Advanced registration only. Contact Marg Templeman, OMAFRA Stratford, 519-271-0354.
Feb. 23 Tie Stall Housing Design Seminar, Fire Dept. Community Hall, Mount Forest. Call the Agricultural Information Contact Centre, 1-877-424-1300/email: ag.info.omafra@ontario.ca.
Feb. 23 District #5 Sheep Association Information Meeting – Gencor, Guelph at 8pm. Dr. Rob Swackhammer will speak on improving lamb survivability. For information, contact Lene Band at 905-877-2969.
Feb. 23 & 24 Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Convention, Brock University in St. Catharines. For more details, visit the website at www.ofvc.ca.
Feb. 24 – 28 Annual Southwestern Ontario Dairy Symposium at Woodstock Fairgrounds. Watch for program details at: http://www.dairysymposium.com/index.php.
Feb. 25 – 27 4-H Ontario Conference and Annual Meeting; check www.4-HOntario.ca for more information.
Mar. 1 Grower Pesticide Safety Course, Elora. Exam starts at 10am. To register, call Ontario Pesticide Education Program at 1-800-652-8573.
Mar. 1 Wellington Federation of Agriculture, monthly Board meeting at OMAFRA Boardroom, 6484 Cty. Rd #7, Elora. Note 7:30pm winter start time. For information contact Secretary, Lisa Hern at 519-848-3774 or email: jplh@golden.net.
Mar. 1 – 3 Ontario Agricultural Irrigation Conference being held at the Elm Hurst Inn, Ingersoll. Contact Mary Margaret McDonald at 519-674-1500 X 63592 or email: mmcdonal@ridgetownc.uoguelph.ca.
Mar. 2 Grower Pesticide Safety Course, Guelph. Exam starts at 10am. To register, call Woodrill Farms, 519-821-1018.
Mar. 3 Waterloo Federation of Agriculture, monthly board meeting at the St. Agatha Community Center. For information contact Secretary, Richard Cressman at 519-662-2790, or email: rcresman@sentex.net.
Mar. 8 Getting Started in Aquaculture, Alma Aquaculture Research Station, University of Guelph. Full-day workshop: key requirements of initiating/operating a fish farm. Further information: http://www.aps.uoguelph.ca/aquacentre/aquacentre/workshops.html or email: aquacntr@uoguelph.ca or phone 519-824-4120 ext 52689.
