A weekly report prepared by the staff of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA). If you require further information, regarding this report, call the Elora Resource Centre at 519-846-0941. Office hours: 8:30am to 4:30pm. For technical information, call the Agricultural Information Contact Centre at 1-877-424-1300 or visit the OMAFRA website: www.ontario.ca/omafra
Beef carcass 101
Join us on August 25 for this one day course focused on increasing your knowledge of carcass fabrication & utilization, assurance programs, carcass data and improving beef quality. Industry specialists are collaboratively delivering this program and represent Beef Farmers of Ontario (BFO), Beef Improvement Opportunities (BIO), Certified Angus Beef (CAB), Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) and the University of Guelph (U of G). Location for this course will be at the University of Guelph, Animal Sciences Building – Meat Wing.
Agenda items include:
– Carcass basics: Dr. Ira Mandell, Meat Scientist, U of G;
– Evaluating live cattle for carcass characteristics: Brian Pogue,beef lead OMAFRA;
– Carcass cabrication and ctilization: Dr. Phil Bass, meat scientist, CAB;
– Grading system, primals, lean meat yield: Gary Hasson, Canadian Grading Agency and Brian McDougall, meat wing coordinator, U of G;
– Assurance programs: Dan Ferguson, manager of producer relations, BFO;
– Sharing information: Mike McMorris, general manager, BIO;
– Hitting a quality target: Dr. Larry Corah, special projects, CAB;
– Carcass data exploitation: Brian Pogue, OMAFRA; and
– Creating Canadian beef brand loyalty: Joyce Parslow, director, consumer relations, Canada Beef.
For further details contact: Brian Pogue at brian.pogue@ontario.ca or 519-826-5106 or Dan Ferguson at dan@ontariobeef.com or 905-375-8551. Limited enrollment so register soon via email to Penny Laythorpe at playthorpe@bridgingintelligence.com or call 519–767–2665 ext. 302 or 1-855-246-2333.
Registration fee is $100.
New signs at markets show where local wines are sold
This year, the province celebrated its second annual Local Food Week reminding Ontarians to sample and support local food, including Vintners Quality Alliance (VQA) wines are available at farmers’ markets.
As part of the province’s strategy to increase awareness of the good things that are grown, made and harvested in Ontario, the province launched a first-of-its-kind pilot program last year to allow VQA wines to be sold at farmers’ markets. Since launching in 2014, 78 wineries and 172 farmers’ markets across the province have participated in the pilot program, with sales of more than $1 million dollars.
Now that the pilot project is in its second year, Ontarians can find world class VQA wines at their local farmers’ market by looking for a purple VQA sign, or by using the mobile-friendly map to find a market participating in the pilot.
Quick facts
– There are approximately 200 farmers’ markets and more than 145 wineries that produce VQA in Ontario;
– VQA wines are made from 100 per cent Ontario grown grapes;
– The province has implemented the VQA wines at farmers’ market pilot program through the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario to ensure that wine sales are conducted in a socially responsible manner; and
– Ontario’s agri-food sector contributes $34.8 billion to the GDP and supports 780,000 jobs, about one in every 9 jobs.
Coming events
Aug. 7 to 9 – Drayton Fair. For more information, contact 519-638-5093 or www.draytonfair.com.
Aug. 22 – Grand River Fair and Exhibition (Dairy Show and Tractor Pull). For more information contact 519-846-8879 or info@grandriveragsociety.com.
Aug. 21 to 23 – Palmerston Fair. For more information check www.palmerstonfair.com.
