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page photo: Though they’re never quite sure exactly when it’ll happen, Richard Bering and his White Meadows Farms team were busy last month getting things ready for
season. ~ Luke Edwards photos
The sweetest of seasons is on tap at White Meadows Farms
By Luke Edwards
Oh how a year can change things.
“Last year we started tapping on Jan. 27, which was the earliest I think we’ve ever done,” said Richard Bering, who runs White Meadows Farms on Effingham Road in rural St. Catharines.
Fast forward to this year and a mid-January cold snap meant it would still be a while yet before the sap was running. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, as Bering is also undergoing a substantial line replacement project involving nearly a kilometre of line.
Starting a little later isn’t a huge issue. The more pressing concern, weather wise, is what happens when the sap does start running. That’s when he’ll be hoping for warm stretches with a couple colder, freezing days mixed in.
“The goal is to have it kind of ready for the end of January,” he said. And then they play the waiting game.
The Bering family is nearing 90 years as stewards of the White Meadows property. They settled on the land in 1937, with first Bering owner Adam raising dairy cattle, cash crops and juice grapes. It got its name from the daisies that would fill the meadow near the house with white every summer.
In 1940, Adam harvested some sap and made maple syrup, in part for fun, and in part for his son Gasper. That started a tradition that was passed on to Gasper, and then Murray, and now Richard.
“It’s really meaningful to be connected in some fashion to the same property. My grandfather, my great grandfather, they walked those paths in the forest,” Bering said.
“The land stewardship is a different mentality when it’s so long term.”
A long term mentality is a good thing in the maple syrup industry, where trees don’t get tapped until they’re 40 years old, and aren’t really in their prime for another 40 after that. Though his young children, at 10 and 12, are primarily confined to the job of taste testers at this point, Bering said he’s always aware the decisions he’s making now will have effects long into the future.
Education is a big part of White Meadows. The spring sugar bush treks are set to begin March 1, and provide an opportunity for visitors to learn about maple syrup, what goes into processing the sweet delicacy, and for Bering and his team to clear up some misconceptions such as why there are different colours of maple syrups and what that means in terms of taste and sugar.
“At the beginning of the season, when it’s colder, the syrup is a very light color. We call it golden, and then as the weather gets warmer, the syrup is darker,” Bering said.
“So what happens is the type of sugar in a sap is changing as the weather changes. and the different types of sugar react differently in the boiling process.”
Thanks in part to his wife Amanda, who helps run the farm and conveniently has a master’s degree in molecular biology, Bering is able to explain why the colours differ. Essentially it all boils down - so to speak - to the maillard reaction and the breakdown of different complex sugars.
It has nothing to do with how long or how hot they boil the sap, a common misunderstanding.
Continued to page A4
Front
the 2025 maple
Richard Bering said visitors are often surprised when they learn it takes five pails of maple sap to create a one-litre jug of syrup..
Both the on- and off-farm shops run by White Meadows Farms focus on education as well as sales, offering up a mixture of maple related goodies.
Spring sugar bush treks begin next month at White Meadows
Continued from page A3
Bering resists sharing what his favourite colour is, lest he sway the public opinion. However, he does point out that each colour has a certain area where they shine. The darker, amber syrups are often well suited to cooking, while on the other end of the spectrum, the lighter ones are used as toppings or to make maple specific products like maple butter.
The boiling process that creates maple syrup has a long history, and remains essentially unchanged from the days when Indigenous people first created maple syrup.
However, that doesn’t mean everything has been static.
“There’s been a tremendous amount of improvement in the tools and supplies that are available to us now,” he said.
Better lines that can withstand the summer sun and winter cold mean they can leave them out year round and still last 15 years. New spiles have check valves that prevent sap that has gone into the line from being sucked back into the tree during a cool night. This prevents bacteria that could be in the line from infecting the tree.
Climate change has also affected them, Bering said, with seasons fluctuating more. Last year’s record breaking Jan. 27 start wasn’t terribly surprising, as the season is extending on both ends, with the start being as early as Jan. 27 or as late as mid-March.
That means sometimes Bering is in a rush to get things set up, only to have to wait for the weather to turn.
“It’s kind of just all messed up in both directions,” he said.
Since it’s such a long-term process, there’s not a lot people like Bering can do. Ensuring the holes in the trees are clean is one way to help.
“So if we could keep the hole as clean as possible, it’ll stay productive as long as possible,” he said.
200+ Exhibitors, over 100 industry speakers, a community full of fellow growers to network with, all under one roof.
In recent years White Meadows has opened two off-farm shops in Niagara Falls and Niagara-on-the-Lake. Bering said they maintain a similar focus of education at the shops, and have been received well. With so many international visitors coming to Niagara each year, he said seeing people learn about maple syrup and often try it for the first time at one of their locations is one of his favourite parts of the job.
Those interested in visiting the farm for the spring sugar bush trek can book tickets online at whitemeadowsfarms.com. More information on the business, their offerings, and the two off-farm shops can also be found there.
ONTARIO FRUIT AND VEGETABLE CONVENTION
FEBRUARY 19–20, 2025
NIAGARA FALLS CONVENTION CENTRE
Niagara’s upcoming plowing match gets royal assent from the Queen of the Furrow
By Luke Edwards
Usually plowing and a long rain don’t go too well together. But plowing and a long reign? Well, that’s much more acceptable.
The reign in this case is the longstanding Queen of the Furrow program, which began in 1960 and is an ongoing tradition of the International Plowing Match. Each year young women from all corners of the province compete to be the queen, showing off their skills, both in front of a microphone and on top of a tractor.
Taylor Legge is the current Queen, having won last year’s competition at the Lindsey International Plowing Match. She grew up on a beef feedlot of 1,000 head in Bruce County, and said the months since she was named Queen of the Furrow have been busy, but completely worth it.
“I’ve enjoyed this role a lot so far…I want to focus my efforts on marketing in more urban areas of Niagara to get more people to come out,” she said.
A big part of her job as Queen of the Furrow is to promote the following year’s match, which she’s been doing by visiting events and talking to people about the plowing match, its history, and why the event is relevant. This fall, Niagara will be hosting its first IPM since 1926, when it comes to the West Niagara Fairgrounds.
As a passionate ag advocate, much of it comes naturally to Legge. However, she admits driving around in the Queen of the Furrow car that each winner gets to drive for a year, and donning her sash and crown helps get the conversation going.
“The ground and sash do a lot of the heavy lifting for me, because people see it and they’re kind of drawn and then you can tell your story once you get them there,” she said.
Kay Wilson brought the competition to the match more than 60 years ago. She saw a similar competition at an event south of the border, and thought they should replicate something like it at the IPM.
“So in 1960 in Elgin they had the first competition. and it’s been going ever since, except for COVID, of course,” said Sheila Marshall, who now helps organize the contest.
Competitors are interviewed and must give a speech on an agricultural topic, while also showing their skills with a plow.
“The girls are judged on appearance and comportment. They’re judged on their interview, their speech, and plowing, so all the girls have to do it,” said Marshall.
Finalists are picked on the Friday of the match and they must answer an impromptu question. Legge’s question was about the biggest issue on the minds of farmers, and how she would talk to them about it.
“Which is super hard to think of on the spot…but I probably had enough points to tide me over before because I don’t remember doing a very good job,” she said with a laugh.
Despite the tough question at the end, Legge said she loved every minute of the competition. The Queen of the Furrow has attracted as many as 30 competitors in the past, but now it’s more in the neighbourhood of 15 or so. Still, Legge said they’re 15 of the most interesting and passionate women in agriculture that Ontario has to offer.
“The speeches are probably the best part because you are allowed to talk about
anything agriculturally that you want and it really showcases the talent and skill of these women,” she said. “A lot of them are experts in industry and are primary producers and they always talk about really cool things. I learned something from everybody.”
The competitors spend a ton of time together during the competition, and Legge said she made some really close friends. In the months before the 2025 IPM, she plans to host the Queen hopefuls for a few events to help prepare them and develop that same kind of camaraderie.
Sarah Keizer is a former Ontario competitor and North Niagara Queen, and she said Legge’s
experience reminded her of her competition days.
“We were all 4-Hers so it’s hanging out with people like you,” she said.
The competition, and plowing match in general, will help showcase a part of Niagara’s agriculture community that often gets overlooked, she said.
“We’re just known for being wine country. And personally, as much as I love that aspect, there’s more to the Niagara region than just wineries and breweries,” she said. “And I think that gets kind of swept under the rug a lot…don’t maybe be wrong, we have some nice wines, but there’s a lot more.”
When the International Plowing Match returns to Niagara for the first time in a century, one of the popular events will be the Queen of the Furrow contest. The current queen, Taylor Legge, will be touring the province in the coming months to promote the IPM. She’s pictured here (right) with Sarah Keizer, a former Ontario competitor and North Niagara queen. ~ Luke Edwards photo
Queen of the Furrow showcases young female leaders in agriculture
Continued from page A5
Legge receives all kinds of questions while she’s performing her regal duties, and it depends on the situation. After initially wanting to get into meteorology - a childhood on the farm primed her for an interest in weather - she switched to crop sciences, which she’s currently studying at Guelph University. Given that school’s heavy agriculture focus, the Queen of the Furrow car often grabs some attention.
But with her focus on getting urban people out to the match so they can learn a bit about agriculture, she said she also gets a lot of more fundamental questions about farming.
One of them is the basic value of plowing.
“Plowing gets a bad rap. And, as someone who studies soil science pretty extensively, I can’t lie. Plowing’s not a great practice on a commercial level,” she said.
YOU
However, there’s two things she points out. The first is that whether they plow or not, farmers in Ontario care about the land. And the second is that the match isn’t just about plowing.
“What’s really important is distinguishing the tradition that’s rooted in the match and what we do here, and that all the people who compete are really fantastic land stewards. It really is about the tradition and the community involved,” she said.
“So people ask me ‘oh, are you a plowing promoter?’ Well, I’m a promoter of good farming practices, but I’m also a promoter of tradition.”
This year’s match runs from Sept. 16 to 20 in Grassie. There will be five full days of plowing, as well as a ton of agricultural fun, entertainment, vendors, music, food and more.
For more information visit plowingmatch.org. Those interested in volunteering can email ipm2025@ plowingmatch.org.
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2024 yields show Ontario grain production has come a
By Luke Edwards
Last year Ontario’s grain growers gave 110 per cent, literally.
Well, for two out of the three main crops, at least. For soybeans it was only 109 per cent.
Yield results from last year were presented at the annual general meeting for district 6 of the Grain Farmers of Ontario. And while there was much consternation throughout the day about potential tariff wars, upcoming elections and the carbon tax, there weren’t any complaints about last year’s harvest.
“I think Ontario agriculture has just done a fantastic job,” said John Hussack, an agronomist with Agricorp.
Provincially, both soft red winter wheat and corn reporting came in at 110 per cent of historical averages. Wheat surpassed 97 bushels an
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acre, while corn was just short of 199 bushels per acre. Soybeans, meanwhile, had an average
yield of 53.38 bushels per acre, 109 per cent of the historical average across the province.
Across the board the numbers were also good locally. District 6 covers Brant, Haldimand, Hamilton, and Niagara, and each region surpassed the province’s already lofty averages for wheat, corn and soybeans.
“It’s been a while since Haldimand was above the provincial average in soybean yield,” said Hussack.
That was in large part thanks to an ideal fall, said Steve Twynstra, GFO executive member, relieving some concerns brought on by a late, wet spring.
“October saved our bacon,” he said.
Twynstra pointed out the importance of the province’s grain farmers, who provide 90,000 jobs while generating over $4.1 billion in production value and over $27 billion in economic output each year.
Agronomist John Hussack said grain yields were quite high both locally and provincially last year. ~ Luke Edwards photo
Farmers Lung can be an often overlooked condition
By Luke Edwards
Often thought of as the cause of little more than a temporary irritant, the musty air many farmers contend with on a daily basis can lead to issues far more serious than many realize.
Farmer’s Lung is a condition that should remain a concern for those in the agriculture community, even if it’s taken a backseat in recent years. If ignored, it can worsen over time and lead to a farmer losing lung capacity or even requiring a lung transplant. This winter, Workplace Safety and Prevention Services sent out a post to raise awareness of the risks.
Ryan Dick, a health and safety consultant for WSPS, compiled a resource sheet of information from various sources outlining what farmer’s lung is, how it affects people and how to mitigate exposure.
“Take those extra steps to make sure your tomorrows are going to be fine,” he said.
Dick grew up on a farm, and still runs a goat operation in eastern Ontario where he lives. Looking back, he thinks he may have been exposed to it as a child.
“I’m pretty sure I was exposed to this as a kid because I had one year where I couldn’t do anything with the hay,” he said. Like most,
he figured it was just hay fever, but now he’s not so sure.
He’s become much more aware of it now, however, and not just because his role in the health and safety world, but having seen one of his children experience similar symptoms while working on the farm.
According to a page devoted to the condition on the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety website, “farmer’s lung is an allergic disease usually caused by breathing in the dust from mouldy hay. However, dust from any mouldy crop - straw, corn, silage, grain, or even tobacco - can also cause Farmer’s Lung.”
While there’s a seeming lack of awareness as well as a dearth of recent research into farmer’s lung, Dick’ resource sheet offered up some information that could help.
Late winter to early spring seems to be when issues with farmer’s lung peak, he said, which is when hay has had time to become mouldy and bottom layers are being fed.
Like many conditions, the early stages of farmer’s lung seem relatively innocuous, with symptoms having been described as similar to a nagging cold.
However, if ignored it can eventually cause permanent lung
damage. As it worsens, a farmer might begin to notice shortness of breath that makes strenuous work more difficult. It can get to the point where something as simple as getting out of a chair is a challenge.
Other symptoms include: fever, chills, a dripping nose, irritating and harassing cough, blood-streaked sputum, difficult breathing with a tightness in the chest, crackling breathing, muscular pain and depression.
Oftentimes farmers will just assume it’s the flu or a cold and let the symptoms run their course. However, even a visit to a doctor may not yield a farmer’s lung diagnosis since the farmer might not connect their illness to their work, and the doctor may not think to ask.
“It’s so difficult to diagnose,” he said.
Symptoms of an acute farmer’s lung attack can linger as long as two weeks, but usually decrease after 12 hours. Severe attacks can last 12 weeks.
If a farmer is continually exposed to large amounts of mouldy dust and has several acute attacks over a period of years, they can develop a chronic form of farmer’s lung. This can lead to increasing shortness of breath with occasional mild fever and usually a significant loss of weight with general lack of energy. This can last for months and is also marked by permanent lung damage.
Dick said there isn’t much information on how many people in Canada suffer from farmer’s lung, however it is most common in regions with wet weather at harvest time. It’s also more common on dairy farms, “especially those not equipped with automated equipment for handling hay or feed,” according to the CCOHS.
However, the organization pointed out it can affect a wide variety of people, including: grain handlers, stable employees, poultry workers, attendants of zoo and circus animals and pet shop workers. Even city people who occasionally visit stables can be at risk
Farmers working with loose hay out in the field have a relatively low risk. However, they can quickly inhale large amounts of dust when working with hay in a confined space.
Fortunately, there are best practices that can reduce risk. And in many cases, these practices fit in with other efforts to improve the overall operation of the farm.
Avoiding crop spoilage is the first step in reducing the risk, Dick said. Other tips include: drying wet hay, grain and crops at harvest (an effective but often challenging solution, Dick admits), storing hay with a high risk of spoilage in silage instead of bales, ventilating buildings that have a lot of dusty material, mechanizing chores that involve handling hay and feed, wetting down barns and stables before cleaning them to prevent the spores from becoming airborne, and finally, the use of properly fitted respirators.
The natural evolution of farming practices has helped in some ways. Moving to larger bales that are handled primarily by tractors reduces the risk of contact, for instance.
“Overall we’re handling the hay less, we know how to store it better,” he said.
Dick encourages farmers and those who work on farms to consider adopting practices to reduce the risk of breathing in those damaging spores. WSPS has a resource hub for farmer’s lung on its website, wsps.ca.
Advancements in best practices can reduce the risk of farmer’s lung, but operators should still be aware of the risks mouldy hay can present to long term health. ~ Luke Edwards photo
People and plan in place to guide future of GFO and District 6
By Luke Edwards
A new group of delegates have been acclaimed for District 6 of the Grain Farmers of Ontario, as the overall organization launches a new strategic plan.
Both were unveiled at the annual general meeting for the district - which covers Niagara, Haldimand, Hamilton and Brant - held last month in Caledonia. The district is allowed nine delegates, as well as two alternates. That includes director Jeff Barlow, who’s currently in the midst of a two-year term.
Eight people were nominated to join Barlow as delegates, along with two nominations for alternates, meaning no elections were required and all those nominated were acclaimed. Delegates include: Barlow, Gerry Veldhuizen, Matt Beischlag, Ian Turnbull, Susan Gowan, Jay McLellan, Kevin Vanderspek, Aaron McQueen and Brad Nimijohn.
Alternates are Steve Vanderbolt and Dan Court.
Meanwhile, the GFO’s strategic plan has received an update for the first time since 2020.
“We’re really excited to launch this new strategic plan,” said Paul Hoekstra, vice president of strategic development, telling members in attendance that GFO leadership hopes it will help “create the right environment for you to be successful in your business.”
One of the changes in the new plan is removing the sustainability focus area, though Hoekstra said that didn’t reflect an abandonment of sustainable practices.
“We felt sustainability is ubiquitous across all our focus areas,” he said. And that means both economic and environmental sustainability. The plan includes four focus areas: advocacy and public trust, protecting and growing
markets, research and knowledge transfer, and governance and operations.
Though not the sexiest of topics, Hoekstra said a governance review is an important step for the organization to take.
CHICK DAYS 2025
Paul Hoekstra, vice president of strategic development for the Grain Farmers of Ontario, gave attendees to the District 6 annual meeting last month an overview of the organization’s new strategic plan. ~ Luke Edwards photo
Tariffs and taxes top of mind for District 6 grain growers
By Luke Edwards
There were a lot of questions, and not a lot of answers when members of District 6 for the Grain Farmers of Ontario met last month.
The district’s annual general meeting took place just before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump was set to return to the White House amid his threats to implement widespread tariffs on imports, including those from Canada. With tons of uncertainty, no one could predict how the coming months would unfold.
However, many of the presenters tried to ease those concerns, saying leaders are preparing themselves for everything.
“We feel we’re in the best position we can be,” said GFO executive member Steve Twynstra, adding they’ve got a team together that’s ready to tackle whatever 2025 brings their way.
Trump’s inauguration brought no immediate tariffs, but also brought little in the way of certainty, as a potential February implementation of tariffs on Canadian products was floated by the president.
District director Jeff Barlow said they were mostly in a wait-and-see mode following the inauguration, adding there’s not a lot that can be done on the government side as Canadian parliament is prorogued and the governing Liberals are looking for a new leader. However, federal counterparts to the GFO are keeping close tabs on the situation, he said.
It’s not just the bluster coming south of the border. The proposed deforestation regulation from the European Union could cut off Canadian exports. The EU placed a 12-month pause on the implementation of the regulation late last year, however, presenters stressed it hasn’t gone away.
“We believe we’re going to need to be prepared for changes in 2026,” said Dana Dickerson, director of market development and sustainability.
It’s not all doom and gloom, though. Trudy McGovern, a grain merchandiser with Richardson International, said widespread tariff wars could also make Canadian grain more attractive to markets they historically haven’t been involved with.
Nonetheless, she did acknowledge that challenge of tariffs, as well as ongoing challenges such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the fear of large strikes that could affect the transportation of goods, and seed varieties that provide yield at the cost of quality.
“It’s making marketing as a farmer really tough,” she said.
Tariffs may also, finally, force Canada to seriously look at improving the conditions for trade within the country.
“Interprovincial trade barriers are significant,” said Dan Muys, Conservative MP for Flamborough-Glanbrook.
The carbon tax also came up several times.
“We continue to fight for carbon tax exemption,” said Twynstra.
The expected federal election this spring that’s coming as a result of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s resignation and prorogation of parliament are likely to see changes to, or an outright end to, the tax. His prorogation also seems to have killed the changes to the capital gains tax,
which the Canadian Revenue Agency began collecting but the actual legislation formalizing the changes never actually got passed.
Many in the farming community had concerns over the proposed changes and what they could mean for succession planning.
District 6 covers Haldimand, Brant, Hamilton and Niagara.
Steve Twynstra was one of the presenters at the District 6 Grain Farmers of Ontario AGM, held last month in Caledonia. ~ Luke Edwards photo
Minister meets with plowing match organizers
By Niagara Farms Staff
The International Plowing Match always attracts the political class, with MPPs using the event to shake hands, hold babies, and get out and about with the rural electorate.
In fact, it’s tradition to see Queen’s Park shut down for a day during the match to allow the politicians a chance to head out for the event.
However, with months to go before the event comes to the region, the West Niagara Fairgrounds welcomed a high-ranking political visitor, as Minister of Agriculture, Food, and Agribusiness Rob Flack met with organizers and toured the ground.
Flack spoke with organizers about how planning is going for the 2025 IPM and Rural Expo, which takes place Sept. 16 to 20.
For more information on the event visit plowingmatch.org or email ipm2025@plowingmatch.org.
EXPERTS
From left: Renate McGillivray, co-chair, 2025 International Plowing Match and Rural Expo; Melvin Switzer, president, Ontario Plowmen’s Association; Rob Flack, minister of agriculture, food and agribusiness; Sam Oosterhoff, MPP Niagara West; Annette VanMarrum, president, West Niagara Agricultural Society, and Cheryl Ganann, West Lincoln mayor toured the West Niagara Fairgrounds last month. ~ Michael Zwiep photo
Steve Peters is new chair of Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers
By Jeff Helsdon, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
A familiar name and face is the new chair of the Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers. Former Elgin-Middelesex-London MPP and minister of agriculture Steve Peters started in the role on Nov. 1.
Peters’ primary responsibility will be as chairman of the board, meaning he will chair the meetings, be responsible for sub-committees, and represent greenhouse growers on Fruit and Veg Growers, and the Ontario Greenhouse Alliance.
“My role is a governance role,” Peters said. “It also has a government advocacy role too, working particularly with Richard Lee, the executive director, and following through on directions of the board and to be an advocate.”
Peters said the position needs someone with experience dealing with government abilities, who knows how to chair a meeting, and who ensures all board members have a say in any decision, much like a speaker or mayor.
He certainly has those qualifications. Before running for provincial politics, Peters was a St. Thomas councillor and mayor from 1991 to 1999. He was agriculture critic while in opposition from 1999 to 2003. He was appointed Minister of Agriculture and was then chosen by his colleagues as Speaker of the Ontario Legislature until he retired from provincial politics in 2011. Since then, he was the executive director of Food and Beverage Ontario and ran a farm market and bakery that provided opportunities for clients with the Canadian Mental Health Association running and is currently a councillor on St. Thomas city council.
“One of the reasons I applied is it’s such a dynamic and growing industry,” he said. “The potential for growth is huge. I represent OGVG on behalf of the board, for tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers. We’re seeing a lot of those same farmers have moved to strawberries. Lettuce has been another large greenhouse growth sector.”
Ontario is home to the largest concentration of greenhouses in North America, with most located in Southwestern Ontario.
“There was a lot of things that excited me about the industry,” Peters said. “Part of my role is to deal with the challenges the sector faces as well.”
He listed those challenges as carbon pricing, which has been a significant burden on the sector and added substantive costs to greenhouse production; municipal issues; ensuring enough electricity; how greenhouses can play a role in co-generation; business risk management; and possible tariffs issued by President Trump.
Richard Lee, executive director of the Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers,
said the government’s focus on tariffs seems to be on automotive, steel, and electric vehicles, but he questioned whether the government is doing enough to represent the rights of the agriculture sector.
Overall, Canadian agriculture exports are worth $40 billion annually. Of that total, the greenhouse sector contributes $1.8 billion, or 532 million kilograms of exports. The majority of that is from Ontario.
Lee also identified challenges coming from municipal governments impacting the greenhouse sector.
Steve Peters
Projects helping to develop a baseline for understanding soil health in Southern Ontario
Soil management specialist for field crops looking for farmers to help conduct research
By Luke Edwards
Jake Munroe is hoping Niagara and Haldimand farmers will help him get to the bottom of the topsoil question.
Munroe, a soil management specialist for field crops with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness, is looking to get a few more growers on board for a project he launched last year that’s studying the effects of cover crops on more clay-based soils.
“A lot of the work that I’ve done is with cover crops in the past, but I’ve not worked a lot with farmers on clay based soil, like in the Niagara region and Haldimand area,” he said.
Unlike some other projects, Munroe said his won’t require a ton of commitment from the farmer. He’s looking for farmers already using cover crop measures, and is primarily interested in corn growers, but will accept soybean grow-
ers as well. Those who participate will be asked to leave a strip of field unseeded.
“There’s very little required by the grower themselves, just work with me and leave a strip unseeded and we’ll learn together. And see what can draw across multiple fields doing the same thing.”
For participants, Munroe will come out early in the year, quantify the amount of cover crop and measure things like residue, soil temperature, moisture and seedbed impacts between cover crop and no cover crop.
“The purpose really is to draw some broader conclusions about what some of the challenges are with managing residue from cover crops, and as well to document what some of the benefits are in terms of soil moisture retention further into the season, soil structure improvement, that sort of thing,” he said.
Munroe began the project last fall and plans to continue it for a few more years.
He introduced his project at last month’s joint soil and crop associations meetings for Niagara and Haldimand. During his pre-
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sentation, Munroe also discussed a recently completed topsoil health report led by his colleague Daniel Surette. The project began in 2019 and saw researchers take more than 1,500 samples from more than 500 farms.
“The purpose really was to understand some baselines for the status of topsoil across southern Ontario,” Munroe said.
Researchers took samples at three spots on each site, typically the top part of a field, its midslope and then finally at the bottom.
Many of the findings were fairly unsurprising, though Munroe said they help provide evidence for things they’ve long believed to be true.
“There was nothing that I think people wouldn’t kind of already have a sense of, but now we have some actual data behind it,” he said, adding it builds on similar work done in Guelph and by the Greenbelt Foundation to develop a baseline understanding of soil health in the province.
480 tonnes of soil organic material (SOM).
The study also found SOM levels rise as the amount of clay in soil rises. Soil health also increased with the use of cover crops and crop rotations, especially with the addition of forage and perennials. It also looked at compaction and bulk density. Increased compaction can inhibit root development in plants. Issues with compaction were found in a range of soil textures.
“They found that bulk density had higher values than ideal across all the sub-textural classes: course, medium, and fine,” Munroe said.
Though none of this was terribly shocking, Munroe said it’s important to gather the data and, with the help of the other projects that have taken place, develop a good baseline of information. This project and others will help farmers compare apples to apples, he said.
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Some of the overarching highlights include evidence supporting the idea that topsoil levels are deeper at the bottom of the slope than the top. While the differences seem fairly small - only a difference of three centimetres from bottom to top - the report points out it’s actually significant when considering a large acreage field or farm. The loss of one centimetre of topsoil on the average Ontario farm is equal to 13,600 tonnes of top soil and
“(Farmers) are going to have an opportunity to be able to assess where they stand, not only comparing themselves against where they were in the past on their own operation, but against their neighbors, people managing similar soils.”
The report is called the Ontario Topsoil Sampling Project 2024 and can be found online.
Those who may want to take part in Munroe’s cover crop project can email him at jake.munroe@ ontario.ca.
OMAFA’s Jake Munroe is hoping to get a few more Haldimand-Niagara farmers to sign up for a research project he’s conducting on the impacts of cover crops on soil health in clay-based soils. ~ Pixabay photo
Returning to their rural roots, Haldimand 4-H sign-up day a huge success
By Luke Edwards
The pancakes were only half the draw for W.J. Heaslip Ltd last month.
In what has become an annual tradition, the Hagersville business hosted a pancake breakfast and the Haldimand 4-H Club’s sign-up day. Club president Eugene Tjepkema said they were thrilled with the turnout, as families came by to sign up for a wide variety of clubs.
“A lot of people are really excited about the farming community and being involved with it,” he said.
Clubs being offered aren’t just ag related, though the Haldimand club does boast some strong farming based clubs. The beef club is the biggest in Ontario and the field crops club excelled in competition last year, Tjepkema said.
Beyond those, though, other clubs like cooking with Guy Fieri, rabbit agility and the Cloverbuds are also popular.
“Cloverbuds has been a major success,” Tjepkema said. Designed for kids who are six to eight years old, the club is something of an introduction, teaching them what the 4-H program is all about and giving them a glimpse into some of the focused clubs so they can learn what might interest them.
Tjepkema said the interest in 4-H isn’t just for farm families. Many of the people who have moved to the area from the city have signed up. Tjepkema said it’s a great way to learn about farm and rural life, something he said city people seem to be yearning for.
In fact, he was in a similar boat, moving to the area and starting to farm in 2010. He signed his
daughter up for 4-H. He said she learned a lot from it and made lifelong friends she’s still close to even though she’s now in university.
The skills they learn extend far beyond what’s specific to their club, including confidence, critical thinking and public speaking. They’re skills kids can use later in life, no matter what they end up doing, Tjepkema said.
Registration is still open for clubs with space remaining. It costs $110 to register and first-year members are limited to two clubs. It’s open to people aged nine to 21. The club is also always looking for volunteers. Those interested can email Dawn Turnbull at volunteer@haldimand4-h.ca.
For more information visit www.haldimand4-h.ca.
The Haldimand 4-H Club boasts many popular
Agricultural Winter Fair,
Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Convention returns to Niagara
By Luke Edwards
It can happen anywhere: on the trade show floor, in one of the educational sessions, or waiting in line for a glass of wine at the reception.
With the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Convention returning to the Niagara Falls Convention Centre later this month, organizing committee chair Kevin Schooley said there’s something for everyone. Several times in the past he’s heard a grower or producer remark about the one thing they learned that paid for the entire trip.
“That one great idea, or something somebody’s doing that can make their operation better or more efficient,” he said.
The two-day event runs Wednesday, Feb. 19 and Thursday, Feb. 20. The trade show space is completely sold out with a waiting list. Schooley said they sold out the quickest in their history this year. There are 217 exhibiting companies from across Europe, North America and New Zealand, with 42 first-time exhibitors to keep the show fresh.
They also have a full slate of presentations on a variety of topics, from scientific research to labour and market updates, leadership lessons, and more. All told, there will be 44 sessions and 110 speakers from around the globe.
Schooley said the kick off party that they launched last year was a success, so they’re bringing it back. The casual evening starts at 7:45 p.m. on the Tuesday before the convention begins and gives visitors a chance to relax and chat with some of their fellow convention goers.
New this year is a family zone organizers have created to help the parents of young children attend the event. Schooley said they’ll have a nursing area as well as activities and toys to help occupy the young ones.
There’s also a Wednesday evening reception and Thursday morning Rise ‘N Shine breakfast.
A familiar name will be the guest speaker at the breakfast, as Niagara’s own Joe Pillitteri presents “The Joy of SurThriving.”
Early bird ticket pricing runs until Feb. 12. For more information, or to buy tickets, visit ofvc. ca.
Get an early start on your spring garden plants with Seedy Saturday
By Niagara Farms Staff
Let a few summer plans start to germinate this month with the help of the Master Gardeners of Niagara.
The local chapter will be hosting a Seedy Saturday event on Saturday, Feb. 15 at the Meridian Community Centre in Fonthill. Running from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., it will feature a seed sale and swap, as well as vendors, presenters, a kids area, and more.
Seedy Saturday events are a popular late winter activity that gets gardeners prepared for the upcoming growing season. Similar events are held across the country.
The Fonthill event will have hundreds of varieties for sale. Visitors are also encouraged to bring their own cleaned and dried non-hybrid seeds to swap.
Some of the bulbs and tubers available for sale include: canna lilies, Peruvian daffodils, elephant ears, gladiolas and dahlias.
There are 19 vendors planned, as well as a presentation on “nifty native plants” from Sean James.
An “ask a master gardener” clinic will also take place for those looking for some tips and advice.
Organizers are also encouraging visitors to bring a non-perishable food item, as well as their own bags to carry all the goodies they end up with.
A draw will be held for a $50 gift card to Lee Valley.
Two other Seedy Saturday events are set to take place locally the week prior, with both West Niagara and Niagara College hosting swaps on Saturday, Feb. 8. West Niagara’s runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the West Lincoln Communi-
ty Centre (177 West St.), while the college will team up with the Thorold Garden Club to host one at the teaching greenhouse at the Niagara-on-the-Lake campus. It runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The Master Gardeners of Niagara will be hosting a Seedy Saturday event on Saturday, Feb. 15, one of three local events coming up this month. ~ Pixabay photo
The Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Convention returns this month, taking place Feb. 19 and 20 at the Niagara Falls Convention Centre. ~ OFVC photo
Beyond the bees, organization aims to help all of our local pollinators
Fort Erie recently applied for Bee City designation, the third Niagara municipality to join
By Luke Edwards
An oft-used estimate suggests one in three bites of food was made possible thanks to a pollinator.
Another suggests three quarters of our major crops are either dependent on, or benefit from pollinators.
Those two figures alone should be enough to convince anyone of the importance of supporting the bees, moths, butterflies, beetles and other creatures that make up our diverse pollinator populations. And there has been progress on that front.
“It definitely feels like more people are aware of the problems faced by pollinators but also the diversity of pollinators. But I would say there’s still a long way to go,” said Jordan Phelps, Bee City Canada coordinator.
The Bee City project is nearly a decade old and is run through Pollinator Partnership Canada. It originally saw towns and cities sign up, committing to raising awareness about the importance of pollinators and also take actions to support native pollinators, namely by reversing native habitat loss and building new habitat suitable to those native pollinators.
Toronto was the first to get designated, doing so in 2016. Since then, Phelps said they’ve got about 85 signed up. Fort Erie recently voted to seek designation, making it the third community in Niagara to become a Bee City, following in the footsteps of St. Catharines and Niagara Falls.
The organization has also opened it up to schools and campuses, who can get their own designation.
Becoming a Bee City doesn’t require a huge financial commitment, there’s a nominal annual registration fee. However, it does require applicants make a commitment to raising awareness about, and supporting pollinators.
When they apply they fill out forms that outline what they’re currently doing and any initial plans they have to become more pollinator friendly. They also now receive a handbook that Bee City Canada recently released that gives applicants an overview of the importance of pollinators along with some ideas that other towns, cities, schools and campuses are doing.
Municipalities are also asked to pass a resolution at council.
Projects that towns and cities undertake vary, and can be based on their size. Larger cities like Toronto may have the resources to create a pollinator protection strategy and launch Pol-
linateTO grants program, but Phelps said even the smallest of towns can do their part.
That’s where the handbook comes in, helping give towns ideas to get them started. And Phelps said oftentimes the smaller communities are just as eager to help.
“With some of the smaller cities it’s kind of at a different scale but they’re doing really important things,” said Phelps. “Everyone can do something to help pollinators.”
Guelph has a native plant propagation program, where Phelps said they’re growing native plants and using them to replace the traditionally
Continued to page A19
Fort Erie recently became Niagara’s third Bee City designated municipality. Those that sign up commit to raising awareness about pollinators and building habitat to support the crucial species. ~ Tiffani Harrison photos
Continued from page A18
annual plants used in city flower beds that may have looked nice but didn’t provide the same pollinator support.
“You get this loop going where we’re planting the plants, collecting the seeds, growing more plants and planting those,” he said.
Ultimately, this work can also ease the burden on municipal staff, as native perennials typically require less maintenance and don’t need to be replanted every year.
“If we saw more cities doing that, it would be a huge change,” Phelps said.
One of the major education pieces the organization has worked to get out there in recent years is the importance of pollinators beyond honeybees.
“Honeybees are super important but they are non-native species. We need them for our current farming systems but there’s about 900 different species of bees native to Canada,” Phelps said. And when you add in all the moths, butterflies and other pollinators, the numbers skyrocket.
Fortunately, a lot of the efforts towns, cities and individuals can make, benefit a wide variety of those pollinators, Phelps added.
The organization will keep working to get more municipalities, schools and campuses signed up, but Phelps said they’re also encouraging municipalities to reconsider their property standards bylaws. He said there are several towns and cities whose bylaws are a little outdated and make growing native plants a challenge.
Municipalities that are interested in becoming a Bee City can visit beecitycanada.org, where they can view an e-edition of the handbook. Phelps encourages citizens who are interested in helping pollinators to gather community support, reach out to their local non-profits and then presenting to council to explain the importance of helping pollinators.
Local man to don the maple leaf in world plowing competition
March 1 breakfast fundraiser planned as Mark Vaarkamp prepares for
World Plowing Contest
By Luke Edwards
He’s well known on the Haldimand-Niagara plowing circuit, and later this year Mark Vaarkamp will attempt to reach the podium as he dons the maple leaf.
In September, Vaarkamp will compete for Canada in the World Plowing Contest, which will take place in the Czech Republic. Vaarkamp qualified for the worlds by winning the Ontario competition - held at the International Plowing Match - and then once again finishing atop the competition at the Canadian championships that were held near Kingston.
“I wasn’t expecting to win so it was a bit of a surprise,” he said about qualifying.
“I do this for fun and then all of a sudden find out you’re going to the worlds.”
Vaarkamp began plowing at the age of 13, with his neighbour, Phil Harrod, becoming his coach. They practised for a week on the family farm before going to the Oneida Plowing Match.
With the IPM in nearby Selkirk the following year, Vaarkamp practised with Oneida Plowmen’s Association member Tom Hunter before taking a week off school and competing in the IPM.
From there Vaarkamp began going to matches all over Brant, Haldimand and Niagara, joining Hunter and his three boys: Neil, Mark and Brian.
In 1999 he went to his second IPM, competing for the first time without a coach. However, Hunter was still involved, lending Vaarkamp his tractor and plow.
The following year Vaarkamp bought his first competition plow, but still needed to borrow a tractor.
Helpful neighbours like George Wodskou and Dave Murray came to his aid.
“Mark was blessed to have neighbours that helped to get him started and provide equipment so he could do what he was realizing he loved,” said his wife Rachel.
Mark agrees, saying his favourite aspect of the hobby is the people.
“It’s mostly the people, they’re a good group of guys to hang around with,” he said.
“It’s a friendly group of people and they’re all trying to do their best and they all want to see each other do better and help each other. It’s just a great environment to be in.”
Qualifying for the worlds takes a few steps. First, competitors must hit a certain point threshold at their local match, which opens up the IPM, with a chance to qualify as Ontario’s representatives at the nationals. Winners there can then go to the worlds.
Vaarkamp has qualified for the Canadians four times.
However, that’s just the start of it. Competitors must pay much of their own way. The Canadian association does have a plow, however, Vaarkamp will have to source his own tractor in the Czech Republic. He’s been making some progress on that end, and hopes to get a tractor secured soon.
The arrangement does make it a challenge for Canadian compet-
itors like Vaarkamp, who won’t be able to practise with the plow and tractor he’ll be using until he gets to Europe.
It’s additionally tough since some countries take the world competition quite seriously.
“In a lot of countries it’s seen as almost more than an Olympic sport,” he said, adding some competitors take a year off work, receiving a salary from their government to allow them an entire year to practise and prepare for the event.
Vaarkamp isn’t going into the event with a specific goal or target in mind. Instead, he said he simply wants to do his best. He’s a believer that the best way to improve is to put yourself among people who are better and learn from them. And there’s no place to find a more
talented group of plowmen than at the world championships.
He has been to two world contests before, as a spectator, driving out to Guelph and taking a trip to Alberta the last two times it came to Canada.
Vaarkamp, who will represent Canada in the conventional plowing division, will be joined by East Garafraxa’s Darryl Hostrawser in the reversible division.
To help raise some funds, a fundraiser breakfast is planned for Saturday, March 1 at the Kohler Ag Hall in Cayuga. It’s being supported by the Haldimand and Oneida plowmen’s associations and runs from 7 to 11 a.m.
The hall is located at 1084 Kohler Rd. For more information, call 905-981-2758.
Haldimand’s Mark Vaarkamp will be competing in the World Plowing Contest later this year. ~ Steve Speller photos
Tar spot a concern for Ontario corn growers, but there are solutions
By Luke Edwards
It may be an issue that needs to be on the mind of every corn grower in Ontario now, but fortunately there are ready-made solutions to the widespread arrival of tar spot.
“Really, tar spot is everyone’s problem now,” said Emma Dieleman, an agronomist with Sygenta. Dieleman was one of the presenters at the joint annual general meeting of the Niagara and Haldimand Soil and Crop Improvement Associations. She was one of several in attendance to discuss the fungal disease that has expanded to affect essentially all of the northern corn belt.
While the spread of the disease may seem concerning, Dieleman and others said there’s no need to panic.
“Management fits really well into what we’re already doing,” she said.
Existing fungicides can be quite useful, and timing of application can fit in with spraying for other fungal issues like DON, Dieleman said. And most of the time, one pass is sufficient.
And since growers south of the border have been dealing
with tar spot for a decade or so, new genetics are starting to come available that will provide better resistance. Already, she said certain hybrid varieties show considerable more resistance, and Dieleman encouraged growers to consider tar spot resistance in their annual seed planning.
“Considering tar spot susceptibility is going to be super important going forward,” she said.
The fungus was first confirmed in Ontario in 2020, but has now spread throughout the province. It can look similar to other diseases, but includes raised black lesions on the leaf surface that can’t be rubbed off. It tends to start on the lower canopy and move up.
Cooler temperatures, high relative humidity, lots of dew and saturated soils are other conditions that tar spot loves.
When those conditions are right, farmers will begin to notice symptoms within about two weeks.
“And the cycle continues as long as we have the right conditions,” Dieleman said.
However, farmers are also fortunate in that it seems as though it’s the early part of the growing
is now a province-wide concern for corn
there are effective ways to deal with the
season is the most worrisome.
A late infection offers limited risk, Dieleman said.
In a later Q and A panel, local agronomists said tar spot was one of the subjects that often came up during discussions with farmers planning ahead for 2025.
“Tar spot was part of the conversation, but it isn’t the only thing we should be paying attention to,” said Stephanie Fletcher of Twenty View Farms.
Others agreed, saying tar spot often came up in discussions, but yield continued to lead the charge.
Peavey Mart seeks creditor protection, local stores to close
By Niagara Farms Staff
The two Niagara Peavey Mart locations will be among the dozens that close as the company seeks creditor protection.
Stores in both Grimsby and St. Catharines will close as a result. An initial announcement suggested it was only 22 Peavey Mart stores in Ontario and Nova Scotia that would close. Signs went up at stores, including in St. Catharines, causing some confusion among customers online.
However, a followup announcement said the company would complete a full wind down of all 90 Peavey Mart stores and six MainStreet Hardware stores across the country.
“This was a profoundly difficult decision, but one that allows us to explore the best possible alternatives for the future of the company,” said Doug Anderson, president and CEO of Peavey Industries LP. “For nearly six decades, our customers’ loyalty, employees’ dedication, and the resilience of the communities we serve have been the cornerstone of our business. We remain focused on working with our partners and stakeholders to preserve the Peavey brand and the value it represents.”
The announcement suggested overall challenges facing the Canadian retail industry were among the factors that led to the decision to seek creditor protection. Those include record low consumer confidence, inflationary pressures, rising operating costs, ongoing supply disruptions and a difficult regulatory environment.
The company that runs 90 Peavey Mart locations across the country is seeking creditor protection and closing all its stores, including those in Grimsby and St. Catharines. ~ Luke Edwards photo
“The company’s immediate priority is to generate liquidity through the closure process while continuing to work with funders, partners, and stakeholders to explore potential opportunities to preserve the brand,” the announcement said.
Locally, the locations were operated as TSC stores until 2021 when they moved under the Peavey Mart banner. Peavey Mart acquired the London-based TSC Store brand in 2017,
spending the next four years converting the stores to Peavey Marts.
Peavey Mart began in 1967 as a “chain of ‘super farm markets’ whose first location opened in Dawson Creek, B.C.,” according to the company’s website. In 1975 it became known as Peavey Mart and was a subsidiary of Minneapolis-based Peavey Company. Nine years later it returned to full Canadian ownership, which it maintained to the present day.
Tar spot
growers in Ontario. However,
fungal infection. ~ Pixabay photo
Delicious Recipes Delicious Recipes
Enjoy the sweet stuff this spring
There’s perhaps never been a more appropriate time to enjoy some maple syrup.
With winter coming to an end, the sap will soon be running, if it hasn’t started already. And with some of the antics south of the border, many have been renewing their Team Canada membership cards and looking for any way to support Canadian producers.
And there are few things more Canadian than maple syrup.
Tapped from our national tree and perfected by the first people to call this continent home, syrup has its classic place atop pancakes and waffles. However, it can be used for so much more.
Here are a few examples, courtesy White Meadows Farms.
Butternut Squash Soup with Seedy Maple Croutons
Ingredients:
For the Soup
• 3 lbs butternut squash, peeled and cut in half lengthwise
• 2 medium apples, peeled, cored and quartered
• 1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
• 4 sprigs of rosemary
• 4 large cloves of garlic, peeled
• 2 tbsp White Meadows Farms maple syrup
• 2 bay leaves
• Olive oil
• Salt
• 900 mL vegetable broth
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
For the croutons
• 4 cups bread, cut into 1cm cubes
• 1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
• 2 tsp sesame seeds
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup White Meadows Farms maple syrup
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Place the butternut squash halves on the sheet, with the cavities facing up. Into each cavity, add 2 garlic cloves, 1 bay leaf, and 1 tablespoon of maple syrup.
3. Arrange the apples, onion, and rosemary around the squash on the baking sheet. Drizzle everything with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.
4. Bake for 1 hour, or until the squash is tender.
5. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly. Discard the rosemary. Transfer the remaining roasted ingredients to a large pot or Dutch oven.
6. Add the vegetable broth, 1 teaspoon of salt, and smoked paprika. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 15–20 minutes.
7. Remove from heat and discard the bay leaves. Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth. Alternatively, you can transfer the mixture to a blender in batches. For the Croutons
1. In a large bowl, combine bread and seeds.
2. In a small bowl, whisk olive oil, maple syrup, and spices.
3. Pour the wet mixture over the bread and seeds, tossing to coat.
4. Spread on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake at 425°F for 8 minutes. Toss and bake for another 8 minutes.
5. Let cool completely before serving.
Ingredients:
• 1 sheet puff pastry (thawed, if frozen)
• 1/2 lb ground turkey
• 4 oz brie cheese, cut into small slices (about 1/2 of a small wheel)
• 1/2 cup White Meadows Farms maple cranberry fruit sauce
• 1 egg (for egg wash)
• Salt And Pepper, To Taste
Instructions:
1. Cook the ground turkey in a nonstick skillet over medium heat, breaking it up as it cooks. Salt and pepper to taste. Set aside to cool.
2. Assemble the pinwheels. Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle (roughly 10×12 inches). Spread a thin layer of the maple cranberry sauce over the puff pastry, leaving a small border around the edges. Arrange slices of brie cheese evenly over the cranberry sauce. Sprinkle the cooked ground turkey evenly on top of the brie.
3. Roll and slice the pinwheels. Starting from one of the long edges, gently roll the puff pastry into a log, keeping the filling inside. Use a sharp knife to slice the log into 12 even pinwheels. Place the pinwheels cut-side up on the prepared baking sheet.
4. Egg wash and bake. In a small bowl, beat the egg with a splash of water to create an egg wash. Brush the tops of the pinwheels with the egg wash. Bake for 1820 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown and puffed.
Ingredients:
• 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
• 2 tsp White Meadows Farms maple syrup
• 2 1/2 cups lukewarm water
• 5 cups all purpose flour
• 2 3/4 tsp fine sea salt
• 6 tbsp OLiV extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 250 mL Jar of White Meadows Farms maple onion jam
Instructions:
1. In a medium bowl, whisk together yeast, maple syrup, and lukewarm water. Let sit for 5 minutes.
2. Once the yeast has bloomed, add flour and salt, mixing with a rubber spatula until a shaggy dough forms.
3. Add 4 tbsp of olive oil to a large bowl. Transfer the dough, coating it with oil. Cover and refrigerate
for 8-24 hours, or leave at room temperature for 3-4 hours until doubled in size.
4. Generously oil an 18”x13” rimmed baking sheet. Deflate the dough by lifting and folding it into a ball. Transfer it to the baking sheet, coat with oil, and let it rise uncovered in a warm spot until doubled in size (2-4 hours).
5. Preheat oven to 450°F. Check if the dough is ready by poking it; if it springs back, it’s good to go. With oiled hands, stretch the dough to fill the pan and dimple it with your fingers.
6. Brush the dough generously with Maple Onion Jam and bake for 20-30 minutes until golden brown and puffed.
Maple Scones with Maple Candied Pecans
Ingredient:
For the scones
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 3 tbsp maple sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 6 tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
• ¾ cup heavy cream, plus 1 tbsp, divided
• 1 large egg, slightly beaten
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
For the Maple Glaze
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup dark maple syrup
• 2 tbsp heavy cream
• 1 1/3 cups powdered sugar
For the Maple Candied Pecans
• 1 cup shelled pecan halves
• 1 tbsp salted butter
• 1 tbsp packed brown sugar
• 1 tbsp dark maple syrup
Instructions
Start with the maple candied pecans
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F
2. Place a small pan on medium heat, add the butter, sugar and maple syrup
3. Stir until it comes to a boil, add the pecans and toss well to coat
4. Keep cooking for another 3 minutes or so and then pour
Continued to page A17
Turkey and Brie Pinwheels with Maple Cranberry Fruit Sauce
Focaccia Bread with Maple Onion Jam
onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat
5. Spread the nuts onto a single layer and place in the oven for 6-8 minutes. Keep a close eye on them as they can burn easily!
6. Remove from the oven to cool
7. Chop into small pieces once pecans have cooled Next, Make the Scones
1. Turn up the oven to 200C/400F
2. Line another baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat and set aside
3. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, maple sugar and salt. Quickly cut in the cold butter using a pastry blender or fork. Mix until the mixture resembles coarse meal with a few larger lumps of butter throughout
4. In a small bowl whisk together ¾ cup heavy cream, the egg and vanilla extract. Pour the mixture over the dry ingredients and stir with a spatula until dough begins to form. Do not over mix
5. Transfer dough onto a floured surface and knead until it forms a ball. Form scones by patting the dough into a ¾-inch thick circle and cut into 8 even triangles.
Continued from page A23
6. Place the scones on prepared baking sheet. Brush scones lightly with the additional tablespoon of heavy cream. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until scones are lightly golden brown. Cool scones on a wire cooling rack
Bryan Gilvesy, now CEO of ALUS Canada, started his involvement with the program when he signed up as a participant to the program and then became a member of the Norfolk Partnership Advisory Committee. Bryan and wife Cathy raise Texas longhorns on the YU Ranch, south of Tillsonburg.
Finally, the maple glaze: (make while scones and pecans are cooling)
1. In a small saucepan, add butter, maple syrup and heavy cream. Heat over medium heat until butter is melted and ingredients are combined, stirring occasionally.
2. Slowly whisk in the powdered sugar, adding about ¼ cup at a time. The glaze will be a little lumpy at first but will smooth out as you keep whisking.
3. Let glaze cool for 5 minutes. Drizzle over cooled scones.
4. Finish with chopped maple candied pecans Continued from page A16
tally we are building value for the farmers of Canada. That means we (farmers) are part of conversations we haven’t been part of for a long time. Farmers realize they are part of the solution to a lot of things, like climate change mitigation, biodiversity, species-at-risk and flood control.”
One of the offshoots of Norfolk’s initial efforts occurred after Prince Edward Island environment George Webster attended the pilot launch in 2008. The island was having an environmental issue at the time and ALUS quickly became the solution and a well-funded provincial program.
Today, nationally ALUS is approaching 1,000 farmers participating through 27 different community based programs in six provinces. Together they have enrolled 27,183 acres in the program.
Officially, ALUS Canada’s mantra now is: “ALUS Canada makes it possible to offset your environmental footprint through agricultural stewardship. ALUS invests in farmers and landowners who are producing acres of clean air, clean water, wildlife habitat
Premier’s Ag Innovation Award
Gilvesy is proud ALUS is a farmer-led program and farmers fell they are the program owners.
“People feel they are partners in ALUS,” he said. “It’s the value of developing a grassroots program that recognizes the value of community.”
Province announces increase to farmer support program
By Jeff Helsdon, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
The Ontario government announced a substantial Risk Management Program increase at a Eden farm last month.
Elgin-Middlesex-London MPP and Minister of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness Rob Flack was on his home turf for the announcement in Bayham just a day before Premier Ford dissolved the legislature for an early election. Flack was joined by Minister of Finance Peter Bethlenfalvy and farm leaders for the announcement at the VanQuathem farm.
The Risk Management Program (RMP) is a safety net that helps offset rising production costs and falling commodity prices. Payments are made if the market price falls below the cost of production. RMP covers sectors such as grain and oilseeds, cattle, horticulture, sheep, veal, and pork but does
not include supply-managed commodities such as dairy and chickens.
The announcement boosts RMP from $150 million to $250 million over the next three years.
Flack told those in attendance for the announcement that the government understands the importance of the $51 billion agri-food sector to the province’s economy. This includes more than 200 commodities, livestock and poultry. From farm gate to plate, 871,000 people, or one in nine jobs, are in the agri-food sector.
“Our farmers are the lifeblood of our growing, our vibrant, our thriving agri-food sector,” he said.
Since 2018, the number of people employed in agriculture grew by 30,000, the gross domestic product increased by $3 billion and exports increased 65 per cent to $26.2 billion. Expanding on trade with the U.S., Flack said the two-way trade, which he called “dynamic and complementary”, is
worth $45 billion. In the agriculture sector, Ontario has a small trade deficit with the States.
“The bottom line is there is no need for President Trump to add tariffs to our sector,” he said. “Tariffs will only increase costs, cause potential job losses, and inflict consumer pain that is not needed.”
He told the farmers if tariffs were implemented, the Ontario government “has your backs”.
“Today’s announcement moves the needle in providing more confidence in our fast-moving sector, and we want to keep it that way,” Flack said.
Ontario Federation of Agriculture president Drew Spoelstra said farmers need reliable safety net programs to offset growing tax burdens and increasing production costs.
“We also face significant challenges that are out of our control when it comes to market conditions, trade tariffs, and we might be
facing down our bigger challenge yet,” he said.
While Ontario farmers are adaptable and resilient, he added, “Farmers can only do so much and need reliable and effective safety net programs, like Ontario RMP, and others to stand behind our efforts to feed Ontarians, and others, around the world.”
Mike Chromczak, a local cash crop and vegetable producer, is also the co-chair of the Ontario Agriculture Sustainability Coalition. This group has representation from the commodity groups eligible for RMP.
“Today’s announcement is a monumental investment by our government that will help to fortify our domestic food supply, support jobs, economic growth while strengthening the resiliency of our respective sectors,” he said.
With the writ dropped the day after the announcement, the future of the funding will depend on the outcome of the election.
Rob Flack, Elgin-Middlesex-London MPP and Minister of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness, announced an increase to the Risk Management Plan at an Eden-area farm on Feb. 28. Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy, to his immediate right, and farm leaders were on hand for the announcement that has been asked for by various farm groups. ~ Jeff Helsdon Photo
AG EVENTS ON THE HORIZON
As we begin to emerge from our winter hibernation, ag activities are ramping up again. February and March will feature events and activities for everyone, from backyard gardeners, to full time farmers. Learn a little, share a little, or help your community with these upcoming ag related events.
seeds.ca/events seeds.ca/events..
Savage expands to Thorold Multimodal Hub
By Niagara Farms Staff
A new transload facility in Thorold is promising to bring additional opportunities for the surrounding region’s agricultural community.
Savage Niagara is opening a transload facility at the Thorold Multimodal Hub, an industrial park within the Niagara Ports network that’s jointly managed in partnership between BMI Group and HOPA Ports.
“Our new Savage Niagara Transload facility underscores our commitment to delivering innovative and reliable transloading solutions for customers and building out our robust and connected Savage Transload Network across North America,” said Jason Ray, president of Savage’s Infrastructure Sector, in a press release.
“Bioveld Canada’s Thorold Multimodal Hub is a prime location, and we’re excited to be a part of this dynamic community while helping businesses in the region optimize their supply chains.”
The new facility will increase logistics and transportation options
for businesses in Niagara, the GTHA, Western New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania, the release said. It’ll provide a “vital link” between rail, maritime and truck transportation.
Savage, working with the BMI Group, will invest in modern infrastructure and safety measures to make sure its transload operations are done efficiently and with an eye to environmental responsibility.
“The Savage Niagara Transload is a significant strategic development that strengthens Thorold’s economic foundation, makes it more attractive for logistic intensive industries, and expands the region’s access to key markets throughout Canada and the United States. It’s a win-win for all of us,” said BMI Group CEO Paul Veldman.
In addition to supporting the area’s agricultural sector, Savage will offer services to businesses in manufacturing and construction.
“At HOPA Ports, we welcome Savage as a critical partner in enhancing supply chain capabilities
for Canadian companies,” said Ian Hamilton, president & CEO of HOPA Ports. “Savage’s new Niagara Transload facility further diversifies the logistics services offered at the Thorold Multimodal Hub. Companies are looking for a competitive edge, and having access to a professional logistics
partner like Savage can make all the difference.”
While Savage has a long history, it was established in 1946, the press release said this expansion “further solidifies the company’s presence in Canada.” It now has operations in seven Canadian provinces.
“If
franks@franksemc.ca 905-386-6955 5165 Canborough Road Wellandport, ON
The Thorold Multimodal Hub welcomed a new addition to the industrial site, as Savage is opening a transload facility to support industry, including Niagara’s agriculture sector. ~ Savage Photo
