Archive for the 'General news' Category

New food industry environmental group set to launch

Owen Roberts March 17th, 2010

April 6 is the launch of the Ontario Food Industry Environmental Coalition, a self-described access point between the food industry and the provincial government.  The coalition, which calls itself the food industry equivalent to the Ontario Farm Environmental Council, is holding a one-day symposium in Mississauga to get the ball rolling. The coalition comprises a number of food industry associations including the Alliance of Ontario Food Processors, the Ontario Agri-Business Association and Food and Consumer Products of Canada.  The coalition is being coordinated by Lisa McLean from the Alliance of Ontario Food Processors. Below is the graphic from the symposium.

Ottawa gets behind national young speakers competition

Owen Roberts March 16th, 2010

Enrolment in my Agricultural Communications I class at the University of Guelph has climbed since I began offering public speaking a few years ago. Students say public speaking helps them prepare for the inevitability of addressing a group, and they appreciate the opportunity to learn in an academic setting before they actually have to do it on the job. My class holds a speak-off with six top finishers going on to the Canadian Young Speakers for Agriculture competition at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto. I’m pleased to serve as the academic advisor to the program, which received a boost when Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada dedicated $100,000 to the event, through the Canadian 4-H Council. Hon. Gerry Ritz, minister of  Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, is pictured here in Ottawa congratulating Canadian 4-H Council President Judy Shaw of Syngenta Crop Protection Canada, along with competition board chair Ted Young (middle, right) and president Eric Dalke.

Four-day equine expo coming to Guelph

Owen Roberts March 9th, 2010

A new trade show called Canada’s Outdoor Equine Expo is being launched June 4-7 at the the University of Guelph‘s Arkell Research Station. The show, for all breeds and disciplines, will be hosted by Canada’s Outdoor Shows Ltd. in partnership with the research station and Equine Guelph. Read more about it here.

The expo will be a superb addition to Guelph’s incredibly diverse agriculture and food community. Good luck to Lorie and the entire expo team.

Below is the expo logo.


Topics, date announced for young speakers’ competition

Owen Roberts February 26th, 2010

The 2010 Canadian Young Speakers for Agriculture competition  takes place November 6 at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto, Ontario. The topics, which are always highly awaited, have now been announced by the competition’s board of directors:

  • The profile and impact of a Canadian Agricultural Hall of Fame member
  • Who will feed the world in 50 years?
  • What is the biggest challenge in agriculture today?
  • Exploring First Nations agriculture in Canada
  • What are the biggest events in Canadian agricultural history?

My University of Guelph agricultural communications class takes part in the competition. I’ll look forward to seeing how the students respond to these stimulating topics in the fall. Top marks to CYSA board member Pam Emmott for her efforts in compiling the list of topics.

One of the biggest events in Canadian agricultural history was surely the discovery of BSE in Canada. Former federal agriculture and agri-food minister Lyle Vanclief, pictured below, and others worked overtime — and then some — to put the matter in context for Canadians (fact: it was a lone cow, and it didn’t enter the food chain). As a result, beef consumption in post-BSE Canada actually rose, as Canadians showed their support for the sector.

CBC journalist and radio host among Guelph’s “human library”

Owen Roberts February 26th, 2010

I had the pleasure of working with CBC’s Jill Dempsey a few years ago when I moderated a reading of the Christmas Carol, at the Dublin Street United Church. Now, Jill’s back in Guelph as the journalist-and-radio-host addition to the University of Guelph’s “human library.”  The university says a human library is designed to give people a chance “to meet face to face with individuals who belong to groups that often face challenges due to broad generalizations, stereotyping, misunderstanding and even marginalization.”  Certainly journalists fit at least one of those categories.

The human library is open March 4-5. Click here for more details.

Below is a photo of Jill, from the CBC website.

Green light from Environment Canada for transgenic Enviropigs

Owen Roberts February 19th, 2010

The Enviropig, the first transgenic animal created to address phosphorus loading on the environment, is getting the green light from Environment Canada. Global TV has a story today on its website saying Ottawa has determined the pigs, developed back in 1999 at the University of Guelph, are not toxic to the environment under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, and says the official declaration will be made on Saturday. Below is a graphic from the University of Guelph showing how the Enviropig works.

Blogging dispatches from Haiti

Owen Roberts February 16th, 2010

My daughter Kate’s significant other, Kitchener-Waterloo Record features reporter Greg Mercer, is in Haiti documenting the work of a group of doctors and nurses from St. Mary’s General Hospital. They’re helping at the Hopital Universitaire La Paix in Delmas, one of many hospitals in Port au Prince that have been overwhelmed with injured patients since the January 12 earthquake. Follow his blog here.

Greg photographed a Haitian health care worker (below) assigning records to emergency patients.

Canadian food showcased at the Olympics

Owen Roberts February 12th, 2010

Renowned Elora food guru Anita Stewart MC’d a Canadian food showcase for the media yesterday in Vancouver, featuring dishes cooked by some of Canada’s top chefs.  Menu items included wheat, beef, pork, eggs, canola oil, maple syrup, lentils, soybeans and ice wine. Introducing visiting media to Canadian food is important — we export about 45 per cent of what we produce, to 195 countries. Those exports account for nearly $43-billion worth of trade.

Federal agriculture and agri-food minister Gerry Ritz joined the culinary group for the photo below, supplied courtesy of his department. Anita is in the back row, second from the right.

Ten steps to keep modern agriculture on the right track

Owen Roberts January 29th, 2010

Is modern agriculture on the right track? For the most part yes, says Rob Hannam, president of the Synthesis Agri-Food Consulting Network. Rob, pictured below, offered a well-paced and ample presentation on the topic to a full house at yesterday’s Guelph Partnership for Innovation networking breakfast meeting, in the grand ballroom of the Delta Hotel and Conference Centre in Guelph.  He cited 10 steps to guide the sector:

1. When it comes to contentious issues, seek all information, then make informed decisions.

2. Support local food. Realize how lucky we are to have such broad choices.

3. Vote with your food dollars. Money talks and consumers will drive the market.

4. If you want it, ask for it. The food sector will respond.

5. One size doesn’t fit all. Different consumers will have different needs.

6. Explain, explain, explain. Go beyond the science and show some emotion.

7. Offer choices. Significant opportunities await those who can spot new markets.

8. Self monitor. Don’t dismiss criticism; constantly raise the bar.

9. Embrace sustainability. Farmers’ stewardship of the soil, water and air is a good story.

10. Adopt new technology, including biotechnology. Continually make advances.

Nice work, Rob!

Farmers are “victims” of protected species law, says group

Owen Roberts January 21st, 2010

Ontario farmers are demanding compensation for land taken out of production because of protected species legislation.  The Ontario Federation of Agriculture  is leading the charge, claiming varying amounts of farmland will cease to be available to its owners if certain species are known to exist there. Compensation is the subject of a tough new commentary on the OFA website, in which farmers are called victims of the legislation.

Among the endangered species listed in Ontario is the American badger, pictured below.

The photo is by Glen and Rebecca Grambo, and it appears on the Western Canada wilderness committee website.

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