An episode of Oprah, a hard-hitting Time magazine cover story, a film called Food Inc. – farming is under increased, often one-sided scrutiny leaving many people to wonder whether modern agriculture is on the right track.

Rob Hannam, President of Synthesis Agri-Food Consulting, believes it encourages everyone to do more to address public perceptions of farming, he told a meeting of the Guelph Partnership for Innovation I attended last week. [Read the rest of this entry...]

There’s a crisis in agriculture. It’s an oft-repeated statement, one that at times comes from beef and pork farmers, and other times from the grain or the fruit and vegetable growers.

In fact, it seems as though there’s always a crisis in agriculture – perhaps in different sectors at different times, but it always seems as if someone is teetering on the brink of disaster and asking for help. [Read the rest of this entry...]

Some great news to start off the week: I have just learned that I am one of the winners of the IFAJ-Alltech Young Leaders Award this year!

This means I’ll be attending the 2010 International Federation of Agricultural Journalists congress in Belgium this spring as one of ten young leaders from around the world. The award is sponsored by Alltech, a global animal health company, and the IFAJ, a non-political, professional association for agricultural journalists. [Read the rest of this entry...]

The rise of the local food movement has also increased urban interest in growing food in the city. Generally, this means a small garden or some planters for tomatoes, carrots, some herbs and the like. But for some more adventurous types, this drive to “grow your own” also includes eggs – and it’s not as easy to care for chickens as you might think. [Read the rest of this entry...]

As demand for “green” products increases, more and more technologies and opportunities for bio-based products are emerging alongside to meet those needs.

Crops like corn, wheat and soybeans are starting to replace traditional petroleum-based ingredients in these new bio-products, making them easier on the environment and lessening our dependence on non-renewable fossil fuels. They’re also creating new market opportunities for farmers.
[Read the rest of this entry...]

One of 2009’s hot stories was our growing love affair with buying locally grown food – and learning how we can do more of that ourselves.

There’s an interesting story from the Globe and Mail on the CTV Olympic site: a Sudbury torchbearer is involved in a local food growing project in the region. I have to admit, that concept intrigued me because I don’t usually associate Sudbury with food or with farming – more with mining. [Read the rest of this entry...]

Today is the day I officially move back to the country. I grew up on a farm but have lived in various cities since I left home to go to university in the mid-1990s.

Now, after many years as city dwellers, my husband and I are moving to a small acreage just outside of Guelph. I’m not kidding myself about being rural – compared to where my parents still live in Grey County, I might as well be downtown Guelph and not just a mile or so beyond the city limits! [Read the rest of this entry...]