4 The Business of Ontario Agriculture Better Farming | January 2024 LETTER FROM THE EDITOR KEEP CONNECTING; OFA’S PRIORITIES Not many days pass when we don’t hear from our farmer readers. We get “well done” emails. And we get “you could have done better” messages when we could have done better – after a technical error or even a spelling or syntactic mistake. We get story ideas from our readers, and thank goodness, as these leads often become some of our most popular articles. We get farming photos sent in, and lots of letters to the editor. We even get advertising clients reaching out because we helped them grow their businesses. So in a word – thanks. We appreciate your calls and messages. As of the end of 2023, we get more comments, questions, and ideas than ever before, going back to our first edition in 1999. (This January magazine begins our 25th year, as indicated with a new logo on our front cover.) And as for reader engagement, it’s hard to beat the OFA AGM. This year’s meeting in Toronto was another productive, exciting event. Binbrook’s Drew Spoelstra was elected as new OFA president at the AGM, and quickly came out with an outline of the organization’s top priorities moving forward. Land use, urban sprawl, and the continuing and unsustainable loss of farmland; Environmental sustainability and climate-change mitigation; Threats to farm profitability, including rising input and production costs, carbon tax, and high interest rates. OMAFRA’s recent Cereals Seasonal Summary noted that winter wheat yields were again excellent in 2023, with many producers reporting average to above-average yields. Spring cereals were down in 2023 due to dry conditions from seeding to pollination, followed by persistent rainfall through maturity. Also, for those experiencing challenges completing winter wheat seeding, “fields with variable emergence or that have not yet emerged should be walked early in the spring to monitor growth. “It will also be important for these fields to have timely nitrogen applications next spring to promote tillering.” Paul Nolan Huron County’s Bonnie Sitter is building awareness of the Farmerettes, who filled the need for labour during the Second World War. Read more on Pg. 14. Courtesy of Bonnie Sitter 1-888-248-4893 90 Woodlawn Road West Guelph, ON N1H 1B2 PUBLISHER & EDITORIAL DIRECTOR PAUL NOLAN ext 202 Paul.Nolan@Farms.com ASSISTANT TO THE PUBLISHER & EDITORIAL DIRECTOR LESLIE STEWART ext 265 Leslie.Stewart@Farms.com AGRICULTURAL JOURNALIST EMILY CROFT CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS EDITION MOE AGOSTINO CAMPBELL CORK DALE COWAN ABHINESH GOPAL PAUL HERMANS RICHARD KAMCHEN PATRICK LYNCH RALPH WINFIELD ADVERTISING TEAM GLENN RUEGG JEFF McKEE JENNY LONGSTREET SCOTT FARHOOD SAMANTHA RENAUD JOAN SPIEGELBERG DESIGN & PRODUCTION TEAM TANYA MYERS GREG MARLOW SHAUN CLARK ANDREA WILLIAMS www.BetterFarming.com Better Farming magazine is mailed as a member-benefit to all farmer members of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture. If you are not an OFA member, subscribe at: 1-888-248-4893 ext 281 Subscriptions@BetterFarming.com ISSN 1498-9344 (Printed) Canadian one-year subscriptions: $41 (11 issues; includes $4.72 HST). Two-year: $74 ($8.51 HST). U.S. subscriptions: $72 annually. International: $121. Single-copy back issues are $12. GST Registration #868959347RT0001 POSTMASTER: Send address changes to AgMedia Inc., 90 Woodlawn Road West, Guelph, ON N1H 1B2. Publications Mail Registration #1156. Publications Mail Agreement #40037298. Copyright ©2024 by AgMedia Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any content without written permission of the publisher is forbidden. Acceptance of advertising does not constitute endorsement of the advertiser, its products or services, nor do Better Farming, AgMedia or Farms.com endorse any advertiser claims. The publisher shall have no liability for the omission of any scheduled advertising. Follow us on Twitter @BetterFarmingON We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada. K Laine Photography photo, Emily Croft photo
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