This week, OFA had the pleasure to invite five young agriculture leaders along with our OFA Directors and staff to attend the 2024 Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) Annual General Meeting in Ottawa. The emerging leaders in attendance were:
- Keanan Stone – General Manager of Valley Bio Limited
- Ashley Knapton – President of the Lanark Federation of Agriculture
- Mark Ruiter – Junior Farmer member in Carleton County
- Brady Wytenburg – employee of crop input marketing company Synagri
- Keeley Henderson – Junior Farmer member in Renfrew County
The first day commenced with OFA seizing an opportunity to engage in meaningful discussions with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Parliamentary Secretary Francis Drouin, MP for Glengarry—Prescott—Russell. Participants at the meeting included director Vanessa Renaud (who resides in Drouin’s riding), Vice President Paul Vickers, Executive Member Ethan Wallace and young leaders Keanan Stone, Brady Wytenburg, Keely Henderson and Mark Ruiter.
Key topics in this discussion ranged from opportunities, as well as challenges facing the next generation of farm leaders, including the prohibitive costs of entry (land and equipment costs, inflation and interest rates), to the pivotal role of technology and broadband access in modern agriculture. Also discussed was the importance of ensuring that financing is both responsive, accessible and that it takes into consideration the challenging landscape of the agriculture and agri-food landscape/industry. Regulatory hurdles in the Canadian hemp industry were also addressed.
Additionally, OFA directors Tracey Arts and Teresa Van Raay, along with Brady Wytenburg, Keely Henderson, Keanan Stone and Mark Ruiter met with MP Kody Blois, Chair of the Agriculture and Agri-Food Standing Committee, gaining insights into the daily life of an MP as well as insights on effective advocacy strategies within government.
The business meeting portion of the CFA got underway with workshops addressing pressing issues. Workshops included a panel on cybersecurity featuring representatives from UPA, Scotiabank and the University of Guelph who highlighted real-life breaches and best practices for farm organizations. OFA director Ethan Wallace brought forth a question concerning how farmers can work with technology vendors and suppliers, along with their role, in ensuring the safeguarding of farm technology and data.
Another workshop explored financial pressures on Canadian farmers, emphasizing areas where farmers can exercise some control over their financial situation such as various on-farm risk management activities to enhance long-term resilience. Young leader Mark Ruiter brought forward a question for the panel which addressed the financial challenges in bringing the next generation into a farming operation and how these hurdles can be effectively addressed to ensure long term sustainability and success of the family farm.
The 2024 CFA annual meeting provided a platform for collaboration, knowledge-sharing and networking among farm leaders and stakeholders from across Canada.