The Rural Voice, 2019-03, Page 81446 10th St., Hanover, Ontario N4N 1P9
519-364-3050 or 1-800-275-9551
* The Rural Voice is provided to OFA Members in Grey County by the GCFA
Email: grey@ofa.on.ca Website: greyfederation.ca
Grey County Federation
of Agriculture
Healthy farm environment
Any opinion expressed is that of
individual County Directors or
Representatives and may not
necessarily reflect the views of the
Bruce County Federation of
Agriculture or Ontario Federation of
Agriculture.
GCFA is the regional affiliate
(county) organization of the Ontario
Federation of Agriculture (OFA).
GCFA represents the interests of over
1,500 farm families in Grey County.
It was organized in the year 1940 to
do for agriculture that which cannot
be done by the individual farmer and
to work for economic growth and
sustainability of farms in Grey
County.
The farm sector plays an integral
role in the financial, social and
cultural health of the Grey County
community.
Farmers in Grey County,
represented by the Grey Federation of
Agriculture (GCFA) support the
philosophy that farmers must play a
lead role as stewards of a healthy
land, air and water environment.
Farmers in Grey County have a
strong history of embracing
initiatives that promote a healthy
environment, programs such as
the Environmental Farm Plan,
ALUS and farm practices that
include cover cropping, no till and
others that are gaining momentum.
Farmers understand and support
the role that the Conservation
Authorities (CAs) play in promoting
a healthy environment and as
landowners we are seeking a
partnership with CAs that models
respect and mutual understanding.
Specifically, we are advocating
for more communication between
the CAs and the farm community.
We need more opportunity for
the farm sector to be heard as a
partner in setting and regulating
policy as it regards farmland.
This could in part, take the form
of Agriculture Advisory Committees
that sit regularly as an Advisory to
CA policy-makers/regulators.
GCFA, on behalf of Grey
County farmers, will continue
to advocate on this subject on
behalf of the interests of its members;
including meeting with CAs,
elected politicians, the public, media
and our members to move this along
and we will keep our membership
apprised of developments to
drive awareness, understanding and
action.
For more information on this
subject or the activities of the GCFA,
please contact us at grey@ofa.on.ca ◊
– Submitted by Hugh Simpson,
President GCFA
MARCH 2019 77
Grey County Federation of Agriculture
DIRECTORS’
MEETINGS 2019
March 14 – 7:00 p.m.
June 20 – 8:00 p.m.
August 15 – 8:00 p.m.
September 19 – 8:00 p.m.
November 14 – 8:00 p.m.
All meetings are held at
Grey Ag Services, Markdale
Sa
v
e
t
h
e
D
a
t
e
!
S
a
v
e
t
h
e
D
a
t
e
!
Tommy Cooper Awards
Evening
March 29
Elmwood Community Centre
Celebrate Agriculture with GCFA and BCFA
Call 519-364-3050 for more details!
Do you have questions about
developing a transition plan for your farm
business? It’s never too soon to start the
conversation. Join OFA, The Co-operators,
Farm Life and Scotiabank as we present a
free, half-day workshop to help you get
started on a successful transition plan.
This hands-on workshop will deliver
tips, resources and approaches for a
successful transition plan. Workshops are
open to all Ontario farmers and include:
• Transition planning 101
• Panel discussion and case studies
• How to set up your own transition team
Workshop will run from 8:30 a.m.
to noon and will include light
refreshments.
Thursday, March 28
Neustadt Community
Centre,
183 Enoch St., Neustadt, ON
REGISTER TODAY!
Call Joanne
519-364-3050 ext. 2 or e-mail:
joanne.hughes@ofa.on.ca
Register today for
the farm transition
plan workshop!