Farmers hear from industry and political leaders at CFA AGM

OTTAWA - Farm leaders from across Canada attending the Canadian Federation of Agriculture's (CFA) Annual Meeting held broad discussions with industry and political leaders this past week, under the theme "Connecting with Consumers."
 
CFA members also elected their executive leaders. Ron Bonnett will continue as CFA President; Christian Lacasse, President of Union des producters agricoles, was elected 1st Vice-President; and Humphrey Banack, President of Wild Rose Agricultural Producers (Alberta), was elected 2nd Vice-President.
 
Agriculture and Agri-Food Minister Gerry Ritz opened the meeting and reiterated his commitment to work in partnership with farmers, particularly on designing programs for the next generation of agriculture policy due to begin in 2013. Opposition leader Michael Ignatieff called for more investment in rural infrastructure and the need for a National Food Policy. NDP MP Carol Hughes highlighted the importance of supporting family farms and the NDP's agri-food policy proposals.
 
"The CFA has worked steadfastly over the last year to generate support and participation across the entire food supply chain for a long-term vision of our Canadian food system," said CFA President Ron Bonnett. "It is most encouraging that every one of our AGM speakers--including farmers, agri-food business owners, journalists, economists, and politicians from three parties--recognized the critical need for a national food strategy in Canada."
 
The CFA initiated the National Food Strategy in February 2010 and has been continually widening its scope to make this a truly industry-owned initiative, engaging the whole food system. It was announced the NFS is launching four Working Groups - Health/Science, Education/Marketing, Business and Environment. These will serve as a forum for discussion and are open to all players in the food system to enrich the content of the strategy and ensure an innovative and comprehensive plan for our country's food system.   
 
Farm leaders identified various advocacy goals for the coming year, including increasing Canadian biodiesel production capacity; establishing a Federal Bureau for Monitoring Imported Products; increasing public investments in agricultural research; revising the AgriFlex program, and ensuring an effective response and performance-based improvements once the final report of Government's Railway Service Review has been released. Members also discussed the increasing importance of farm-based ecological goods and services. View a complete list of the resolutions identified by CFA members.
 
The meeting featured an impressive list of high-profile, engaging speakers. Speaking to the theme of the meeting "Connecting with Consumers," Globe and Mail columnist Ian Brown challenged farmers to be better linked to their food traditions and emphasized strong public interest in knowing the stories behind both food and farmer. Avrim Lazaar, President and CEO of Forest Products Association of Canada gave a presentation on collaboration and partnership as a 21st century business model. 2010 winner of Canada's Outstanding Young Farmer's Program, Lauren and Ryan Maurer, and Justin Beck, President of the Canadian Young Farmers Forum outlined the challenges and opportunities for new entrants to agriculture. Members also heard from Edouard Asnong, Chair of the National Animal Care Council.  
 
Looking ahead, CFA members anticipate an active year in various policy areas focused on sustainability of the agriculture sector.