“There are no facts, only interpretations,” is a common quote I refer to from poet Friedrich Nietzsche. Modernizing the language, I take it as, “Facts don’t matter, only the perception.” The struggle for perception in food is at an all time high. I talked last month about A&W’s perception of what ‘Better Beef’ represents, despite… Read More
Category: Advocacy
It’s not every day that you get to meet two Twitter legends, let alone convince them to let you videotape the discussion that ensues. I was just so lucky last week, when I met Cami Ryan (@doccamiryan), researcher at the University of Saskatchewan, and Michele Payn-Knoper (@mpaynknoper), professional speaker and founder of Cause Matters Corp…. Read More
Farmers could play a big role in the movement to turn food waste from a habit into a villain. In some circles, food waste is now being called the number one issue in the food business. It’s described as a major stumbling block in the drive to feed the world. According to this line of… Read More
The ninth edition of an award winning calendar showcasing the photos and stories of 13 Ontario farmers and farm families was unveiled at a gala in Milton last night. The “Faces of Farming” calendar, featuring this year’s theme of Real Farmers with Real Heart, is produced annually to introduce the public to a few of… Read More
This blog post is one I was hoping not to have to write. In Canada, there was recently an “investigative report” on the commercial egg industry. It developed after an animal activist group took undercover footage and passed an edited video to a television newsmagazine. The resulting 30 minute show was a black eye to… Read More
Whenever the holiday falls on a Monday, the rest of the week feels a little off. Case in point, I thought Thursday was Friday even though it was a short week and started this “last day of the work week” column a day early. What gives? Anywho, as the RealAgriculture team struggled into their post-turkey… Read More
Research is often seen as an investment in new technology development, in whirring instruments or the roar of equipment. That might make it easy to forget that new technology results from new knowledge. And knowledge is key to preserving and advancing modern family farms. That reminder comes courtesy of Mildmay, ON dairy farmer Ralph Dietrich. He’s the… Read More
There are hormones in your food! What’s worse, they are in you! Alarmed yet? You shouldn’t be, and I’ll tell you why, plus why I’m done with marketing gimmicks and done with A&W Canada. Yes, there are hormones in your food, but are they something to fear? A&W certainly thinks so, with a new campaign… Read More
4-H has been an integral part of the rural landscape for just over 100 years now. It’s something that’s so familiar to the young rural experience that it’s substantial contributions to the towns and cities it’s in can sometimes be overlooked. 4-H is a place where kids are exposed to all the elements that make… Read More
Sometimes, people who understand agriculture – farmers, for example – are reluctant to enter into a public forum to talk about the profession they love. Other times, they’ll stand up and speak voluntarily, as leaders of their commodity organization or farm group. But on at least one occasion, others still will actually pay for the… Read More
I didn’t know much about agriculture when I started farming, so there were questions I didn’t ask, and things I didn’t worry about. “Check-off dollars” made that list. I sort of sloughed it off as one of the necessities of the industry, ignoring the details and giving the organizations that benefited all the trust in… Read More
A guest editorial By Cam Dahl, General Manager of the Manitoba Beef Producers. Local. Organic. Hormone free. Gluten free. No pesticides. Nothing artificial. These are the buzzwords in food marketing today. Who can object to all of these wholesome sounding concepts? Food companies are trying to take us back to a time which many consumers… Read More
Now I am not the biggest Ezra Levant fan, nor do I subscribe to Sun TV but I stumbled upon a very interesting segment on Ezra Levant’s program. Levant features an interview that David Suzuki participated in while he was visiting Australia. It is very interesting to hear David Suzuki discuss genetically modified foods… Read More
Hot on the heels of Chipotle’s “Scarecrow” scare tactics, comes the announcement from the fast-food chain A&W that it will now be serving “better beef” in both Canada and the U.S. What is better beef? Beef that was raised without the use of growth promotants, according to the company’s press release. A&W has devoted an… Read More
Yet more evidence is trickling out about consumers’ upbeat perceptions of farmers. And not surprisingly, once again, it’s good. This time the source is food consultant to the Royal Winter Fair, popular dietitian Lois Ferguson of Eating For Ecstasy fame. She’s released results of a survey conducted with more than 1,400 fairgoers last November, which… Read More