EFAO Conference 2022: Full Schedule

10:45am EST

Regrowth on our Farms and in our Communities

In this session you'll hear from a panel of inspiring farmers, as they share key insights into adapting their farm business to some of the challenges of the past few years. From market gardens to livestock operations, learn about the practices, ideas and opportunities that are supporting growth and resilience on their farms and in their communities.

Moderators

Judith "Zhiizhii" Prince

Judith Prince is the founder and director of the Ubuntu Community Collective, a grassroots group focused on serving the wellness needs of women and children of the African diaspora, and the main farmer for the emerging Ubuntu Community Farm. UCF is an urban vegetable and herb farm... Read More →

Speakers

Amy Kitchen

Amy Kitchen owns and operates Sideroad Farm in Grey County with her partner Pat. She started farming in 2009 on a small leased plot in BC and in 2013 relocated to ON with Pat. Together, with a small team, they grow vegetables, cut flowers, chickens and pigs with a focus on selling... Read More →

Jessey Njau

Farmer, Zawadi Farm

Technology enthusiast turned land steward, Jessey is the lead farmer at Zawadi Farm and founder of Zawadi Connections. Jessey is Kenyan-born and is on a mission to build meaningful connections to our source of food, building resilient local economies to last generations.

Brenda Hsueh

Black Sheep Farm

Brenda Hsueh is a Chinese Canadian woman farmer, who has been farming Black Sheep Farm in Grey County since 2009. She first came to farming single, and jaded from years of working a desk job in Toronto. Now she farms with her partner Skyler, and their daughter Emma, often tired and... Read More →

Chris Devries

Common Ground Farm

Chris farms about 18 acres of vegetables near St.Thomas and is finishing his 9th season. The farm sells primarily to a local CSA (about 350 members) and farmer's markets in London and Kitchener. The farm is certified organic and uses season extension, a small greenhouse and coolers... Read More →

Saturday November 12, 2022 10:45am - 12:30pm EST
Southwestern Regional Gathering

Concurrent

Subject Climate Change, Farm Business Management

1:30pm EST

Butchering Demonstration

Learn how to maximize your profits by increasing the quality of cuts from your animal. Chef Sebastian Palka and Jamie Waldron will cut from a whole carcass while a lively discussion takes place about how to ask more from your butchers and ensure you are getting what you want from your meat! Participants can also expect to walk away with a better idea of how to communicate with customers about the different cuts of meat and best cooking methods for each.

Speakers

Sebastian Palka

Jamie Waldron

Butcher, Jamie Waldron Butchers

I am a whole animal butcher. My approach is to utilize the WHOLE animal to the best of my abilities.I was born in Windsor, Ontario, and raised in the small rural town of Harrow. I started my career in a small country butcher shop as a teenager. Since then, I’ve dedicated 20+ years... Read More →

Saturday November 12, 2022 1:30pm - 2:30pm EST
Southwestern Regional Gathering

Demonstration

Subject Livestock, Farm Business Management

4:30pm EST

Building Farmer and Chef Relationships

This discussion will explore the selling relationship between farmers and wholesale buyers such as distributors, restaurants and grocers. Come prepared to share your experiences! We want to hear about your successes and challenges selling or buying direct from farm to restaurant/retail. Share ideas, and hear from farmers and buyers that have successfully maintained these relationships. This discussion will be a moderated to keep the conversation positive and focused. Topics to consider: consistency of product, fitting menus to seasonal products, specialty varieties, weekly ordering systems.

Moderators

Chris Krucker

Manorun Organic Farm

Chris Krucker and his partner Denise own ManoRun Organic Farm in Hamilton. With their 4 children they have been growing vegetables and meats organically for 25 years. As part of helping to develop local food in Hamilton he was a founding member of the Dundas Farmer’s Market, the... Read More →

Saturday November 12, 2022 4:30pm - 5:30pm EST
Southwestern Regional Gathering

Concurrent

Subject Community & Culture, Farm Business Management

4:30pm EST

Game Changing Investments

What tools or investments have had the biggest impact on your farm? Come ready to share the top 2 or 3 pieces of equipment/tools/lifestyle changes that “changed the game” on your farm. This participatory discussion will help highlight some of the necessary (and unnecessary) investments for those looking to scale- up or just create a more efficient work environment.

Moderators

David Alexander

David Alexander has worked at Everdale since 2010 as the Farm ProgramsCoordinator. As with any small charitable organization, David has worn many hats over the years. One of his main tasks has been coordinating Everdale’s Harvest Share program, feeding hundreds of families fresh... Read More →

Saturday November 12, 2022 4:30pm - 5:30pm EST
Southwestern Regional Gathering

Meet-Up

Subject Farm Business Management, Field Crops, Livestock, Vegetables, Tillage Reduction

3:30pm EST

Farm Game Changers

Hear from a panel of veteran farmers about the “game changers” that have made the biggest impact on their farms over the years.

Speakers

Eric Blondin

Three Forks Farms

Eric Blondin and Peggy Baillie operate Three Forks Farm - a certified organic farm in Ice Lake, Manitoulin Island - where they produce mixed vegetables, chicken and garden seeds.

Dave Lewington

Dave Lewington operates Dalew Farms, along with his wife, Chantal, and their three children. This year marks their 18th season, and they are currently offering grass-fed, grass-finished beef & pasture-raised pork. All livestock and crops are raised using sustainable/regenerative agriculture... Read More →

Ryan Spence

Ryan Spence has been living and farming in northeastern Ontario for 12 years. He owns and operates Field Good Farms / La ferme j'me champs bien - a bio-intensive 5-acre vegetable operation in Cache Bay along with his wife, Isabelle. Field Good Farms is constantly evolving, but currently... Read More →

Saturday November 26, 2022 3:30pm - 5:00pm EST
Northeastern Regional Gathering

Concurrent

Subject Farm Business Management, Livestock, Field Crops, New & Aspiring Farmers, Soil Health, Vegetables

9:30am EST

Small-Scale Poultry Production in Practice

Hear from a panel of farmers who have been part of the CFO’s Artisanal Chicken Program for a number of years. Farmers to discuss the logistics of scaling up, how they sell their chicken, lessons learned from retail and wholesale, and navigating market challenges the last few years. Find out if you’re ready to up your flock!

Moderators

Peggy Baillie

Three Forks Farm

Peggy Baillie and Eric Blondin operate Three Forks Farm - a certified organic farm in Ice Lake, Manitoulin Island - where they produce mixed vegetables, chicken and garden seeds.

Speakers

Joshua Noiseux

Evermeadow Farm

Joshua Noiseux is the co-founder, along with Janita Wiersma, of Evermeadow Farm, in Cold Springs, Ontario. Evermeadow is the culmination of Josh and Janita's vision of the happy marriage of agricultural production and ecological conservation. Prior to Evermeadow, Josh taught ecological... Read More →

Jessica Pfisterer

Pfisterer Farm

Jessica Pfisterer along with her husband Ryan are first generation farmers in Wellington County farming their 100ac parcel since 2019. They have built a direct to consumer pasture based, grass fed meat business serving Waterloo, Wellington, and Dufferin counties. As Artisanal Chicken... Read More →

Bahaar Luhar

Bahaar and Shaheer operate Chicken Thika Farms, where they produce certified organic and Halal chicken through the artisanal chicken program, as well as farm fresh eggs.

Bahaar Luhar

Bahaar and Shaheer operate Chicken Thika Farms, where they produce certified organic and Halal chicken through the artisanal chicken program, as well as farm fresh eggs.

Wednesday December 7, 2022 9:30am - 11:00am EST
Online

Concurrent

Subject Livestock, Farm Business Management

12:30pm EST

Game Changing Investments

What tools or investments had the biggest impact on your farm? Come ready to share the top 2 or 3 pieces of equipment/tools/lifestyle changes that “changed the game” on your farm. This participatory discussion will help highlight some of the necessary (and unnecessary) investments for those looking to scale-up or just create a more efficient work environment.

Wednesday December 7, 2022 12:30pm - 2:00pm EST
Online

Meet-Up

Subject Farm Business Management

2:30pm EST

Making It Work: The First Five Years of Farming

Join this panel discussion among farmers in their first 5 years who will discuss the decision making processes that helped them navigate the beginning years of their farm. When you're starting off fresh with little infrastructure and no customer base, what shortcuts can be taken and what tough decisions might you need to make? Come glean some lived experience and lessons learned from a variety of new farmers that might help you make it work!

Speakers

Alvis Deeper Roots

Deeper Roots Farm

Deeper Roots Farm is a small scale vegetable farm operation ran by Alvis and Cady. While they grow a wide range of familiar crops, they specialize in growing cultural staples of the African Diaspora like Okra, Callalou and Bitter melon. They hope to expand the range of these cultural... Read More →

Cady

Deeper Roots Farm

Deeper Roots Farm is a small scale vegetable farm operation ran by Cady and Alvis. While they grow a wide range of familiar crops, they specialize in growing cultural staples of the African Diaspora like Okra, Callalou and Bitter melon. They hope to expand the range of these cultural... Read More →

Stuart Oke

Raised just outside of Kingston, Ontario Stuart grew up in a non-farming family. After an accidental season spent working on organic farms in Ireland, as a member of WWOOF, he turned to farming full time in 2009. Since then, Stuart has farmed throughout Ontario and in Quebec. He has had the privilege of learning from and apprenticing under some truly inspirational and professional farmers over the years spent growing vegetables. He is the current co-owner... Read More →

Aaliyah Fraser

Lucky Bug Farm

Aliyah is the owner and operator of Lucky Bug Farm, a one quarter acre market garden located on leased land just outside of Kitchener, Ontario. In her second growing season, Aliyah grew a variety of vegetables and herbs for a 30+ person CSA utilizing minimal tillage, ample compost... Read More →

Claire Poulton

Little Fields Farm

Claire founded Little Fields Farm in 2015 after spending several years as an intern on organic farms in Ontario and British Columbia. As a first-generation farmer, Claire’s passion for environmental sustainability, love of the outdoors, and love of food drew her to farming. Little... Read More →

Thursday December 8, 2022 2:30pm - 4:00pm EST
Online

Concurrent

Subject New & Aspiring Farmers, Farm Business Management

2:30pm EST

To Certify or Not To Certify

As ecologically-focused farmers in Ontario, there are many options when it comes to organic and similar certifications. However, those options can come with costs, constraints, and record-keeping and reporting commitments. Tune in to this session to hear about the opportunities, benefits and challenges of certification, and whether it could help your farm business. Learn about the best resources available, how to decide if it is right for you, and how to navigate the process--whether you are at the "just thinking" stage or have recently begun the process.

Speakers

Eric Payseur

Regional Event and Education Manager, Canadian Organic Growers

As an urban farmer, experiential educator and Organic Master Gardener, Eric has been growing food for over 20 years. He has taught courses on local sustainable food systems at McMaster University, St. Lawrence College, and the University of New Mexico and, most recently, Eric worked... Read More →

Thursday December 8, 2022 2:30pm - 4:00pm EST
Online

Concurrent

Subject Farm Business Management