Northern Ontario Ag Conference dates set

Jan 25, 2022

Annual conference is organized by the Northern Ontario Food Innovation Alliance.

Mark your calendar for the 2022 Northern Ontario Ag Conference set to happen on February 17-18, 2022—virtually.

Although details have yet to be announced, the annual conference organized by the Northern Ontario Food Innovation Alliance (NOFIA) has in the past provided a venue for local-area producers and researchers to share agricultural research and best practices for use in the specific clime of Northern Ontario.

Registration is free for the virtual event.

Originally scheduled as an in-person event, NOFIA has shifted gears towards having it continue in 2022 as a virtual expo—which is why details about the event, including the roster of speakers, topics, and registration, will be made available soon.

Founded in 2014, NOFIA is a non-profit agricultural organization that provides a research and innovation infrastructure specific to agriculture in Northern Ontario by creating partnerships with various groups to research, innovate and commercialize agricultural products and technologies for effective use in the area.

For information on NOFIA, visit https://www.nofia-agri.com/.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.