Ontario’s ag community lending its support to documentary project

Aug 18, 2017
By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content, Farms.com

Before the Plate traces a dish of food back to the farm

By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content
Farms.com

A documentary aimed at showing the origins of a plate of food as livestock or crops on a farm is receiving great support from Ontario’s agricultural community.

“The response from the ag community has been overwhelming,” Dylan Sher, Before the Plate’s creator turned producer, told Farms.com today. “Everything is going better than planned.”

Sher and his team recently wrapped up their 14^th of 25 scheduled shoot days. A number of producers and agribusinesses agreed to be part of the project.

trailer_btp_day2_v1 from Sweet Tooth Digital on Vimeo.

“Our vegetables are coming from Hillside Gardens in the Holland Marsh, our wheat is coming from P & H Milling, our steak is coming from VG Meats and we have honey from Osprey Bluffs.

Before The Plate Teaser #1 from Before The Plate on Vimeo.

“And Zimmer Air Services donated two helicopters for us. It’s great there’s people like that in the ag community that understand what we’re trying to do.”

In addition to receiving support from farmers, Before the Plate is also working closely with members of Toronto’s trendy food scene.

“We’ve partnered up with the Oliver and Bonacini restaurant group,” Sher said. “They own and operate about 21 restaurants in Toronto and their flagship restaurant is called Canoe. We’re taking our plate of food from that restaurant and tracing it all the way back to the farms it came from.”

Partnering with a well-respected restaurant can only help the film reach its ultimate destination, Sher said.

Screening the movie at the “Toronto International Film Festival is our goal,” Sher said. “We have to submit the film by May of 2018, so our drop dead date for filming this year is November 30.”

Anyone interested in donating to the project can do so by visiting Before the Plate’s website.

Farms.com has reached out to some of the agribusiness involved with the project for comments on the importance of the project.

Video: Agriculture Secretary Rollins Speaks at American Farm Bureau Federation Convention in Anaheim

One of the highlights at the 2026 American Farm Bureau Federation Convention in Anaheim, California, was an address by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins. During her remarks, she thanked America’s farmers and ranchers and said the Trump Administration is fully aware that food security is national security.

She also acknowledged the challenging times in Farm Country with low commodity prices and high input costs and said that’s why the President stepped in to help with the recent Bridge Assistance Program.

Montana Farm Bureau Federation Executive Vice President Scott Kulbeck says that Farm Bureau members are appreciative of the help and looks forward to working with the American Farm Bureau Federation and its presence in Washington, DC to keep farmers and ranchers in business.

Secretary Rollins said the Trump Administration is also committed to helping ranchers build back America’s cattle herd while also providing more high-quality U.S. beef at the meat case for consumers.

And she also announced more assistance for specialty crop producers who only received a fraction of the $12 billion Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA).

It’s important to note that producers who qualify for Farmer Bridge Assistance can expect the Farm Service Agency to start issuing payments in late February. For more information, farmers and ranchers are encouraged to contact their local USDA Service Center.