Guelph ON – After over ten years of serving the agri-food sector in Ontario, the Agri-Food Management Institute (AMI) will be transferring its resources to industry allies and winding down its operations as a result of changes to its funding structure.
Farm Management Canada will take over the hosting of AMI’s online business management tools, resources and workshops so they can continue to provide value to farmers. Food Processing Skills Canada will be the new host of the online management tools for processors.
“We are extremely proud of AMI’s efforts to promote business management and develop tools and resources to help farmers and processors with business planning, management and strategic thinking,” says AMI Vice Chair Laurie Nicol. “I’m proud of the work our past and current board members have put into this organization; this was not an easy decision to make.”
Farm Management Canada has partnered with AMI on various projects in the past, making them an ideal host for the farm-related reports, online training tools and other resources that AMI has developed. Food Processing Skills Canada has effectively grown their training platform over the past several years and AMI’s online materials will complement their existing resources.
A 2016 study by AMI in partnership with Farm Management Canada established the first-ever link between farm business management and profitability, and identified the top seven habits of Canada’s most successful farmers. Other successful initiatives included the popular Advanced Farm Management Program, a series of regional food business-focused conferences, and a widely used program that supported the inclusion of business management topics and speakers on the agendas of industry events.
AMI had its start as a funding program dedicated to farm business management and administered by the Agricultural Adaptation Council. After becoming a stand-alone organization with support from the provincial and federal governments, AMI focused its activities on farm business management training and awareness, and eventually saw its mandate expand to include food and beverage processing businesses as well.
The Agri-food Management Institute will cease operations effective April 30, 2019 and encourages interested parties to contact Farm Management Canada or Food Processing Skills Canada for program or training information.
Source : AMI