Grain Farmers of Ontario Thanks the Provincial Government for Recognizing Agriculture as an Essential Service

Mar 25, 2020

GUELPH, ON – Grain Farmers of Ontario, the province’s largest commodity organization, representing Ontario’s 28,000 barley, corn, oat, soybean and wheat farmers, today thanks the Government of Ontario and Premier Doug Ford for acknowledging agriculture, including farms and businesses that support farming, as an essential service.

Grain Farmers of Ontario would also like to congratulate Premier Ford on his leadership throughout this public health crisis.

“Ontario grain farmers will continue to fill the shelves for the public, but we do not do this alone, and we are pleased to see the provincial government acknowledge the importance of the entire food supply chain and support infrastructure. We remain committed to growing safe, healthy food,” said Markus Haerle, Chair, Grain Farmers of Ontario. “Grain Farmers of Ontario continues to remind our farmer-members to be vigilant about their part in flattening the curve during the COVID-19 crisis.”

Source : GFO

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.