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In This Issue
  • Breakfast from the Farm
  • London event - October 2, 2021
  • Ontario Agriculture Week- October 4-10, 2021
  • FFCO's Gala-in-a-Box - November 13, 2021
  • Festive Photo Contest
  • Pre-Order your Christmas cards today!
  • Virtual Food & Nutrition Forum - November 2, 2021
  • Two gold awards from the Canadian Farm Writers' Federation
  • Garden-in-a-Box support growing
  • FFCO welcomes new members
  • FFCO welcomes new partnership: Dumfries Mutual
  • Meet a Silver Member - Western Fair Association
Breakfast from the Farm - London

October 2, 2021

Following the success of the July and August Breakfast from the Farm events, FFCO is proud to partner with the Western Fair District and a group of local volunteers to host the final event in the series on October 2nd.This event is made possible by sponsors and partners who believe in the value of investing in their local community, and support these local initiatives. We're proud to have the support of our Guardian Level sponsors: Egg Farmers of Ontario, Burnbrae, Gray Ridge, New Life Mills and Gay Lea Foods. Follow along on social media on event day or visit this link to learn more about all events and event partners.
Ontario Agriculture Week

October 4-10, 2021
#OntAgWeek #LoveOntFood

This Ontario Agriculture Week, Farm & Food Care, 4-H Ontario and AgScape, join to celebrate All Things Food & Farming.

Ontario Agriculture Week is dedicated to celebrating the abundance of food our farmers produce, the hard working people this industry employs, the rural communities we support and the economic engine we fuel.

The three organizations, each in their unique way, are dedicated to furthering the appreciation of food and farming in Ontario. Together, they have collaborated to equip Ontario educators, parents and youth with tools to foster food literacy in the classroom, in the community, and at home.

FFCO has developed a graphics library for those in the industry to use to celebrate Ontario Agriculture Week. Graphics for Twitter, Facebook and Instagram can be found on for downloading here on a Shared Google drive. To follow activities, visit our website.

Read full press release here
Order your Gala-in-a-Box today!

November 13, 2021

Following last year’s transition to a virtual gala celebration, and with continued Covid protocols in place that prevent in-person events, Farm & Food Care Ontario (FFCO) is pleased to again invite you to join us for the 2021 virtual Gala-in-a-Box celebration, planned for Saturday, November 13th from 5 to 8 p.m.

Order your personalized Gala-in-a-Box package(s) today (each box is designed to serve two people).
 
Boxes will be delivered in the week before the event and will include key ingredients, collectible items and unique elements for participation on the day of the event. We hope that you will be able to join us.
 
Partnership opportunities are still available. Contact alicia@farmfoodcare.org to learn more
Mair family cooking along with guests in 2020
FFCO Festive Photo Contest

Between September 25th and October 25th, FFCO is hosting a festive food and farming holiday photo contest.

Submissions will be accepted to: contests@farmfoodcare.org and the three winning submissions will be awarded one free ticket to Farm & Food Care’s virtual Gala-in-a-Box celebration and a printed canvas featuring their winning photo (a $250 value). 

Winning photos will be featured in our holiday card campaign (details below).
                                                                 
Watch FFCO's website, Twitter and Facebook feeds for photo contest details.

Photo by Kim Bencich, submitted to the 2020 Real Dirt on Farming photo contest.
Pre-order your company Christmas cards today

The holiday season is coming and FFCO is here to help you celebrate.

Demonstrate your support of public trust and honour the impact your employees and stakeholders made this year in support of Ontario agriculture.

Donate to support Farm & Food Care’s mission of building public trust and receive a set of personalized and co-branded digital or physical holiday cards to send to your stakeholders this holiday season.

Donate $500+ and have a co-branded and personalized digital holiday card to send by email to your stakeholders.

Donate $1000+ (plus the cost of printing) for the chance to co-brand and personalize a printed holiday card to send by mail to your stakeholders.  

Cards will be ready November 1st. If you are interested in learning more or ordering contact alicia@farmfoodcare.org.
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Food & Nutrition Forum

November 3, 2021

Farm & Food Care organizations across Canada (Ontario, Saskatchewan and Prince Edward Island) will be partnering with the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair (RAWF) to host a virtual Food & Nutrition Forum on Tuesday, November 2, 2021 beginning at 11 a.m. Eastern.
 
Annually, the event held at the RAWF attracts Professional Home Economists, Registered Dietitians, dietetic instructors, nutritionists, chefs, culinary instructors, other health professionals and more. Again this year, the conference has been designed to appeal to a national audience of attendees across all time zones.
 
Keynote presentations will feature the topics of food waste, the role of Seasonal Agriculture Workers in Canada, food trends and their future and the role of nutrition as we age.
 
Registration will open next week – the conference is free to attend. Watch www.FarmFoodCareON.org for registration details and a full agenda.
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The Real Dirt on Farming, FFCO’s flagship publication, receives two gold awards from the Canadian Farm Writers' Federation.

In a virtual ceremony held September 24, the most recent edition of the booklet (published in 2020) placed first in the “Communication Long” category – awarded to the best publication of more than 750 words intended to provide information to a targeted audience about an agricultural topic.

The publication’s author Lilian Schaer and editor Madeline Rodrigue then received the prestigious award of “Communicator of the Year”, as judged by peers across Canada.

In October, with support from partners across Canada, 200,000 copies of the booklet are being distributed through newspapers including the Vancouver Province, Calgary Sun, Edmonton Sun, Saskatoon Star Phoenix, Regina Leader Post, Winnipeg Sun, National Post and Ottawa Citizen.

A new educator guide, created by Agriculture in the Classroom Canada, also provides classroom activities using the publication. The booklet can be downloaded, or copies ordered, at www.RealDirtonFarming.ca

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Garden-in-a-Box support growing!

Farm & Food Care Ontario (FFCO) is pleased to announce a gift of $5,000 in funding generously provided by the Ontario Agri Business Association in support of the 2022 Garden-in-a-Box and Farm & Food Care Facebook Garden Club Community.

These funds honour the longstanding legacy of The Fertilizer Institute of Ontario and support an initiative that aims to build connection, dialogue and appreciation of Ontario food and farming from the soil up. In selecting FFCO’s Garden project, OABA demonstrates meaningful support of this innovative program model and commits to the development of strong program content that connects the experience of Ontario farmers with that of home and patio gardeners in urban and suburban centers.

As part of this funding nominated OABA members and stakeholders will be invited to be part of our 2022 Garden Guild Committee, meeting quarterly to provide direction and meaningful resources to support a home gardening experience. Content featuring messages around soil health, pest management, nutrient inputs, and real life experience “from the field” will enrich the experience of over 500 Garden-in-a-Box program participants in 2022.

Farm & Food Care Ontario is seeking additional partners to support this program in 2022 with opportunities for agri-food partners to be part of curated garden kits and program development. For more information about the program or to indicate your interest in supporting this initiative, contact Alicia at alicia@farmfoodcare.org
 
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FFCO welcomes new partnership: Dumfries Mutual

Farm & Food Care Ontario (FFCO) is pleased to welcome Dumfries Mutual as its newest silver level member as well as a $20,000 partner in a number of initiatives throughout 2021 and 2022.

As part of its support, Dumfries Mutual will become a major ($10,000) supporter of the 2022 Garden in a Box program. In the second year of this initiative, the program will continue to build common ground and reciprocity with families and individuals across Ontario who are looking for an accessible urban gardening experience that will connect them with Ontario farmers. A season-long engagement initiative will provide meaningful programming for a community of box purchasers and Facebook users across Ontario.

Shelley Sutton, President and CEO said, “Dumfries Mutual is pleased to make this donation to Farm & Food Care’s outreach, education and fundraising initiatives.” She added, “helping the public to understand where our food comes from and have confidence in our food system are missions that are also critical to the livelihood of many of our policyholders, some of whom are FFCO members themselves. As a mutual insurance company, 100% owned by our policyholders, supporting our policyholders is the right thing to do.”

Dumfries Mutual’s contribution will also support the 2021 Gala-in-a-Box event, planned for November 13, 2021 and a number of events in 2022.

FFCO is grateful for this generous support and new meaningful partnership
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FFCO Welcomes new members
Gold:

Silver:

Supporter:
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Meet a Silver Member: Western Fair Association

Western Fair Association has deep roots in agriculture, bridging urban and rural communities through the on-going development of the agricultural industry and promoting its value to the urban community.
 
As an agricultural society, WFA has a responsibility to focus on the needs of the agricultural community and develop programs to meet those needs. Traditionally WFA agri-food educational programming has been in-person and delivered inside our events and facilities. With the challenges presented by the pandemic and the move to virtual formats almost overnight, agriculture partners had to lean in and support one another in delivering education in new ways.
 
Farm & Food Care Ontario was a valuable partner for WFA as we worked together, along with many in the industry to re-imagine and deliver agriculture and food education experiences. 
 
Though daunting at times, it has been a bonding experience and one that provides an example of how collaborative and supportive membership can be. Working together to reach consumers on screens in their homes was new for many. WFA was delighted to be asked by our friends at Farm & Food Care Ontario to help them bring a little bit of the farm to the city this fall. On October 2, 2021 one of FFCO’s Breakfast from the Farm Drive-thru events will take place inside the Western Fair District, and though this unique event was brought about once again by the challenges of the pandemic, together we saw opportunity to bring rural and urban audiences together to celebrate food and farming in a unique way and learned along the way we can do so much together.

Heather Blackwell, Director of Engagement
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