SEASONS OF CHANGE


It feels that fall is finally upon us with this transitional season lighting up the tree canopy in oranges and reds to remind us that winter will soon be near. For Ben, a major transition at Cullen’s Foods has been coalescing as the towering sugar maple outside his office window sheds its leaves. As of October 1 (when you are likely reading this), Cullen’s Foods will be part of the Yorkshire Valley Farms family. 

Ben and Sam at the Guelph Organic Conference, 2019

For those of you who have been following this journey, Ben officially launched Cullen’s Foods at the Guelph Organic Conference in February of 2019, though the story began the previous fall. It was around this time of year that Ben was standing at his local natural food store when he saw that all the available organic beans were being imported from China.

Under an Oktoberfest beer tent in Kitchener, he shared those findings with three of his buddies from agriculture college, the following weekend. It was there that he made the first contract with friend and Cullen’s Foods Grower #1 Chad for the first crop of “Cullen’s Beans”. 

Chad and the first crop

From the beginning, the goal has been to provide “more local, more organic, more transparent” beans – a humble and nutritious food. With 15 acres worth of dried beans, much of it split and muddied, the feedback at that first organic conference was clear: most people eat canned beans. So in 2019, Ben tripled to 45 acres to meet the minimum production run with a cannery, Nationwide Canning in Cottam, Ontario.


By the time a 2019 crop was being turned into canned beans in early 2020, a pandemic was gripping the world. Ben’s distributor called in March, 2020 to say that the major investment in finished goods was going to have to hold tight: as retailers adapted to the quickly evolving realities, nobody was taking on new brands. Fast forward to May and the same distributor called again. Now people were hoarding canned beans, and Canada’s largest grocer had called. They wanted to launch the brand nationally as soon as possible.


That’s roughly how Cullen’s land under contract went from 45 acres to 450 acres in a year. It has been a white-knuckle ride which inverted the conventional wisdom of starting small and building your way up. 


Along the way, Ben has learned far more about beans and canning than he ever wished to know, while staying true to the original principles: as local as possible, as organic as possible, and honest as possible. There remains bios of every Cullen’s Foods grower at www.cullensfoods.com, accounting for every bean. 

In the meantime, Ben has become a father twice over and the world has changed yet again. Eventually, the practicalities of running this accidentally national brand as a one-person operation became apparent. It is time for Cullen’s to be part of something bigger.

Enter Yorkshire Valley Farms (YVF). Farmer-founded in 2010, YVF has grown to become Canada’s leading organic chicken, turkey and eggs brand. Ben’s first encounter with YVF came shortly after joining the board at the Organic Council of Ontario (OCO). James Sculthorpe, President of YVF, called Ben to introduce himself in his role at YVF and on the board at the Canadian Organic Trade Association. Ben would be joining the board at OCO with Krysten Cooper, Director of Strategy and Sustainability at YVF, with whom he would eventually co-chair the board for his last term. Ben has always thought of James and Krysten as “Class Presidents” for the organics in Ontario, and YVF as the exemplar of good corporate citizenship.


It was a natural fit when Ben called James in early 2024 and offered YVF the opportunity to get involved in the “whole-food, plant-based protein” business, in a manner consistent with the YVF ethos of Canadian organics. The ensuing “negotiation” of sale has been a friendly and fun discussion of opportunities, where Cullen’s will have access to larger corporate resources to reach its fullest potential.

This change will allow Ben more time to focus on his favourite part of the job: working with farmers to continue an even greater supply of home-grown organics. Hopefully, too, some other things…

As a final word, Ben wants to say thank you so much to our readers and supporters who haven’t just followed on this journey but also brought Cullen’s beans to their tables. Thanks, too, to his dad Mark and his mom Mary for the unwavering personal and professional support on the high seas of entrepreneurship.

Lastly, thanks to wife Sam for always riding those seas alongside. Who would have thought that starting a business could prove how much you are loved by those around you? The support means everything.

THINGS TO DO IN THE GARDEN

Dig and divide. It is not too late to dig up mature perennials and divide them into smaller portions to replant around your garden, or give to some unsuspecting recipients. Do this sooner rather than later.

 

Wrap fruit trees. Wrap the trunk of fruit trees with a plastic spiral guard to prevent rodent damage in winter. Mice and rabbits can wreak havoc on young, tender bark.

 

Plant garlic cloves. One clove about 4 cm deep and 10 cm apart. Use loose, open, sandy soil as they like water to drain away from them. Your garlic crop will be ready to harvest next August.

 

Plant tulips, daffodils, crocus, hyacinths and the like. The Dutch produce these in prodigious quantities and varieties so that our Canadian spring is worth waiting for.

 

Backfilling holes with asters, mums, rudbeckia, butterfly bush. If you haven't been to the garden center since May 24 weekend, give them another visit! Not only are the fall colours beautiful, but leftover perennials are also likely on sale and happy to be popped into your garden at this time of year.

 

Wrap evergreens with two layers of burlap (late in October or early November, depending on where you live). One layer to protect against the burning sun as it reflects off snow and another to protect evergreens from wind. This is especially true for cedars, junipers and like, that are on the east side of a road, where they catch the prevailing west wind with salt spray.

 

After the first serious frost, dig up your dahlias and lay the 'bulbs' (tubers) in the sun to dry for a day or two. Store in a large, craft paper leaf bag with dry peat moss or shredded newspaper in a cool but DRY place.  Plan to plant them up in March for a repeat performance next season.

 

Do not cut back fall flowering ornamental grasses, coneflower, rudebeckia and all of the autumn flowering plants that produce a seed head. The birds will forage the seeds well past the first snow fall.

 

Thickening the lawn. Grass is a cool season crop, so this is the perfect time of year to cover patches and improve your lawn's competitiveness against weeds.

 

Top-dress gardens with compost. Remember, 'digging in' compost is a thing of the past - all that disruption is just bad for the soil. Simply apply the compost to the surface of the soil and let the worms do the hard work of pulling it into the root zone.

 

Fallen leaves: mulch & rake. That is, mulch them with the lawn mower and rake them into the garden. Per above, the earthworms are more than happy to feast on these and turn them into beneficial organic matter.

 

Harvest. Any time now, frost is going to finish off your veggie garden, so start collecting those pumpkins and squash. By now, your pumpkins will be pretty maxed out for size, so take a minute to appreciate what you've accomplished.

 

Look for the new edition of Harrowsmith Almanac. Amazingly packed with essential information. https://www.harrowsmithmag.com/subscribe

TREES FOR LIFE FEATURED IN THE GLOBE AND MAIL

I am so proud of Trees For Life. Our team is amazing! 

Thank you, Globe and Mail.

BIRDS IN FOCUS:

Get ready for Project FeederWatch

By: Jody Allair

Your observations of birds out your window can really help the conservation of Canada’s birds. Project FeederWatch is a North America wide winter survey of backyard birds. You don’t have to be an expert to participate and you don’t even have to go outside. Observe the birds at a local green space or out your window while you have your morning coffee – warmed by the knowledge that you’re contributing to the monitoring of the birds that you spend so much time enjoying.

Pileated Woodpecker

Photo credit: Jody Allair

Last year, more than 30,000 people across North America watched the birds in their backyards or local green space and turned their observations into scientific discoveries. Now in its 38th year, FeederWatch has long term trend data that just keeps getting better with every year. We can see which birds are doing well and which ones need our conservation attention. Drawing attention to those in trouble can only help to protect these birds. Whether you see one American Robin in your backyard or a dozen Pine Siskins, it is really valuable information as it helps us build a picture of how our birds are doing from one year to the next.

The FeederWatch season starts November 1st. Taking part in Project FeederWatch is really easy and surprisingly addictive. You don’t need a feeder and you don’t need to be an expert to participate! Participants just need to sign up, count the birds outside, and submit results online or by using the Project FeederWatch mobile app. In Canada, participants make a donation of any amount to Birds Canada at birdscanada.org/feederwatch then can sign up online, or call toll-free: 888-448-2473.


Good Birding!


Jody Allair

Director of Communications

Birds Canada

Connect with me on Instagram and X at: @JodyAllair

Harrowsmith’s FEATURE RECIPE

Prince Edward Island Corn Pie


This is a recipe which adapted from a centuries old Nantucket recipe. In the Nantucket version from the 19th century was known as a pudding and made with bacon fat and hard tack crust, and then later with a buttery oyster cracker topping.

https://www.harrowsmithmag.com/9391/prince-edward-island-corn-pie


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