LOCAL HEADLINES

Attendees at the Grain Farmers of Ontario District 5 (Elgin/Norfolk) received insight into the latest on the fertilizer market from the head of the country’s largest farm co-operative.

There’s a few common reactions when visitors to Transitions Acres first encounter the horses. Sometimes they’ll stop in their tracks, mesmerized.

Some things just don’t seem like they would go well together, such as black currants and Norfolk County’s sandy loam soil, or school teachers and farming. However, for Vittoria’s Russel Blake, those four things have combined along with many learning experiences, and a constant willingness to evolve to formulate his career over the last 25 years.

When they moved to a small, Hartford-area acreage in 2008, newlyweds Nick and Hilary VanderHeide asked, “How can we make some money from this acreage?”

Agritourism Ontario (AO) Chief Executive Officer Kevin Vallier was permitted a quiet moment of celebration this past December on the one-year anniversary of provincial Bill 186, The Growing Agri-Tourism Act.

It was anything but a barrel of laughs. But a 50-gallon shipping container provided a welcome layer of protection as Hurricane Melissa destroyed Dwayne Demontagnac’s Black River-area, Jamaica house around him.

Potatoes are a staple for Canada’s agricultural industry. In 2024, there were over 127 million hundredweight of potatoes produced across the country.

Several months after settling into another location at the fairgrounds, most of the approximately 30 indoor vendors at the Simcoe Farmers’ Market report that they’re happy with the change.

Despite its name, the spotted lanternfly isn’t actually a fly. Moreover, while it may look like a moth, it doesn’t fall into that category, either. In truth, these insects are plant hoppers, more closely related to stink bugs or water bugs.

When Rebecca Compton needs a break from farming, she finds it through, well, more farming.

Veteran cattle exhibitor Corner Jackson of Edgewater Farm, Caledonia, continues to win in the Canadian beef cattle show circuit.

Pets can add so much to a home and soon become another ‘member’ of our family. We feed them, care for them and love them on a daily basis but, sometimes, we might need to leave them at home for work or holidays. You want to know that, if you can’t be there for them, someone trustworthy and caring will be there to help you out.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) is a serious threat, which is why the Canadian government puts a lot of effort into preventing it from spreading when it’s detected.

There will be plenty of horsepower October 7-13th in Simcoe as the kind with hooves, manes and tails compete at the Norfolk County Fair and Horse Show!

When it comes to agriculture in Canada, tobacco is a bit of an anomaly, because it doesn’t really matter whether you talk about it in terms of provincial or national production – the bulk of the growing happens in Norfolk and Elgin counties.

Wine and cheese were merely the appetizers. The main menu items at the Jamaican Liaison Service’s (JLS) Agricultural and Tourism Forum were staple specialties of the Caribbean island nation: sun, sand and surf, and access to a skilled and committed labour force through the Seasonal Agricultural Workers and Ag-Stream Programs.

When Ag Day returned to Hagersville on June 6 as part of the town’s 150th anniversary celebrations, Larry Davis was there for the opening ceremonies, giving the official proclamation as town crier.

Top-notch rodeo and two top country acts are on tap for the Norfolk Rodeo on July 18, 19 and 20. About 8,000 people attended the rodeo last year, making it the county’s largest county’s largest agriculture and country themed event outside of the Norfolk County Fair.

In Scott Sowden’s opinion, when it comes to loving horses, “You’re born with it. It’s not something that people learn; I think it’s in your blood.”

The recent tariffs imposed by the United States and threats to absorb Canada as the “51 state” has united Canadians to “Buy Canadian.” However, whether or not customers are pulling out their chequebooks to support local farmers’ markets depends upon whom you talk to.