Following statistical analysis of five performance trials in south-western Ontario in the fall of 2018, the Ontario Corn Committee (OCC) determined that some corn hybrids differ significantly in their susceptibility to DON. Spurred by the findings, the committee has voted to conduct voluntary inoculated trials for rating hybrids for susceptibility to DON accumulation at Ridgetown... Read More

Jim Denys, a Middlesex County farmer, and Anne Verhallen, a long-time provincial government soil specialist, have been named recipients of the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association (OSCIA)'s Soil Champion Award. The award recognizes leaders in sustainable soil management. This is the first time the association has presented its award to multiple recipients. “We are... Read More

The Ontario government has announced changes to the Commodity Loan Guarantee Program (CLGP) to help farmers affected by abnormally high levels of deoxynivalenol (DON) in the 2018 corn crop. The CLGP provides access to short-term operating loans for the purchase of crop input supplies, such as seed, fertilizer, and pesticides. It is administered on behalf... Read More

Ontario's provincial government, in partnership with the federal government, has announced updates to the Ontario Wildlife Damage Compensation Program. The compensation program was significantly changed under the previous Liberal provincial government, leading to a dramatic increase in rejected claims, higher fees, and much longer wait times to receive approved compensation. After consulting with farmers and... Read More

Ontario's government has announced a proposal to streamline and modernize the Farm Business Registration Program by moving the program to electronic delivery and a simplified registration process. The proposal to reduce red tape for farmers is part of the Restoring Ontario's Competitiveness Act, the second in a series of bills targeted at getting government "out... Read More

Oat and corn research projects through the Canadian Field Crop Research Alliance (CFCRA) recently received $4.1 million over five years to support national projects. The federal funding will support CFCRA's work in developing new oat varieties, enhance breeding efforts, and inform new agronomic practices to help improve productivity, stability of yields, consistency, and quality. Funding... Read More

The construction of a new Ontario Sustainable Crop Research and Innovation Centre just got a boost in funding thanks to AGRIS Co-operative. The new building will be located at the University of Guelph’s Ridgetown Campus. The proposed centre will have a focus on sustainable cropping priorities for Ontario producers and will feature state-of-the-art research suites,... Read More

The Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Collaborative (PRC) collaboration, led by the Ontario Federation of Agriculture, is set to evaluate technologies that remove phosphorus which could end up in Lake Erie from agricultural water run-off and drainage water. The project is being made possible through funding from the Canadian Agricultural Partnership (CAP). The project will establish... Read More