ewsletter
Table of Contents:
Message from ACORN Executive Director
Conference Highlights
Quebec’s CSA Network
Small-Scale Organic Working Group
Project Updates
Volunteer of the Season, Price Tracker
Seasonal Food Fix
Edited by Erin Orsztynova
The Voice of Organics in Atlantic Canada
Photo by Stacy Cory Corkum, Highland Farms, NS
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
Welcome to 2015! Doesn’t the anticipation of the unknown
challenges and successes yet to come carry a certain
excitement with it? This season of armchair/kitchen table
farming, of planning and ideas and dreams, is such a hopeful
time of year.
I’m certain that if you attended the ACORN Conference this
year, you came away from it with a few new ideas, or at least
some food for thought. With record-breaking attendance,
many really exceptional speakers, and the biggest trade show
yet, it is an exciting time to be an organic farmer in Atlantic
Canada. I hope that everyone filled out an evaluation form to
help guide the shape and form of future conferences as
ACORN continues to evolve as necessary to serve the needs of
farmers in the region, both organic and otherwise. As organic
demand continues to rise and farmers aim to serve CSAs and
diverse markets, growing cooperation and collaboration
between the organic community and conventional agriculture
is becoming increasingly necessary and is a great area for
continued growth of organics in the region.
With that in mind, I would like to suggest that we not let our
‘organicness’ be a blind spot when we consider ourselves in
the wider picture of agriculture. As Av Singh often says,
“organics is a community,” and like any community, we want
to make ourselves welcoming, approachable and fun, and
from that, we hope to grow our community or at least share
our ideals and foster valuable discussion and efforts towards
healthier soils, food, and people.
And speaking of soils: as 2015 is the United Nations’
International Year of the Soils, I think we as organic farmers
have a particular role to play this year. There will always be
debate about tillage and management choices that affect soil
structure, but I hope we can all agree that, as organic farmers
in particular, we should have soil health at the fore of all our
work. I’ve heard it said that while conventional farmers are
producing crops, organic farmers are producing soil, and that
their crops are an indicator of their soil health. This is a truly
beautiful concept and one that I try to remember on our farm
(while tidying year-end book work). For the love of the soil.
May this find you cozily surrounded by colourful seed
catalogues, tidy rotation charts and/or DVDs, podcasts,
webinars, books, and magazines that make all your goals feel
that much closer to reality.
Warmly,
-Sally Bernard, Barnyard Organics
MESSAGE FROM ACORN’S
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
It’s 2015, and ACORN
officially turns 15 years old!
We ’ r e w e l l i n t o o u r
CELEBRATING 15 YEARS!
adolescent years now.
Certainly that’s a sign of
some maturity!
After 15 successful years, it’s time to reflect
on and celebrate some of ACORN’s
accomplishments, as well as plan ahead for a
very different funding climate for
organizations like ours.
ACORN has developed a reputation for our
focused efforts in education, events, and
networking, all of which, I’m happy to report,
fit in quite nicely with our Mission Statement:
In fact, ACORN has been involved in the
organization of hundreds of workshops since
the very beginning. Last year alone, ACORN
hosted over 25 training events, from provincial
•Facilitating information exchange
between and amongst organizations and
individuals
•Coordinating non-formal education for
producers through to consumers
•Networking with all interested parties
both regionally and nationally
forums and technical workshops to
educational field tours on grain and pest and
weed management, as well as a full-day
Beginner Farmer Symposium and assisting
with an education mission to Quebec!
Admittedly, it was surprising for me to see the
final tally, as it averages into two events every
single month of the year. Throw in five in-
person kitchen table meetings and eight
webinars, and you’ve got yourself a very busy
office working for you!
Over the years, we’ve watched organics as
an industry and community grow. Since
2002, when ACORN first started collecting
statistics on organics, the number of
organic farms increased by 30%. This is
the result of considerable changes, namely the
new Canadian Organic Products Regulations
and, just as importantly, the retirement of the
Baby Boomer generation of farmers who
pioneered the organic movement in Atlantic
Canada.
Alongside this growth in organics, ACORN
has grown, too. We have gone from one core
employee to a busy-bee team of six essential
professionals. They have become experts in
information sharing, coordination, and
networking through their extraordinary
dedication to advancing organics in Atlantic
Canada, and have all been with the
organization for at least two years.
This growth spurt has coincided with a
strong increase in the interest in organic
production methods. This increase, in turn,
has resulted in a significant growth in the
number of attendees at our annual organic
conference. In fact, in the last 10 years, the
ACORN conference has doubled in size,
regularly attracting over 500 participants (550
in 2014!).
As participation in this event has grown, so
have our requirements to make the conference
a success:
- increasingly larger venues have to be
negotiated, to the point where hotel
conference venues are the only options large
enough;
- 100% organic food-sourcing for such a large
one-time event is a monumental task. Our
farmers met the challenge in 2014 by
supplying local organic options for over 930
meals!;
- Our growing numbers also mean we need
more staff support and volunteers to pull it
off smoothly,
as well as more partners,
sponsors and donors.
To elaborate on this last point a bit, despite
the growing interest in organics, ACORN, like
all of our fellow agriculture non-profits, are
being led into a new funding landscape where
Effective January 2015* only Farm, Business
and Sponsor members are eligible for discounts at
ACORN events. When renewing your
membership in 2015 please take this into
consideration. *Note this change in membership
structure was approved in 2014 at the board level and
is being integrated this year. Thanks for supporting
ACORN!
Issue 55
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we must become more reliant on our
community of supporters to make things
happen. In government terms, this means that
ACORN must move to an “industrysupported” model. As a result, ACORN has
been turning to our many partners and
sponsors, without whom, I must stress,
ACORN would not be able to succeed in
hosting an event such as the conference, or be
as successful in the many ventures we take on
in a year. In recognition of their contribution,
on the back of this newsletter, we have
included the logos of our generous sponsors
and donors, as well as our trade show
exhibitors who all play an important part in
making the conference a success. As an
organization, I think we should be very proud
of this list, the quality of our sponsors and
contributors is a testament to the work we do
and the networks we are building!
Moreover, ACORN’s members should be
very proud that our organic conference is
indeed the LARGEST ANNUAL
AGRICULTURE EVENT IN ATLANTIC
CANADA. That fact alone has a lot to say
about the future of farming in our region. Let’s
keep it up. Let’s flood our agriculture sector
with the energy of organics: the
resourcefulness, the importance of growing
healthy soil and healthy ecosystems full of
diversity, and most importantly, growing that
feeling of community that flourishes as a
result of such a fun-filled event.
- Theresa Richards
***
For those of you who were able to attend the
conference this year, our welcome packages
included a 6-month (+) ACORN Calendar of
Events. All of the information is now available
on our website, but in the immediate future,
here are some events not to miss!
U pc o m i ng A C O RN E ve nt s
JAN 28 - NS Maritime Organic Grains Network (MOGN)
Kitchen-Table Meeting GRAND-PRE
JAN 28 - The 2nd NS Organic Forum WOLFVILLE
FARMERS’ MARKET
FEB 4 - PEI Kitchen-Table Meeting
FEB 3, 10 & 17 - The Organic Standards Webinar Series
ONLINE
FEB 16 - The 8th NB Organic Forum FREDERICTON
FEB 24 - The MOGN Workshop & Farmer Roundtable
CHARLOTTETOWN
STAY TUNED AT :
www.acornorganic.org
Quarterly Organic Newsletter
2014 ACORN Conference Highlights
HERMAN MENTINK WINS GERRIT
LOO AWARD!
Herman Mentink is the
recipient of the 2014 Gerrit
Loo Memorial Achievement
Award, as presented by Gerrit
Loo’s grandson, Patrick Kelly.
A long-time dedicated organic
dairy farmer, now retired,
Herman was an early adopter
of organic values.
After practicing organic
production principles on his
Nova Scotia mixed dairy and
grain operation for decades,
Herman certified his farm in
the early 2000s. This
remarkable fact is a testament
to Herman’s dedication to
organics, as he underwent the
process of annual certification
even though he was never
able to receive any premiums
or acknowledgement for his
organic milk, which was
mixed in with conventional
milk and sold to the dairy
board, like all milk is to this
day.
Even in his retirement,
Herman continues to pioneer
for organics, and played an
important role in the late East
Coast Organic Milk Cooperative.
We’re proud to honour such
a deserving candidate with
this award to recognize his
outstanding contributions to
organic agriculture in Atlantic
Canada!
Issue 55
WHO REALLY FEEDS THE WORLD?
D r. Va n d a n a S h i v a ’ s
impassioned presence was
made possible through the
collaboration and effort of
many people, especially Dr.
Av Singh who coordinated the
effort. Other crucial factors
was the involvement of Food
Secure Canada (FSC) and the
sponsors they secured, as well
as generous contributions
from Development and Peace.
In an exciting first, Halifax’s
Canadian School of Natural
N u t r i t i o n s p o n s o re d D r.
Shiva’s talk, bringing their
own perspective and voice to
the conversation about
healthy food on a healthy
planet.
This conversation was at the
core of Dr. Shiva’s talk: she
acknowledged that 70% of the
world’s food supply is grown
by small, diverse, family-run
farms, a stark contrast to the
industrial farms that claim to
feed the world yet are, in fact,
contributing to a loss of
biodiversity and polluting
75% of the world’s fresh water
supply.
Although there were many
gems from her talk, the quote
that stuck out the most for us
was her claim that “Nova
Scotia is more exciting than
Ontario, than any part of
Canada. ... The centres are
shifting to where we sow love,
to where we create
community, to where we
refuse to give up.”
GENEROUS CONTRIBUTIONS
VOLUNTEERS:
The
enthusiasm and endless effort
offered up by our team of 65
volunteers is what made the
ACORN conference possible.
Sporting complementary
organic t-shirts, this year’s
volunteers were the best
group of volunteers ever!
Thank you!
SILENT AUCTION:
This
year’s silent auction featured
some of the most amazing
contributions from over 30
businesses. Special thanks to
our auction donors who
helped us pull off the most
successful auction yet!
Together, we raised $3000 in
support of ACORN's
programs and projects.
PA RT N E R S : T h i s y e a r ’ s
conference featured a special
partnership with FSC. This
partnership extended our
regional reach to a national
audience, and helped us
increase attendance, afford
bigger speakers (i.e. Dr.
Shiva), and gain advantages of
scale while negotiating the
hotel contract. This and other
partnerships enriched our
program with features such as
the ACORN/FSC overlap day,
the Heritage Breeds
Symposium sponsored by
Rare Breeds Canada, and the
Farmers’ Market sessions
developed in collaboration
with Farmers’ Markets of
Nova Scotia. Thanks partners!
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ORGANIC KICK-OFF PARTY
ACORN’s crew and friends
packed the Historic Brewery
Market in a laughter-filled
opportunity to catch up on the
season's challenges and
successes, and of course to
celebrate the launch of the
2014 ACORN Conference! The
night featured a wonderful
selection of organic food and
drink, including the all-local
o r g a n i c b a r, f e a t u r i n g
generously donated brews
from our regional organic craft
breweries including
Picaroons, Big Spruce,
Tatamagouche, and Propeller,
as well as lovely organic
wines from Nova Scotia’s only
certified organic winery,
L’Acadie Vineyards. Local
Source Market, Schoolhouse
Gluten-Free Gourmet, and
Fruition Raw Foods supplied
delicious appetizers (loved
those potato rostis), and Just
Us! Coffee provided a
selection of hot chocolate
beverages. People even
danced (!) thanks to our
musical guest, Mermicorn,
and had their photos taken in
the special Farmer Photo
Booth, designed by our allstar volunteers! All in all, the
event was a huge success,
drawing hundreds of
conference-goers and
Haligonians to a historic
agricultural landmark in the
region. Thanks to all who
contributed to the wonderful
night! WINTER 2015
Photo by Stacy Cory Corkum
HERITAGE BREEDS & HIGHLAND
CATTLE
The Heritage Breeds stream of
workshops at the conference was a hit,
featuring speakers involved with Rare
Breeds Canada: Elwood Quinn, Pamela
Heath, and author Harry Stoddart. The
room, set up for 80 participants, was
packed. More chairs were added so at
least 20 more people could cram into the
room. No doubt this is a reflection of the
importance we give rare and heritage
breeds in our community, and ACORN
would love to see a stronger presence
and support for our national Rare Breeds
Canada organization, who work on a
shoe-string budget to maintain important
populations of heritage livestock in our
country.
According to Stacy Cory Corkum,
farmer at Nova Scotia’s Hidden Meadow
Farm, rare and heritage breeds have an
important role to play in our current
agriculture system. Included here is an
abbreviated version of her take on the
importance and applicability of
Highland Cattle on a Nova Scotia farm.
***
"To most people, the Highlander is a longhorned, shaggy-coated, ferocious wild
animal..."
-British Highland Breeders’ Journal
Captivated by their unique, majestic
appearance, despite their ferociouslooking horns, Scottish Highland Cattle
are anything but; in fact, they are more
like big puppy dogs with personable,
docile demeanours.
The Highlander is legendary for its
hardiness, its vigour in cold weather, and
its ability to thrive on the roughest of
terrain, making them a perfect choice to
Issue 55
raise in Nova Scotia, also known as "New catch... they must still be here!
Scotland."
In fact, the Highlander seems custom- "The Highland breed suffers from too many
bred for Atlantic Canada’s harsh climate, enthusiasts and far too few practical
having been originally bred in the breeders."
Scottish Highlands and western islands, (A.Buchanan,1961)
areas known for their harsh winters. As
illustrated by the cover photo in this Stacy Cory Corkum
newsletter, Highlanders prefer to be
outdoors in almost any weather. In fact,
the cattle in that photo chose the outdoor A FEW WORDS FROM THE FARM
ice-storm over their cozy barn!
BEFORE BEDTIME... BY JOHN QUIMBY
Unlike many modern breeds,
Highlanders are one of the most self- (Or “Notes from a drunken man on some
sufficient breeds of cattle, and can thrive Halifax beer”. For those who don't know
on grass alone.
Stan Rodgers, look up "Barrett’s
Once known as a dual-purpose breed
used for both beef and milk, with a Privateers"!)
butterfat content of 10% Highlanders are So I've recently returned from Halifax
now known primarily as a beef breed. and the ACORN Conference. Three days
Their ability to convert poor grazing into of intensive workshops on organic
marbled and tender prime beef that’s a farming, marketing, and networking
third lower in fat and cholesterol than with farmers, government leaders,
other breeds make them a contender for scientists, organizers and educators. I'll
the most discriminating palate. Queen spare you the dry stuff and go right for
Elizabeth herself has her own fold of the meat.
Highland cattle at Balmoral Estate!
On the last night of the conference,
Highlanders are known to be easy several sponsoring micro-brewers
calvers and excellent mothers, raising opened craft brew kegs free for ACORN
calves into their late teens to early 20s. members in a post-conference party at
Abandoned calves are unheard of, even
with first-time mothers.
Continued on the following page
The industrialization of
agriculture has helped keep
down the price of food, but
the cost has become much
greater.
The consequence: the
FFM offers competitive contracts for food and feed
extinction of many breeds of
grade products year-round to producers and
livestock.
customers.
It is estimated that 190
breeds of livestock have
become extinct in the past
• Organic Soybeans
• Organic Oats
15 years alone, with another
• Organic Wheat
• Organic Spelt
1500 at risk, including the
• Organic Rye
• Organic Flax
Scottish Highland.
• Organic Barley
• Organic Buckwheat
The ability to survive on
marginal land may one day
become an important factor
25 years of grain trading experience. Licensed Grain
in beef production that
Dealer. FFM pays in 10 days!
cannot be ignored. If a time
should arrive that all grain
For current pricing or contract information, please
production must go to feed
contact us:
a starving world, only those
breeds of livestock capable
(519) 882-2976 • Nathan Welch • [email protected]
of producing without high
energy feed input will be
useful. But there is only one
4 of 12
www.FIELDFARMS .ca
Quarterly Organic Newsletter
the conference hotel. It was where I got to
mingle with and thank ACORN staff,
catch up on gossip about the sudden
retirement of Prince Edward Island's
Liberal Premier Robert Ghiz, see
normally taciturn farmers get loose in a
luxury hotel, and swap stories as only
Maritimers seem to do. It was quite an
evening and we closed the place a little
after 2AM. The hotel security gent
cheerfully led us out so staff could go
home and guests would not be disturbed.
He handled us like a dear old uncle who
had just hosted a late night card party at
his home. Good wishes to all and good
night.
Four of us were not guests at the hotel
but were quartered up the road at my
son's residence. (And that's a story for
some other time.) We had wisely left the
car parked and walked from the
waterfront towards home, nursing one
last round smuggled out of the hotel.
Halifax is an old port city and it reminds
Spencer and me of San Francisco. Lots of
steep hills up from the waterfront. And
it's a city you can walk. Even if you've
had a few. So we did.
We left the hotel and walked past the
dockyard where Canada's Atlantic Fleet
is based. Earlier in the day I'd seen young
sea cadets arriving in uniform for
training, and it reminded me of Spencer's
time in cadets.
The four of us, jolly and well charged
with organic beer, made our way up the
hills. We had a lively chat about all the
classes we sat in on, the people we met,
the interests we found, the presenters
who gave us years of experience from
their Powerpoints. And we stopped for a
bit just before we arrived home. And
that's when things got serious.
We were four inebriated small farmers
who had just been through an intense
three-day conference that covered issues
relating to you, your food, your health
and our sustainability as farmers and
consumers and humans on the planet.
In the wee hours we sat in a Shell station
parking lot and the conversation turned
to the realities and the possibilities of the
future. We small farmers talked about
giving away small kits of heirloom seeds
we grow with simple instructions so
anyone can plant and grow something to
eat. Direct action to reconnect people
with their food.
We talked about making it possible for
small enterprise to grow food and create
new opportunity for more small farmers
in North America. We talked creative
strategies. Let’s get young farmers started
on small acreage to replace old farmers
retiring on large acreage.
We talked until 3 AM.
And one of our party, bless him, turned
to me and said, "Your stories! I've had
people who aren't even connected with
farming tell me about your stories. What
you're doing, telling stories, is
important."
I can only reach so many people with
the fresh, nourishing food Susan and I
grow. And stories last longer than fresh
food. So I've shared a story about what
farmers really talk about in an unguarded
moment in Halifax. Because it's the same
as planting seeds.
Let's see what grows. - John Quimby, Dunn Creek Farm, PEI
!
!
MARKET &
DIETITIAN
SERVICES
CATERING
CAFÉ & WINE BAR
2530 Agricola Street ! www.localsourcemarket.com ! 902.454.6014
!
Issue 55
5 of 12
WINTER 2015
QUEBEC’S CSA NETWORK IN
ACTION By Theresa Richards & Tegan Renner
Imagine a young, hard-working, semianarchist idealist deciding, one day, to
become a farmer. Growing up in
Montreal, of all the most urban
locations, this young aspiring farmer
has little to no experience on an actual
farm, but plenty of gardening experience,
and an ethic for hard work and long
hours.
On top of that, our farming
candidate has a degree in medicinal
herbs, and has since developed a passion
for the importance of good wholesome
food as medicine. Sounds familiar, right?
Well, how do these farmers succeed?
Meet François D’Aoust
as of 2006. Here you’ve
got a combination of
passion and hard work,
which we all know can
go far, but pair François
with a strong network
of established CSA farms, and he’s leap
years ahead.
To his advantage Quebec had, and still
has, a strong CSA network called Réseau
des Fermiers de Famille (Family Farmers'
Network) which is hosted by Équiterre,
an NGO promoting citizen engagement
in positive environmental solutions (such
as eating local organic foods).
François leased land and, following
advice from fellow farmers involved
with Équiterre’s CSA network, started a
small CSA operation - Les Bontés de la
Vallée - with 30 shares, making deliveries
with his father’s minivan, and living in a
camper on site.
“Équiterre offered me training and
workshops with experienced farmers,
with crop planning advice and tools
available to grow for a CSA market,
succession crop planning, and growing
diverse crops,” says François, who made
it work, fast. Within just three years, he
grew his CSA from 30 to over 375
members, purchasing a nine-acre farm,
and managing five employees.
In his start-up years, François took on
the task of promoting his CSA by
himself, passing out flyers and
pamphlets in his neighbourhood. But as
his ambitions grew, he reached out and
became an official member of Équiterre’s
CSA network. To his surprise, he
discovered that his time-consuming
Issue 55
efforts to produce and distribute
pamphlets to solicit new shareholders
were basically useless, as his customer
surveys revealed that most people
connected to his CSA through the
network and their collective promotions.
From that perspective, membership
seemed to pay for itself.
Furthermore, François found that being
a member of this CSA network
emphasized the fact that what he did on
his farm affected how people everywhere
view CSAs in general, and being
involved connected him even more to
other CSA farmers in his region. With
this impact in mind, as his capacity grew,
quality became the number one priority.
Équiterre, with its emphasis on quality,
organic products and their history of
supporting struggling farms to increase
their production capacity and quality
(not to mention their reputation of
kicking farms out of the network that
don’t meet their quality standards), were
successfully creating a reputation of their
CSA member farms having extraordinary
value - value for their money, and value
for the quality of the items customers
were receiving.
For François, the support from Équiterre
allowed him to reach his ambitious goals.
Now, he concentrates on maintaining
and improving the quality and diversity
of his CSA shares, and credits Équiterre
and the corresponding network of
incredible, experienced organic farmers
with enhancing his knowledge and
training in such a short time period.
***
In December, ACORN hosted a series of
kitchen table meetings with François,
who now serves on Équiterre’s CSA
Network Advisory Committee, and
Équiterre’s CSA Network Coordinator
Isabelle Joncas. They represented both
the farmer and organizational
perspectives, allowing ACORN and
regional CSA farmers to get a
comprehensive picture of how a CSA
6 of 12
network can operate and benefit CSAs in
our region.
Discussion centred around exploring
how such an initiative could work in
Atlantic Canada, building off of what
ACORN has already started with the
online CSA Network (acornorganic.org/
csa).
Network-coordinated input supplier
discounts, joint promotional campaigns,
and a CSA start-up "crash course" for
beginner farmers are all benefits
Équiterre offers that were of interest to
the CSA farmers in attendance. Everyone
agreed that
the development of a
network would be an important
investment in the CSA movement as a
whole.
Major points of discussion surrounded
concerns about how to uphold quality
s t a n d a rd s a n d w h e t h e r n e t w o r k
membership should be open only to
certified organic farms. As mentioned,
Équiterre has created quality standards,
but they admit that enforcement is an
ongoing challenge.
To be a member of Équiterre, CSA farms
must be certified or in transition to
organic, approved by Équiterre's
Advisory Committee, and contribute an
annual flat fee of $175, plus an additional
$18/shareholder fee to their shares. This
fee allows Équiterre to engage in
promotional activities worth well over
the fee per farm, and passes on some of
that charge to the CSA customers.
The Équiterre model and these kitchen
table meetings are only the start of the
conversation. ACORN is continuing the
discussion, and has plans for a CSA
kitchen-table-meeting February 4 on PEI.
Likewise, we are forming an advisory
committee of CSA farmers to move
forward with the development of a CSA
network for Atlantic Canada. Stay tuned
for details in the months to come, and if
you have any input you'd like to give or
questions to ask, please be in touch with
[email protected].
Quarterly Organic Newsletter
Small-Scale Organic Working Group
By Shannon Jones
I know that I’m writing with a fairly
broad audience in mind, an audience of
world-changers and of highly
opinionated folks, so I’m writing to you
with the hopes that you’ll be inspired to
share your opinion on something a bit
controversial.
The background: I currently represent
ACORN on the Canadian Organic
Standards Technical Committee, and
we’re in the midst of a two-year revision
of the entire standard. All kinds of
interesting things are being discussed
(some with more heat than others). There
are also a bunch of working groups that
report back to the whole committee. One
of the working groups that I’ve joined is
a newer one, and it’s called the Working
Group on Small-Scale Organic
Certification. This group was started
because the Canadian General Standards
Board wanted to ensure that small- to
medium-sized businesses were being
considered and represented. There are
some very cool and committed people in
this working group, including the chair
Tony McQuail, a farmer from Meeting
Place Farm in Ontario who I’ve always
admired and respected a great deal.
The news: a survey was sent out to
farmers across Canada. Around 200
responses came in from both certified
and non-certified farmers. Research was
also done on different programs that
were created in different parts of the
world in response to some of the
challenges farmers were experiencing
with their national standards. Now, I’m sure we all realize that
nothing in this world is perfect. As
human beings, we seem incapable of all
agreeing on anything. The government
has its critics (thank goodness!), the
organic standard has its critics, and the
way each of us run our lives has its critics
(i.e., mothers-in-law). And that’s the way
it should be. I’m just mentioning this
because I know and you know that there
will never be any “perfect” system.
But, this working group on small-scale
organic certification has a goal to figure
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out some kind of solution so we’re not
leaving so many amazing, worldchanging, organic-believin’ farmers
behind as we move the organic industry
ahead.
And I would say that, in particular, the
working group is interested in hearing
from Atlantic Canadian farmers. Why?
Because a very large percentage of the
farmers who are certified organic or who
feel they are farming organically but are
not certified in Atlantic Canada are small
in scale and market directly to the eaters
of their products. So, in a way, we in
Atlantic Canada are the poster children
for this whole working group!
There are two proposals that have been
brought forward. One is a peer review
system. I’ve spoken to many of you who
miss the peer review component of
organic certification (from before the
National Organic Program came into
place). This system is also an attempt to
include one of the more appealing
aspects of the Certified Naturally Grown
program (Google it if you’ve never heard
of it), and it encourages community
mentorship and knowledge-sharing.
The second proposal is a selfdeclaration system. This is the least
expensive model (expense being one of
the strongest criticisms of organic
certification among both uncertified and
certified farmers). It is also the one that
I’m sure will have the most critics,
because it’s really based on trust. I’m not
going to defend this system, I’ll just say
this: There are pledges out there that I do
trust. Maybe I’m naive (I do think I am,
by the way, or maybe hopeful and
optimistic), but when I see that a seed
company has printed the Safe Seed
Pledge in their catalogue and on their
website, I feel like they’re sharing some
of their values with me. And since I have
those same values, it makes me more
inclined to buy from them.
I know that neither of these systems is
perfect, but I also know that I want the
government and the agricultural
community in general to know the true
7 of 12
value of the organic industry, the true
number of organic farmers, and how
much farmland is really under organic
production. I want all farmers using
organic management techniques to be
counted. Currently, the only way this is
being done is by counting the farms that
are certified (which, for some farmers, is
one of their reasons for certifying in the
first place). Without the “true” numbers,
there aren’t as many agricultural policies
or programs being created for organic
farmers as there might be.
You may be wondering why the
organic industry needs to include smallscale farmers. Well, the face of organic
farming is not the 1000-acre grain farmer
in Saskatchewan exporting to the United
States. It’s not the large-scale organic egg
farmer in Quebec supplying cartons of
eggs for all the superstores across
Canada. The faces the public think of
when they’re buying organic food are the
smiling faces of the family farmers they
see at their weekly farmers’ market, or
the sun-wrinkled face of their CSA
farmer, or the young scruffy farmer
delivering bins of gleaming vegetables to
the back door of their favourite
restaurant. The face (THE BRAND!) of
the whole organic industry sits on the
shoulders of the small-scale, directmarketing farmers!
My purpose in writing this article was
really just to introduce you to some of the
conversations happening around the
Canadian Organic Standards, and to try
to bait you to go onto the Organic
Federation of Canada website and check
out the blog post describing these two
proposed systems in greater detail. And
then to comment. Because you are all
world-changers and your comment
might just change the world (a little bit,
let’s not get carried away here!).
For more info and to let your voice be
heard, go to: http://ofcfbc.wordpress.com/
2014/10/30/to-certify-or-not-to-certify-theperspective-of-small-scale-organic-farmers/
- Shannon Jones, Broadfork Farm, NS
WINTER 2015
The Steps Before The Leap
ACORN’s yearly conference
has become a highlight for me
since my apprenticeship at
Hope Seeds in 2009.
Well,
actually, I missed last year’s
conference in Moncton
because I was frustrated by
my hesitation at committing
to starting a farming business.
But with the help of the SelfEmployment Benefits
Program run through the
Centre for Entrepreneurship
Education and Development
in Halifax, my aspirations are
looking more attainable. I’ve
been focusing on my smalls c a l e f a r m c a l l e d Tr e e
Phantom Arbour Farm since
August 2014. The conference
was a perfect place, as I knew,
to network and to bring
myself up to speed on the best
practices and other things I
haven’t thought about for
many years, like the
workshop I attended on the
Top Ten Mistakes Organic
Producers Make.
After this particular
workshop, I approached Tara
Scott, ACORN’s Organic
Transition Coordinator, to see
when they were having a
kitchen table meeting in my
area on the Eastern Shore of
Nova Scotia. They weren’t.
Now, I know I’m not the only
Issue 55
TO ORGANIC CERTIFICATION
farmer on this shore and we
were represented quite fairly
at the conference with Sarah
Fisher and Jamie Tingley of
Off Beet Farm in Cow Bay, Jim
Turner of Nova Bluewater
Farm in DeBaies Cove, and
Jude Major of Katie’s Farm in
Clam Harbour. So it didn’t
take much to convince Tara,
especially when I could offer a
place to host, to hold a kitchen
table meeting for us, making it
the first of it’s kind on Nova
Scotia’s Eastern Shore.
My current production
includes a mix of farmed and
foraged vegetables, fruits,
herbs, seeds (for both eating
and growing), whole grains,
and legumes. I’ve been
growing on my own property
for years, but this past year I
started spreading out to use
some charitably available land
in the neighbourhood with a
group of other growers. In the
future, I am very interested in
producing edibles on my
customers’ land if they want
that. I hope to add sweet
potatoes, another variety of
potato, wheat, more herbs,
and flowers to my mix of
p r o d u c t s f o r n e x t y e a r.
Production challenges for me
have typically been
horticultural know-how and
By Colleen Prentice
plot specific problems like And it let me do this with a
dug-up garbage from the past, focus on what it’s like to be a
soil loss, and drainage. There’s farmer on the Eastern Shore, a
always a challenge each place that is often thought of
season, especially when you f o r h a v i n g v e r y l i t t l e
add climate change and opportunities for growing
extreme weather events in anything at all, what with the
there.
cooler ocean air and fog,
I want my farm to be which is just not true. I’m
organically certified because excited to show my customers
the farms I learned on found what can be grown here as I
that to be a value worth learn and share with other
following. I want my soil and farmers throughout Nova
practices to be the best they Scotia, the rest of Atlantic
can be and I believe that Canada, and beyond.
certification will help me - Colleen Prentice
achieve this. The information
w
e
Two Great Products for Organic Farmers
discussed at
the kitchen
t a b l e
meeting
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reminded
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me of these
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It
also
A natural plant biostimulant, ideal for:
allowed me
Turf, Fruit, Trees, Flowers, Shrubs, Field Crops
to work
1. SEABOOST - Quick release of nutrients
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Finely ground for ease of spreading
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how to grow
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Sealife Seaplants ● 1-800-383-5357
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8 of 12
Website: www.seaboost.ca Email: [email protected]
WINTER 2015
Project Updates
GROW A FARMER (LUCIA)
2015 marks the third year of ACORN’s
Grow A Farmer Programs. Wow, does
time ever fly! After a twoyear (and very
successful) pilot, the
Apprenticeship
program will undergo
assessment in the coming
months to fine-tune its
assistance to all beneficiaries - hosts and
apprentices alike. As the Grow A Farmer
Mentorship program carries forward,
matches will continue to be made to pass
on valuable knowledge and support for
new and transitioning operations. Plans
are also underway for a series of
dynamic and engaging workshops that
will aim to increase producer capacity
and inspire new and efficient farming
strategies. If you are looking to host an
apprentice, or are someone looking to
apprentice on a farm this season, there
are plenty of resources to support you, so
please get in touch if you’re in need of
direction. If you have any comments or
inquiries about Grow A Farmer activities,
please contact Lucia Stephen,
P ro g r a m C o o rd i n a t o r, a t
[email protected] or visit
www.growafarmer.ca. TRANSITION SPECIALIST
(TARA)
A C O R N ’ s O r g a n i c Tr a n s i t i o n
Coordinator (OTC) has been appointed
by the Organic Federation of Canada to
the Standards Interpretation Committee
(SIC). The role of the SIC is to
recommend answers (interpretive
guidance) on standards issues to the
Canadian Organic Office. Kitchen Table Meetings (KTM) have
been underway and will continue
throughout the winter. If you are
interested in attending a KTM in your
area please let us know!
The OTC is partnering with the Bauta
Coordinator to host a grains KTM at the
Centre for Small Farms in Wolfville,
Nova Scotia, and the Grains Workshop
with Dr. Heather Darby and Archie
Blankers in Charlottetown, PEI.
In February, the OTS will be hosting a
three-part webinar series entitled
“Introduction to the Canadian Organic
Standards” with presenters Rochelle
Eisen (Crops), Anne Macey (Livestock)
and Kelly Monaghan (Processing).
These standards experts will overview
the Canadian Organic Standards and
Permitted Substances List, and will
familiarize participants with the Organic
Products Regulation.
THE BAUTA FAMILY INITIATIVE ON
CANADIAN SEED SECURITY
REGIONAL SEED (STEPHANIE)
A small team of Atlantic Canadian seed
growers made the trek to Montreal to
attend the biannual ECOSGN
Conference, which included workshops
on plant breeding, ecological grain
production, running a seed business,
seed banks and libraries, advanced
production topics, and more. Hot on the
heels of ECOSGN was the ACORN
Conference in Halifax, where we hosted
talks on vegetable seed production, and
on-farm plant breeding for wheat and
oats. Thanks to Lorna McMaster and
Mark Bernard for their awesome
workshop contributions! Finally, our
2014 small grains and quinoa project
(New Brunswick) is completed, and a
handbook (authored by site coordinator
Janet Wallace) detailing the challenges
and successes of producing hulless oats,
hulless barley, and quinoa on a garden
scale will soon be available. With our
two-year anniversary on the horizon, I’d
like to thank everyone who’s been a part
of our program this year for your hard
work and truly great contributions to
advancing ecological seed in Atlantic
Canada.
NB PROJECT UPDATE (TEGAN)
While the conference was held in Nova
Scotia this year, a New Brunswick
Organic Committee meeting was still
held at the event and generated lots of
conversation.
In discussing the annual April meeting
with the Minister of Agriculture, the
group decided to request an earlier
meeting with recently appointed
Minister Doucet for February. The
Committee is in the process of
identifying priorities to bring forward to
the meeting and would welcome your
input, so don’t hesitate to be in touch
with [email protected].
Plans for the 8th New Brunswick
Organic Forum are also underway. Be
sure to join us in Fredericton on February
16 for this annual organic gathering with
d i s c u s s i o n s o n t h e n e w o rg a n i c
regulation, our Strategic Plan, and more!
A special webpage featuring all of New
Brunswick’s organic resources in one
central place on the ACORN website will
be launched soon – stay tuned for
announcement!
J o h n n y s e e d s . c o m
An employee-owned company
1-877-564-6697
Winslow, Maine U.S.A.
Issue 55
9 of 12
Quarterly Organic Newsletter
You can search for organic prices in the Maritimes using
Canadian Organic Growers' online price tracking tool. For
full analysis of these prices to date, visit:
ORGANICPRICETRACKER.CA
Quantity
$ (as of:
2015-01-02)
dozen
$4.50 - $7
Onions
lb
$1.50 - $5
Potatoes
lb
$1 - $2
Cabbage
head
$1.50 - $3
lb
$1.25 - $2
Produce
Eggs
Squash, winter
VOLUNTEER OF THE SEASON
ACORN is fortunate to have had a tremendous amount of volunteers
contribute their energy to the 2014 conference: a total of 65 volunteers
gave over 560 hours of their time to make the event possible! We are so
incredibly thankful to each and every one of them, which makes this
decision a very difficult one! But there is one volunteer who really stands
out. Peter Myatt was a "floater" volunteer on Wednesday morning, the busiest time of
the conference, and he responded to the chaos by jumping right into his duties and
taking a lead on coordinating the ACORN table while our staff were busy elsewhere.
Not only did Peter show strong initiative and a positive attitude, but he also showed
outstanding dedication in showing up for his shifts on time - which, due to car trouble,
required him waking up before 6AM to catch a bus to Halifax for each day he
volunteered!
On behalf of ACORN, THANK YOU Peter, for being such a stellar volunteer! And a
special acknowledgement as we extend our gratitude to all of the incredible
volunteers who made this event successful! THANK YOU, we couldn’t have done it
without your dedication and care.
Tractor with Tiller
Attachment
Handles rotate 180° to
accommodate front and
rear mount attachments
No Belts
No Chains
Other attachments
available
Tractors and
attachments are sold separately.
Available at:
McGinleys
Yard & Garden Equipment Inc.
Tractor with Sickle Bar
Mower Attachment
Issue 55
184 Arthur Street, Truro, NS
Distributed in Canada by:
(902) 897-0699
[email protected]
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www.echo.ca
Quarterly Organic Newsletter
Seasonal Food Fix
Please note that last issue’s Hedgehog Ratatouille recipe was a generous contribution from Conscious
Catering Duo Roberto Gueli and Anke Kungl––thanks Conscious Catering!
1/4 cup of maple syrup
1 cup water
SWEET POTATO LENTIL CURRY SOUP
1/4
cup
of
Boates
apple
cider
vinegar
1/2 cup rice
Prep Time: 15 mins
1/4
cup
of
olive
oil
4 cups shredded cabbage
Cook/Bake Time: 45-60 mins
1 Tbsp (or more!) of finely minced or
Serving: 6-8
grated ginger
Preparation:
1/2
cup
of
tamari
roasted
nuts
of
your
Preheat oven to 350ºF.
Organic Ingredients:
choice
Heat oil in a large frying pan or heavy2 Tbsp olive oil
bottomed stewing pot at medium-high
1 large red onion, minced
Preparation:
heat, adding hamburger once
6-8 garlic cloves, minced
Preheat oven to 375ºF
temperature is reached. Stir to break up
1/4 cup peeled and minced ginger root
Tamari Roasted Nuts Preparation: Toss the beef while letting it brown. Once it
1 1/2 Tbsp curry powder
nuts in 1/4 cup of tamari and ensure they has browned, but still juicy, add the
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
are well coated with the liquid. Drain chopped onion, salt, garlic and pepper,
1 cup carrots, diced
excess tamari and lay the nuts out flat on cooking for 1-2 minutes before adding
1 cup diced red pepper
a baking sheet. Bake in the oven for 3-5 the tomato sauce and 1 cup of water.
5 cups diced sweet potatoes
mins (depending on what type of nut). Bring the entire mixture to a boil. Stir in
14 ounces coconut milk
Watch closely to avoid burning. Once the rice and cover and let simmer for 10
2 cups dried lentils, washed
roasted, remove from oven and set aside minutes or until rice is partially cooked.
8 cups vegetable stock
to let them cool on the baking sheet.
Meanwhile, place half of shredded
1 lime, juiced
Salad
Preparation:
Finely
chop
nappa
cabbage in a greased 11"x 7 " or 9" square
1 bunch cilantro, minced
cabbage
and
wash/dry
as
needed.
Set
baking dish and cover with half of beef
1/4 cup tamari
aside
in
a
large
tossing
bowl.
In
a
mixture. Repeat in layers. Do not stir.
Salt and pepper to taste
separate,
small
bowl,
combine
1/4
cup
of
Cover and bake at 350ºF for one hour or
Sugar/Sweetener to taste tamari, syrup, cider vinegar, olive oil and until rice is tender. Let sit for 5 minutes
ginger and mix well (suggestion: before serving. Enjoy!
Preparation:
In a large stock pot or Dutch oven, sauté combine these ingredients
the red onion, garlic, and ginger in the in a small jar so you can
olive oil for about 15 mins, until the put the lid on it and shake
Pour over the
onions are translucent and soft. Add the it up).
curry powder, hot pepper, carrots, bell cabbage and toss well to
pepper, and sweet potatoes. Sauté for 5 to ensure the cabbage is
10 mins, until the carrots and bell pepper coated. Let sit 20-30 mins
are crisp tender. Add the coconut milk, at least before topping the
lentils, and vegetable stock. Simmer, salad with the nuts and
covered, until the lentils are done and the serving!
sweet potatoes are tender, about 45 mins.
Add the lime, tamari, and cilantro, and BRUCE FAMILY FARM’S EASY
stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to CABBAGE ROLL CASSEROLE
taste, and sugar if needed (see note).
Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook/Bake Time: 60 mins
GINGER NAPPA CABBAGE SALAD W/TAMARI Serving: 4-6 servings
CERTIFIED ORGANIC CRAFT BEER
ROASTED NUTS
Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook/Bake Time: 3-5 mins
Serving: 4-6 side servings
Organic Ingredients:
1 nappa cabbage
1/2 cup of tamari soy sauce
Organic Ingredients:
1 Tbsp of high heat oil
1 1/2 lbs hamburger
2 chopped onions
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
14 oz of tomato sauce
OPEN YEAR ROUND
235 MAIN STREET
TATAMAGOUCHE
NOVA SCOTIA
TATABREW.COM
"A Curious Herbal Antique Botanical Illustration" By Elizabeth Blackwell, published in 1737 in London by Samuel Harding. Retrieved from http://lavibe.com/botanical/botanical_item15.html on January 10, 2015.
Issue 55
11 of 12
WINTER 2014
THANKS TO OUR MOST AMAZING CONFERENCE SPONSORS!
Phytocultures Ltd.
& DONORS!
& TRADE SHOW EXHIBITORS!
• AEF GLOBAL
• AGRICULTURE & AGRI-FOOD
CANADA
• ATLANTIC CERTIFIED ORGANIC
• CARDWELL FARMS COMPOST
PRODUCTS INC
• EARTH ALIVE
• ECO+
• ECOCERT
• FAFARD ET FRÈRES LTD.
• FARMWORKS NS
• FIELD FARMS MARKETING
• CBAN - CANADIAN BIOTECHNOLOGY • FLAME ENGINEERING
ACTION NETWORK
• FRONTLINK INC
• DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY - FACULTY • GROWING GREEN EARTHWORM
OF AGRICULTURE
CASTINGS INC.
• HALIFAX SEED COMPANY
• HIGH MOWING ORGANIC SEEDS
• NOVA SCOTIA DEPARTMENT OF
AGRICULTURE
• HOMESTEAD ORGANICS
• NS FEDERATION OF AGRICULTURE
• HORTON RIDGE MALT & GRAIN CO. • OCIA NB
• JOHNNY’S SELECTED SEEDS
• OMRI (ORGANIC MATERIALS
• JUST US! CENTRE FOR SMALL FARMS REVIEW INSTITUTE)
• L’ACADIE VINEYARDS
• PEI PHYTOCULTURES
• LAHAVE NATURAL FARMS
• LOCAL SOURCE MARKET
• MCGINLEYS YARD & GARDEN
EQUIPMENT INC.
• MULTI SHELTER SOLUTIONS
• RARE BREEDS CANADA
• RED SOIL ORGANICS
Contact ACORN
Sally Bernard — President, [email protected]
1-866-322-2676 or 1-506-536-2867
[email protected]
Hendie Dijkman — Treasurer, [email protected]
Shannon Jones— Secretary, [email protected]
& Charlotte Harper, Alyson Chisholm, Maurice Girouard, Matt
Dykerman, Brian Boates and Melissa Butler
Issue 55
Mailing Address
Office
P.O. Box 6343
131 B Main Street, 2nd
Sackville, NB
floor
E4L 1G6
Sackville, NB
12 of 12
ATLANTIC GROWN ORGANICS
• SCOTIAN GOLD
• SMALL FARM CANADA
• SOCIETY FOR BIODYNAMIC
FARMING
• PICAROONS
• SPEERVILLE FLOUR MILL
• PRO-CERT ORGANIC SYSTEMS LTD. • SPRINGBROOK CRANBERRY INC
• PROPELLOR BREWING CO.
• VANOOSTRUM’S FARM EQUIPMENT
ACORN Board of Directors
Amy Smith — Vice President, [email protected]
• RURAL DELIVERY
• SCHURMAN FAMILY FARM AND
• VESEYS SEEDS
Quarterly Organic Newsletter