Agri-Food Innovations Recognized at Award Ceremony in Eastern Region
December 8, 2017
The Premier’s Award for Agri-Food Innovation Excellence recognizes and celebrates agri-food producers, processors and organizations who are helping create jobs, boost our economy, strengthen our communities and support a sustainable environment through their innovative ideas and projects.
The following are regional award recipients from the Eastern region:
Farmersville Community Abattoir — Leeds & Greenville County
When farmers work together, great things happen. In Leeds Grenville, livestock producers saw the need for a local abattoir, so they teamed up to create one. They rallied the community, secured seed funding, bought a decommissioned building and put it in working order. The Farmersville Community Abattoir has been fully operational since October 2016, and is a model for progressive livestock processing. Having a local abattoir helps contribute to the long-term viability of agriculture in eastern Ontario and helps provide access to more local food. This not-for-profit enterprise is able to reinvest surpluses to fund improvements, with hopes to become a provincial training facility for future butchers.
Funny Duck Farms — Leeds & Grenville County
Here in Ontario, opportunities for grazing livestock are reduced once the snow falls. For most farmers, that means producing plenty of hay to keep animals fed through the winter. Funny Duck Farms decided to take a different approach to feed its chickens, pigs and cows. They invested in several self-contained, well-insulated hydroponic fodder units. Each six-by-four-metre unit produces the same quantity of feed as 50 acres of hayfield and requires just 30 minutes of tending a day, increasing on-farm productivity. Fresh fodder produces healthier animals that grow faster, leading to increased profit margins and allowing customers to enjoy the flavour and quality of grass-fed meat, eggs and milk — year-round.