By Patricia Ellingwood, General Manager of Ontario Forage Council and CFGA Board Member representing Ontario
Congratulations to the Canadian Forage and Grassland Association (CFGA) on another successful conference! The annual event held December 3-6, 2024 at the Delta Hotel in Guelph was co-hosted by Ontario Forage Council (OFC). This year’s theme was Roots to Success: The Foundation of Resilient Agriculture.
The conference kicked off with a reception where Cedric McLeod, CFGA Executive Director, and OFC Chair, Birgit Martin, welcomed conference attendees to Ontario! The exciting program featured two days of informative speakers, a Young Farmers Forum, a Leadership Award dinner, and a special Exporter’s Social evening, all followed by the Forage Focus Hay as a Cash Crop bus/car tour, and saturated with networking opportunities!
The first day included topics under the Grassland and Pastures theme. Attendees enjoyed presentations on the value of the importance of forages in rotations, their importance to soil health, and habitat biodiversity. Grazing was also front and center including discussions on getting started, tips, new technology, and outlooks for the future. In the evening, Dr. Annie, Classens (Quebec Research and Development Centre, was celebrated as the CFGA Leadership Award recipient. Congratulations Annie!
Day two opened with an OFC update from Vice Chair, Joe Dickenson. The day’s program focused on Tame Forages and Markets. Speaker subjects ranged from production; Perennials to Restore Soil Health, optimizing forage quality, advances in forage breeding, and a very exciting Field to Feed Panel to market topics including the status of the export market, a financial market overview, identifying future opportunities, and rounding off the day with an eye-opening panel on farm succession. During the lunch, the Young Farmers Forum welcomed young farmers in an informal setting to discuss challenges and opportunities for young farmers entering the industry. This is anticipated to be a regular feature of future conferences!
Thursday evenings Hay Exporter’s Social gave the opportunity for hay exporters from across Canada gather for casual conversation and industry networking. And network they did!
Forage Focus, Hay as a Cash Crop drew in attendees from both the conference and local community. Tour participants were treated to an informative day-long tour including stops at hay production hubs where leaders in the industry shared information about the markets available to Ontario hay producers. A Special thank you to Marcrest Mfg./Bale Baron, Marhaven Agri, the Hay Press Company, and the Ontario Hay and Forage Co-operative for their hospitality and delicious lunch, as well to all of the sponsors and tradeshow who made the day possible!
Gathering with colleagues from across the provinces is certainly the highlight of the conference! Relationships are forged, new ideas are abundant, and excitement is alive for forages when the leaders of our industry come together to share! This is an event that anyone working in the forage industry should attend at least once!