Maple Syrup Time!

Spring has officially -- and finally -- arrived and in Eastern Canada, that means warmer temperatures, longer days and maple syrup.

Here's a video produced by the New Brunswick Maple Syrup Producers. It gives an inside look at how maple syrup is gathered, processed and used.

New Brunswick Maple Syrup

Food Freedom Day

Today is Food Freedom Day in Canada.

That means the average Canadian has now earned enough disposable income to pay for his or her individual grocery bill -- food and alcohol only -- for the entire year.

And yes, it's only February 12.

This is the third year in a row that Food Freedom Day has fallen on this date, and only slightly later than in previous years. The recession and an increase in the price of food have helped push the date back. The calculation is made by comparing Canadians' disposable income and the amount we spend on food.

According to the Canadian Federation of Agriculture, in 2010 the average Canadian spent approximately 11.9 per cent of personal disposable income on food.

Beth Densmore, president of Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture points out that even though we enjoy reasonably priced food in Nova Scotia and the rest of the country, Canadian farmers "continue to be challenged with gaining a fair return of the food dollar."
 
Consumers want cheap food that is reliably safe. Farmers want to get paid fairly for the food they produce. Should Canadians spend more than 11.9 per cent of disposable income on food? What's the value of a safe food supply? Is enough money getting back to farmers?
 
Food Freedom Day may be a good time to take pause to reflect on these types of questions.
 
More on Food Freedom Day.
 

Maple Syrup Dreams

When I met recently with colleagues from the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists in Berlin, there was much talk about maple syrup. It may have been because we discovered the wonderful drink, firewater, or... well, no, the discussion about maple syrup definitely came from the firewater conversation.

It's easy to take what we have for granted and I forgot how novel the notion is of harvesting sap from a tree and turning it into sweet syrup. Eastern Canadians share the annual spring tradition of pulling on our rubber boots, usually one of the first times we wear them after shedding the winter boots, and heading into the barren woods for a walk to the sugar shack.

Timing is everything with maple syrup production. The night temperatures must drop below freezing and temperatures during the day must be above freezing. The see-saw on the thermometre is what makes the sap in the tree begin to flow after its winter's rest. Depending on the weather, the sap could run for many weeks.

Maple syrup facts and history

My most memorable spring maple syrup memory is from when I was about 12-years-old. I had a mouth full of braces -- the big, heavy braces that felt and looked like railroad tracks. They came with the firm instructions: no gum and nothing sticky to eat.

I was at a sugar camp and when it was time for some maple candy, the owner of the camp passed the first, sticky, gooey piece to me. Of course I took it. Of course it hauled the cemented-braces right off my teeth. Of course my parents were upset and of course, I was at the orthodontist the very next day to have the cement reapplied. But of course, for maple candy, I would do it all over again in an instant.

These are photos from a couple of years ago when my son's Cub group went the the maple sugar woods.

 Heading into the muddy woods

 The sap lines snaking through the bare tress

 A gentle tap into the tree

 Before producers used tap lines, they put buckets directly on to the trees. Some small producers still do, while others only do a few trees to demonstrate past practices.

 The evaporator. It's not operating in this shot or it would be a room full of steam

Maple candy in the snow

Oh Canada!

The Canadian Farm Writers' Federation hosted Canada Night at International Green Week in Berlin for our colleagues of the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists. Owen Roberts, IFAJ Secretary General, from Guelph, Ont. and I were happy to have Stefanie Nagelschmitz from Canada's Outdoor Farm Show join us and help host the evening.

We gathered in a charming Italian restaurant about a block from our hotel. Red and white checkered tablecloths (Canadian maybe?), candles, good conversation. It was a wonderful evening.

We were especially proud to bring a gift for our international colleagues -- red mittens with a white maple leaf. The mittens, sold by HBC, are in support of Canada's Olympic team. They seemed to be a big hit with our friends.

We look forward to hosting our colleagues in September at IFAJ 2011 in Canada. A schedule, registration details and information on sponsorship is available at http://www.ifaj2011.com/

Special thanks to Steve Werblow for being our photographer.

Celebrating Canadian Farm Families

I'm writing a book, Celebrating Canadian Farm Families (working title), and I need your assistance.


This book will profile farms of all sizes, from all sectors, from all parts of Canada and I'm looking for farmers to write about.

Who am I looking for?

Male or female, it doesn't matter. Size of the farm doesn't matter either -- I want to profile corporate family farms that are thousands of acres in size and the family farms that are the size of a postage stamp. As long as someone is earning an income from the farming they do, I'm interested. Organic or non-organic (and everything in between) -- that doesn't matter either.

Since the book is a celebration of family operated farms, that's a key element to who I'm looking for. But just like families come in all shapes and sizes these days, so do the farms. Maybe you know of a multi-generational farm, siblings working together or spouses. In all of these cases, I want to interview several members of the family farm operation, so an openness to sitting around the kitchen table or taking me out to show me around the farm is important.

Also key is passion and enthusiasm for agriculture -- loving what they do and loving the life they're living. I recognize there are problems facing Canadian farmers and I'm open to talking about those matters with the families, but I will focus on those who approach issues as problem-solvers, rather than problem-moaners, with the overall celebration of family farming as the main theme.

If someone comes to mind , I would appreciate it if you could forward their contact information to me and maybe tell me a bit about them. If you've written about them, just send me a link to the story, or direct me to the family farm website.

Alternatively, you can send my contact information to them and ask them to contact me. I will be travelling this fall and winter and visit many of the farmers to profile in this book.

A million thank yous for your help with this -- and please contact me at allison@finnamore.ca if you have questions or comments. Also, please feel free to circulate this.
Allison

I am thankful for... turkducken

This weekend, we celebrated Thanksgiving in Canada -- a traditional time to pause and take stock of what's around us and what fills our lives with happiness and peace. It's also a traditional family gathering time.

My father's brothers, their wives, two of my four cousins, their girlfriends, my parents and brother arrived at my house on Saturday afternoon. We had the traditional turkey, mashed potatoes, carrots, peas, squash and gravy simmering away, but I had decided a few weeks ago that we would also cook a turducken -- a cranberry dressing stuffed-chicken, stuffed in a duck, stuffed in a turkey. I had ordered it from the Old Fashion Meat Market a couple of weeks ago and was quite looking forward to five kilograms cooking adventure.

Except for the legs and wings of the turkey, the birds are deboned, which I'm sure eases the construction process. It was well sewn together, but when my mother asked me what it looked like, the only description I could think of was "kind of limp."

I was assured when I ordered the turduckin they would give me instructions on how to cook the beast, so I wasn't too concerned until I had the prize in my hands and asked for details. The response? "Just like a turkey." Fine, I said, "but tell me more," figuring solid meat must require something extra, right? Cook at 275 F for 5.5 to 6 hours, I was told. OK. Sounds simple, right?

After about two hours, I figured I would be smelling the wonderful scent of roasting turducken, but there was nothing -- I even checked to make sure the oven was on. It was, but I cranked up the heat and stuck the birds back in the oven, knowing the hungry dinner guests would soon arrive.

As the clock approached 3 p.m., we could indeed smell turducken (smells like chicken) wafting through the house. Tummies started to rumble. "What time are we eating?" became a popular question. My answer: "It's all on the turducken at this point." I think they were beginning to eye the dog food...

Sometime in the hustle of the afternoon, I turned the heat up to 400 F and the turducken was done on time. It was a bit dry, but I believe that was because I had to cook it at the higher temperature. I think the meat market made a mistake when they told me to cook it at 275 F and should have instead told me to cook it at 375 F.

Regardless, we certainly didn't go hungry. In fact, we had so much food left over that we had another full meal again on Sunday with other relatives. There were even enough unopened rolls to take to a drop-in centre downtown. I am thankful that I have the means to fill tummies and invite people into my home.

Now, next year... I'm thinking I'll serve tofurkey.

Farm Writers in Atlantic Canada

Have you ever had the experience of working with people who are so excited and enthused about a project that it rubs off on you? I love that feeling.

I had that experience earlier this week when I had a conference call meeting with three people from Atlantic Canada. Together, we're working to start a regional branch of our national farm writers' guild, the Canadian Farm Writers' Federation (CFWF).

Up front, I have to say that the desire to start our own group is in no way a reflection of the branch we currently belong to, the Eastern Canadian Farm Writers' Federation (ECFWA). The simple vastness of Canada and the geographic divide between the majority of our current ECFWA members means farm writers in Atlantic Canada feel disconnected.

Personally, the desire to gather together with some of our own is inspired by ECFWA, as well as CFWF and our international group, the International Federation of Agriculture Journalists (IFAJ). Once I experienced gatherings with like-minded individuals, I felt the aspiration to do it more often with those closer to me.

Not all farm writers in Atlantic Canada are onboard with the formation of a regional group. Some have said they want to maintain connections with former colleagues within ECFWA, while others may not be interested in the work involved in setting up a new organization (not that anyone has said that to me, I'm just speculating). I hope they'll reconsider.

The folks I met with earlier this week are keen and ready to get a local group formed. We're pooling our talents to host a day of farm and research centre tours on June 4.

Early in my career when I wrote for daily newspapers from rural New Brunswick, I kept hearing the untold stories of farmers and opted to help be one of their voices. From that, I found out about CFWF and that connection eventually led me to focus my career on agriculture writing.

Through CFWF, I've toured farms across the country, met agriculture experts and associates, gained writing and editing jobs and met hundreds of Canadian farmers. I've also met a lot of great people and developed some very good friendships.

Cumulatively, what the organizations have given me inspire me to help create like opportunities for farm writers in Atlantic Canada. I hope we'll create a network, come to count on each other and grow opportunities for ourselves.

Then together, we can help farmers tell their stories about the food they grow for us.

How two families tackle business decisions

originally printed in AgriSuccess, January, 2010. If you're interested in reprinting this, please contact me at allison@finnamore.ca

How do you make important decisions on your farm? Is there a lack of consultation or, on the other hand, is there so much talking it causes paralysis by analysis?

In the run of a day, there are dozens of decisions to make. From simple, straightforward choices to those that require planning and reflection, nearly every step during the day needs some background preparation before moving ahead.

Now, mix in a team of knowledgeable co-workers who also happen to be related to you – suddenly, even the simple decisions could become much more complicated. Many family farms in Canada seem to have found their stride working together, including Four E Farms in Leamington, Ont., and Steppler Farms near Miami, Man.

At Four E Farms, father Peter Epp and sons Ken, Ron and Ed produce 2,200 acres of corn, beans and wheat, and 240 acres of processing tomatoes. During their years in business together, family members each found a niche in the farm operation. In some instances, their roles evolved over time, while in other cases, the sons were guided by their father.

“Dad recognized some of our strengths and tried to guide some of us to certain areas, Ken recalls. “’Why don’t you do this?’ he would ask. If it worked out and we enjoyed it, then we stayed.”

And if it didn’t, the role changed. Finding each person’s place at Four E Farms took about 10 years, Ken says. Now, day-to-day operational decisions fall to the shareholder who handles that part of the farm.

At Steppler Farms, parents Dan and Pat are in partnership with their sons Ian, Geoff, Adam and Andre. The charolais, grain and honey producers formalized their partnership in 2008. Prior to that, each son was farming on his own, with everyone helping the other out. But they faced an annual mountain of accounting paperwork. When Dan and Pat started succession planning a few years ago, incorporation became part of their plan. The family has now pooled its resources and divided the workload, so decision-making is clear-cut and well-defined.

Since the sons farmed prior to incorporation, they knew their areas of specialty. Dan is chairperson and takes on the role of mediator and advisor. Dividing up the managerial roles between his sons provides each with autonomy.

“As operational bosses, each son makes and enacts day-to-day decisions and has the authority to make essential minor purchases like repairs, medications and so on,” Pat explains. Major expenditures and budget decisions are made by all five, with input from everyone.

Both the Epps and the Stepplers agree that decisionmaking in a family farm business relies on one very important factor: communication.

At Four E Farms, the Epp brothers and their father meet every morning to discuss farm plans for the day ahead.

“Sometimes, not everyone agrees, but you build a consensus,” Ken explains, noting that no matter what decisions the family farm faces, the family maintains a common philosophy. “We work for the good of the company and not the individual.”

The Stepplers, while firm believers in communication, were skeptical when it came to the idea of setting up formal meetings with those who are so close.

“At first the idea of family meetings seemed awkward,” Pat says. “Before incorporation, we talked or planned somewhat individually with no formal structure. Now, we conduct each meeting in a semi-formal manner.”

Dan and Pat set the agenda, including issues brought forward by the sons and matters they want discussed. With each decision, everyone has the opportunity for input.

“Dan actually goes around the table to make sure that each person states his opinion,” Pat explains. Meetings are monthly during the winter, but that changes with
the seasons.

“We hold weekly meetings to plan the work that is ahead of us for that week, as well as long-range decisions on things that have to be fixed or purchased,” Pat says. “Each morning, the four boys meet for about 20 minutes to plan out that day’s work so that when the workers arrive at 8 a.m., the day’s schedule is in place. Over the noon meal, any changes to this schedule are then made.”

Both families also agree that keeping an open mind when working with family helps facilitate decision-making.

“Choose your attitude,” Pat advises. “Recognize when to shrug your shoulders, when to press a point,” she says, adding this advice also applies to older generations, reluctant to release control.