The petition says that Canadian consumers are driving strong demand for organic food, and asks the federal government to establish policies and programs to “encourage growth in the domestic supply of organic to meet the market opportunity,” and to “meaningfully recognize and incentivize sustainable resilient food systems, such as organic, across all departments that relate to Canadian food policy.”
Organic group send petition to federal government
Feds asked to establish policies and programs to help organic producers meet consumer demand, create sustainable food systems
Webinar reveals thoughts on present, future of organic markets
MarketsFarm – Ten representatives from companies buying or producing organic crops took part in a webinar discussing the markets for those crops hosted by SaskOrganics on Oct. 27. The marketing webinars, which are held bi-annually before spring seeding and after harvest, are designed to connect organic grain buyers and producers as well as provide information […] Read more
Organic sector sees strong demand even as pandemic batters consumers
COVID has challenged province’s organic growers but their customers have remained loyal
Reading Time: 4 minutes Demand for organic food hasn’t been slowed by the pandemic even though many consumers have struggled with job losses and reduced income. “The thing that’s been most surprising is seeing that the demand for organic continues, despite the income level people are at,” said Tia Loftsgard, executive director of the Canada Organic Trade Association. “Organic […] Read more
Organic food sales in Alberta growing at a sizzling pace
New study finds organic food and beverage sales expanding by more than 10 per cent annually
Reading Time: 2 minutes Sales of organic food and beverages in Canada is booming, especially in Alberta, says a new report from the Prairie Organic Grain Initiative. The report pegs the value of the organic market (not counting alcohol sales) in Canada at $4.2 billion and says it grew by an average of 8.4 per cent annually from 2012 […] Read more
Organic doesn’t need to be ‘so expensive,’ says Dutch farmer
Farmer alliance’s relentless focus on efficiency aims to take organics to the next level
Reading Time: 4 minutes In Canada, we might call them hippies or tree huggers but in Holland, organic farmers are called “grey woolly goat socks.” Gerjan Snippe, managing director of Bio Brass, doesn’t wear his grey woolly goat socks anymore, but he carries them in his back pocket. They’re a reminder of why he got into organics in the […] Read more
Alberta organic industry hits new heights
There’s money to be made as organic becomes more mainstream and the industry matures
Reading Time: 3 minutes A surge in the number of organic crop producers in Alberta has boosted organic production on the Prairies to a level not seen since the 2008 financial crisis. That’s a key highlight of a new report from the Prairie Organic Grain Initiative, an alliance of Organic Alberta and its counterparts in Saskatchewan and Manitoba. “The […] Read more
Alberta Milk offers program to entice new organic producers
There are just six organic milk producers in the province but a new program aims to up that by a third
Reading Time: 3 minutes [UPDATED: July 23, 2018] Growing demand for organic milk not only has the provincial dairy association seeking more production but also more producers — just to make sure it never runs short. “We need more organic and we need to make sure that we don’t only have a few farms taking some of the supply […] Read more
Alberta’s organic heartland wants to bring more farmers on board
Two-year initiative will assist both existing growers and those wanting to transition to organic production
Reading Time: 2 minutes Being Alberta’s most northerly rural municipality isn’t Mackenzie County’s only claim to fame. “Right now, Mackenzie County has the highest number of organic farmers,” said Jacob Marfo, manager and research director of the Mackenzie Applied Research Association, (MARA). And the region may soon have more. MARA and Organic Alberta, with support from the county and […] Read more
Organic record-keeping made easier
It’s important for organic producers to understand the standards — and how certifiers interpret those rules
Reading Time: 3 minutes Organic production comes with its own headaches — but that’s nothing compared to organic record-keeping. “It’s a crush of paperwork,” said Ward Middleton, an organic grain producer from Morinville. “It seems thoroughly intimidating, and we need to make it as easy as possible. Otherwise, we’ll never entice larger farms to go organic.” Organic certifying bodies […] Read more
The stereotypical organic consumer doesn’t exist anymore
Alberta has the highest proportion of organic consumers of any province in the country
Reading Time: 3 minutes If newspaper headlines are to be believed, millennials have already killed the paper napkin industry, department stores, and beer (somehow). Could conventional agriculture be next? Nah. All the generations are working on that one, says an organic industry official. “It doesn’t matter if you’re a millennial, Gen X, or baby boomer — across the board, […] Read more
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