fresh facts may/june 2013

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Ontario Farm Fresh Marketing Association

Newsletter #288

May-June 2013 Volume 28, Number 5

Fresh Facts

Inside this issue:

Membership News 2

R2013 Ontario’s

Outstanding Young

Farmers

3

Press Release-Still

an Effective Tool4

New Resources

from OMAF6

Upcoming Events 8

Providing knowledge and leadership to grow the farm fresh experience.

President’s Message…Now that most of us are open for the season or very close to it, we will want to get as much positivepress coverage as possible to announce this. A press release to the local media is a great way to startthe ball rolling. Many papers may print the release word for word. Other medias may call you back for an interview or call you in a time of crisis to contribute to their own story, so you need to be prepared.Recently, I participated in the Farm and Food Care Ontario’s Media Training Workshop. I would like toshare some tips from this workshop for you to have handy when you are dealing with the media.

1. Be sure to put contact information in your press release, then when the phone rings… Be friendly Thank them for calling If it is not a call as a result of a press release that you sent out say - “I’m just in the middle of

something and would be happy to speak with you but…” defer to a later time so you have timeto prepare for the interview.

Interview the interviewer - to get the info you need. Do not agree to the interview until you have had time to research and prepare.

2. Key Interview Techniques It is your right to give an interview only after you have prepared Ask the right questions to help you prepare (see below) Determine a mutually agreeable time when you will call the journalist back.

Take time to prepare Make sure to call the journalist back

The Interviewee’s Bill of Rights: What to Ask When the Journalist Calls A. Name, phone number? (Google them for more info)B. Which publication, TV or radio station?C. Which program or column?D. Focus of story?E. Anticipated length of interview?F. Who/will anyone else be interviewed?G. When and where will the story run?H. What is the journalist’s deadline?

You then need to establish your Key Messages and supporting points. Practice them with a partner, camera or mirror. Whenyou do the interview relax, stick to your key messages and repeat it a number of different ways to be sure your key message isdelivered. The media has to fill their pages or air time each day sohelp them by getting your good news stories out.I hope your growing season is favorable and the media comes knocking at your door to spread the good news.

Brian HugliOFFMA President



MEMBERSHIP NEWS

Fresh Facts

Classifieds

Delhaven Orchards Ltd.,

Blenheim, ON

frozen, pitted sour cherriesavailable for wholesale and retail

Call 519-676-4475 or

e-mail [email protected]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Southbrook Pumpkin Patch

Closing Sale

Fall/Halloween Decor,

Walk-in Cooler Freezer.

Contact Cathy Chiappetta

for more info, 416-908-3242.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I have had inquiries for cord

quantities of apple / fruit wood for

smokers, if anyone has this availa-

ble I can put you in touch with cli-

ents.

Eric Hambly

Siloam Orchards, Uxbridge

[email protected]

The Classifieds are for members who are

selling a product or are looking for some-

thing specific. There is no charge for a

member to list a classified ad. Just send

your ad to the OFFMA office.

Welcome to these new members. We will be

including a short description about the new

businesses, if you find they have products you

can identify with, give them a call and a per-

sonal welcome.

New Member

Thiessen OrchardsAndrew Thiessen

Leamington, ON 519-326-5282

[email protected]

www.thiessenorchards.com

Thiessen Orchards strives to provide a fun

filled day for the entire family. They offer Pick

Your Own Apples, hay rides in the orchard,

and a pumpkin patch to pick your own pump-

kins. Their Kountry Kitchen also serves up a

delicious menu.

Business Member

South Western Ontario Tourism CorporationBarbara Quarry

Woodstock, ON 519-290-8687

[email protected]

www.ontariosouthwest.com

The South Western Tourism Corporation is the

provincially mandated Regional Tourism Or-

ganization for Ontario’s Southwest (also

known as Region 1). It represents tourism

businesses from Woodstock to Windsor, Sar-

nia and up the Huron Coast to Grand Bend.

They have an agritourism tool kit designed for

farmers interested in getting into the

agritourism business in order to diversify in-

come stream.

Sheldon Creek Dairy is a WINNER!Sheldon Creek Dairy was awarded the En-

trepreneur of the Year Award at the South

Simcoe Business Excellence Awards.

This award is presented for outstanding

achievement in starting, taking over or sub-

stantially changing an independent, profit-making business venture while exhibiting a

high level of leadership, creativity and

sense of community.

Sheldon Creek Dairy is built on the third

generation Haanview Farm nestled in the

rolling hills of the Sheldon Valley. Last year

they started selling their milk in glass bot-

tles from the farm and through various on-

farm markets. Congratulations on your

recognition.

Wanted: Farm writers who would like

to share their challenges and success-

es with other on-farm marketers. We

are always looking for stories, if you

like to write, let the OFFMA office

know.

“It’s not whatyou look at that

matters, it’s what

you see.”-Henry David Thoreau



Newsletter #288

“Raising animals and livestock requirestime, patience and a true commitment tothe process, with an end result being our

best quality product.”

That sums up the commitment Dana andAdam Thatcher, of Thatchers’ Farms inRockwood have for their farm operation.

The Thatchers received the top honour atthe provincial awards ceremony held inGuelph on March 26. Winners of theaward are chosen based on career pro-gress; environmental and safety practices;crop and livestock production history; fi-nancial and management practices; andcontributions to society.

The Thatchers altered their operation in2007 from being a struggling hog farm, tonow a thriving 250 ewe sheep operationand farm gate retail shop that featurestheir own naturally raised meats, includinghormone and additive-free lamb, beef,pork and chicken. In addition they sellMennonite-smoked summer sausage,Omega-3 eggs, honey, maple syrup, fruit

jams and Dana’s ever popular home-baked meat pies.

In the spring of 2012, thanks to a grant

from the Ontario Cattleman’s Association,they were able to add an on-site butchershop providing them the ability to cut andpackage their own meats – ensuring theyhad complete quality assurance and con-trol.

On the horizon, the Thatchers would liketo add a pavilion to their property, hostagricultural-themed events, chef dinners,school tours and group outings. The goalis to bring people out to the family farm as

a destination, mak-ing the connectionbetween farmingand the future.Co-chairs of theevent, Chris andChristy Hiemstra of Clovermead, alsoOFFMA members,noted that“Spending timewith such imagina-tive and successfulyoung farmers re-minds us all thatfarming is a re-warding occupa-

tion and we needto be positive andcelebrate our ac-complishments.

The Ontario eventalso really show-cases the diversity of agriculture in Ontar-io. Finalists represented sheep, dairy,farm markets, horticulture, fruit, grape andwine and cropping industries. While theiroperations were different, their commit-ment to their product, customers, foodsafety, the environment and their commu-

nity were all similar.”

To be eligible for the Outstanding YoungFarmer award, farmers must be between19 and 39 years of age, derive at leasttwo thirds of their annual income fromfarming and demonstrate progress in theiragriculture careers. Nominations for the2014 award will open in September andare due December 1, 2013. OFFMA hasnominated a member for several yearsand generally our members tend to dovery well in the competition. If you would

like to be nominated, please contact theOFFMA office, we are always looking formembers who are interested in this op-portunity.

Dana and Adam will now represent Ontar-io at the National competition being heldin November in Regina, Saskatchewan,where they will meet the winners from theother provinces, one of whom will ulti-mately be named Canada’s Outstanding

Young Farmers.

On-Farm Butcher Shop Owners named as2013 Ontario’s Outstanding Young Farmers

Dana and Adam Thatcher with their children



Fresh Facts

Press Releases—Still an Effective Tool to Get Your Story Told

Leslie Forsythe, Forsythe Family Farms, Markham, Ontario

You know you’re getting old when youcan begin a story with “I rememberwhen” I remember when learning about

how computers worked meant using apen and paper to draw flow charts and Ialso remember when hand held calcula-tors cost $400.00. The possibility of owning a personal desktop computerwas at least 10 years in the future andusing computers at university meanttime spent stamping paper cards withcodes to feed into a huge monstrosity of a machine for limited results. That wasalso in the day when most kids still wentthrough the stage of having a newspa-

per delivery route to earn some extraspending money.

It really wasn’t that long ago but com-puter technology and the internet hasprogressed at warp speed to the pointwhere print newspapers are an endan-gered species and world events are be-ing reported in “real time”. Printednewsletters have become e newsletters,we tweet, facebook and write blogs for

current farm events and have websitesto inform people of who we are, whatwe have and where to find us. The fre-quency of placing ads in newspapers has

dropped (have you checked the minimalarea occupied by the Toronto Star classi-fieds lately?) and kijiji is used instead;why not, it’s free.

With all these advancements in commu-nication it’s easy to forget about thetried and true methods of the past. I’d

like to make a case for revisiting them;especially writing press releases to sub-mit to your local newspaper.

Here is my story…To be a part of our farm business buthave his own identity, our son Dan de-veloped a Community Supported Agri-culture (CSA) program. He along withhis girlfriend, Molly, spent the winterresearching CSA’s and refining what theywanted to offer and how to do it. With

their program established they devel-oped a brochure, a website page, an email address, and a newsletter templatefor the season. It was time to get theword out. Attempts at delivering theirbrochures door to door were not onlytime consuming and ineffective but forDan, very stressful.

Dan has a gift for writing. Old fashionedDad recommended that he write a press

release and take it to the local newspa-pers. Not all papers were receptive buttwo were. Dan’s press release wasprinted verbatim on the front page of

the Uxbridge agricultural news. He wasinterviewed by a reporter for the localMarkham paper and that made the frontpage news along with a wonderful pic-ture of the two of them. The idea of young people trying to stay in agricul-ture touched the heartstrings of many. You can see his story posted in the me-

dia section of our websitewww.forsythefamilyfarms.com.

Dan’s phone started ringing and thee-mails started coming in. This was thebeginning of a flood of shareholders(some new to our farm and some, mar-ket regulars) coming on board and sup-porting them. By the end of June theyhad 175 shareholders in their program.Dan Forsythe unloading seed flats.



Newsletter #288

It was definitely the newspaper storiesthat got them started; word of mouthtook over from there.

People seem to still be interested inlocal news. Demographic studies have

shown that it is people over 40 who sitand read an actual paper newspaper.With the newspapers being availableonline, readership is unlimited. Theyhad a nice generational mix of mem-bers.

It was heartwarming to see the re-sponse and support for the two of them. Last year was a year of learn-ing for Dan and it was wonderful tosee him succeed and grow.

Get your story told. Check out the

OFFMA website member resource

page for templates on press releases,

and try your hand at sending one out.

Web Resources

Great examples of checklists that can be used when you are communicating with visitors

to your farm.

Safeagritourism.com/resources.aspx

Under ‘Communication with Guests’, you will find examples of Visitor Orientation Forms,

Supervision Guidelines and a Safety Rules Example Handout. Each checklist can be mod-

ified to work for your situation. Why re-invent the wheel when you can adjust it. Definitely

worth a visit to this site. Bookmark it as one of your favourites.



Fresh Facts

Introducing Andrew BarrieAndrew Barrie is the new di-rect farm marketing lead withthe Ontario Ministry of Agricul-ture and Food and the Minis-try of Rural Affairs (OMAF andMRA). Andrew was born andraised in Waterloo County ona beef feedlot/cash crop farmthat changed into an aspara-gus farm with an on-farm mar-ket. This fourth generationfamily farm continues todayand has grown to include awide range of value addedproducts. Andrew has worked

with OMAF and MRA for 15years, mostly based in Grey

County in positions including soil andcrop advisor, regional information coor-dinator and most recently as an envi-ronmental specialist. Along with hisfamily he owned and operated an on-farm market near Hanover, Ontario

growing asparagus, strawberries andrhubarb.Andrew will be working with OFFMAand other stakeholders focused on di-rect farm marketing and customer ser-

vice. He can be reached by email [email protected] or phone 519-826-3166 as part of the BusinessManagement Unit of the AgricultureDevelopment Branch.

SPECIALTY CROPportunitiesSPECIALTY CROPportunities is anon-line tool designed to assist Ontariogrowers considering production of awide range of specialty or non-traditional crops. It features generalpages with agronomic and marketing

information tailored to specialty crops,as well as specific crop profiles for 100 specialty vegetables, fruits, nuts,herbs, field/grain and industrial crops.Information in the profiles was basedon Ontario-specific research whereverpossible. There is also a Crop Selec-tion Tool to assist growers in identify-ing crops suited to their growing re-gion and operation.Specialty CROPportunities can be

found at the following link: http://

www.omafra.gov.on.ca/CropOp/en/

index.html or on the ministry Crops

page.

Two New Resources from OMAFCarl Fletcher Strategic Business Planning Lead, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture andFood and Ministry of Rural Affairs (OMAF and MRA)

Growing Forward 2 Information – Helping you reach your goalsRegister if you want to take advantage of this program

Growing Forward 2 (GF2) is a comprehensive federal-provincial-territorial framework aimedat encouraging innovation, competitiveness and market development in Canada's agri-foodand agri-products sector. In Ontario, farm, food and bioproducts businesses, collaboration

and organizations can build their own plan and select opportunities to help grow their profits,expand their markets and manage risks.With a focus on innovation, competitiveness, and market development, Growing Forward 2programs are designed to help the industry capitalize on opportunities and contribute to theeconomy. Whether you are just starting out, or have been in business a long time, GrowingForward 2 will offer practical and flexible programs that can help you reach your goals.

Click http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/about/growingforward/gf2-index.htm

Register for Growing Forward 2 Information – Dates & LocationsClick http://registration.wildapricot.org/

Andrew Barrie, Direct FarmMarketing Lead for OMAF



Newsletter #288

Updates from Zingerman’s

1. Those of you who attended the OFVC pre-convention workshop at Niagara

Falls in February are very familiar with Zingerman’s and the quality and type of

training that they provide. Elnian Gilbert, one of the facilitators from that work-shop sent OFFMA this note…..We've got a whole bunch of seminars coming up in the spring here, and I foundmyself thinking that the members of OFFMA might like to come to Ann Arborand take some additional training before their seasons launch into full gear.

And, while I know this doesn't make the cost negligible, I thought that offeringyour group a 20% discount on any ZingTrain seminar from now until the end of our season in J une might help make it a little more financially possible for peopleto come, particularly for those that are within easier driving distance.

Please let your members know that the discount code we created is "OFFMA"

and it will take 20% off any seminar schedule between now and J une on ourwebsite!

2. Zingerman’s are offering free webinars on the second Wednesday of each

month from 4pm to 5pm EST. Contact [email protected] if you want toget detailed notifications of this opportunity.



Upcoming Events for 2013

May 29 Assistance Program for Market Garden Farms, TRCA, Lebovic Centre for

Arts & Entertainment, Stouffville, Contact Nadine Abrams at 416-661-6600

ext 5349 or [email protected]

July 15-18 Project Seasons for Young Learners: Cultivating Joy & Wonder, Shelburne

Farms, Shelburne, Vermont, Contact Linda Wellins, 802-985-0308

Aug. 7 & 8 OFFMA’s Simcoe County Bus tour….details included with newsletter

Nov. 11-15 OFFMA’s Bus tour to California...save the date, additional info to follow.

Fresh Facts

Ontario Farm Fresh

Cathy Bartolic, Executive Director

2002 Vandorf Rd. Aurora, ON L4G 7B9

Phone: 905-841-9278

Fax: 905-726-3369

E-mail: [email protected]

www.ontariofarmfresh.com

2013-14 OFFMA Board of Directors

Brian Hugli, President

Hugli’s Blueberry Ranch

Leslie Forsythe, Vice President

Forsythe Family Farms

Jesse Lauzon, Past President

Springridge Farm

Hollis English, Murphy’s FarmsteadCara Epp, Associate Member

Edana Integrated Marketing

Nicole Judge, Spirit Tree Estate Cidery

Steve Martin, Martin’s Family Fruit Farm

Colleen Pingle, Pingle’s Farm Market

Steve Smith, Smith’s Apples

Dana Thatcher, Thatcher Farms

Carl Fletcher, OMAF and MRA Advisor to

the Board

Congratulations to the McGregorsDeb and Ian were semi-finalists in Ontar-

io’s Outstanding Young Farmer Competi-

tion. They are part of a three generational

family farm located in Braeside. They are

committed to providing fresh wholesome

produce to their neighbours as far away asOttawa.

Deb and Ian did a great job to make it to

the semi-finals as there were several en-

tries in the competition this year.

It is wonderful that their hard work and

innovation has been recognized.

Way to go!

fresh facts may/june 2013

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