Ontario Farm Fresh Marketing Association

Newsletter #299
September 2014
Volume 30, Number 7
Fresh Facts

Inside this issue:
Membership News
2
Royal Competitions
3
Recognizing and
Managing the
Stress of Farm Life
4
Spreading the
Word: Simple
Opportunities for
Ag. Education
6
Lyme Disease on
the Rise
7
Upcoming
Events
8




Presidents Message

Wow where did the summer go!
At this time, we are wrapping up our summer crops and well into fall prepara-
tions full of optimism for a great fall season.

They say the more effort you put in to something, the more rewards you can get
out. It is true with your crops, your bank account, and your relationships.

It is also true for your OFFMA membership. You will get much more out of your
relationship with OFFMA, by getting more involved in the organization. We re-
cently had the 1
st
workshop of our Farm to Fork University series at South Pond
Farms in Pontypool. You may have difficulty finding it on a map or even with a
GPS but it was well worth the effort. It was the perfect setting for the Food Pho-
tography Workshop and our host, Danielle French, was a knowledgeable facili-
tator who enjoyed sharing her experiences. The session not only dealt with
food but any pictures taken on your farm. It was interactive with lots of feedback
and opinions on our pictures taken that day and how to take that perfect maga-
zine cover photo. We wrapped up the day with outdoor wood fired gourmet piz-
zas and networking. It was a great escape for some fun, relaxation and learn-
ing. There are three more workshops scheduled for the fall so be sure to take
them in.

Yesterday, we had Leslie Groves at our farm as part of the OFFMA Merchandis-
ing to the Max initiative. For those who were at the workshop with Leslie in Ni-
agara Falls in February, you know what a wealth of information she has and
how quickly she talks, so you can get a lot of info in a very short amount of time.
Well, she spent over 3 hours going through our operation, looking at it from a
fresh perspective through experienced eyes and making suggestions in all are-
as. I cant wait for the report to follow to fill in the blanks when the brain just
could not keep up. The uptake on this opportunity was slow this year but if it
happens again next year jump on it fast because it is well worth
the time and money and will fill very fast.

Wishing you all a warm dry fall, and look forward to seeing you
at a workshop or the bus tour in November.



Brian Hugli
OFFMA President
Providing knowledge and leadership to grow the farm fresh experience.
MEMBERSHIP NEWS
Page 2 Fresh Facts
Classifieds

FOR SALE: mini straw bales
(12"x10"x24") $1.75 each, picked up
at our Shantz Family Farm, contact
Kevin Shantz 519-634-5252 or
info@shantzholmpumpkins.ca, these
bales usually retail for $4.00$5.00.

FOR SALE: Delhaven Orchards Ltd.,
Blenheim, ON
Frozen, pitted sour cherries
available for wholesale and retail
Call 519-676-4475 or
e-mail delhaven@ciaccess.com

FOR SALE: MAPLE SYRUP CONTAIN-
ERS, plastic, contact Wellington
Wood Products at 1-800-265-2397 or
519-323-2904, Email
wwp@wightman.ca or
website www.wwp.on.ca

FOR SALE: NEW EGG CARTONS in a
sleeve of 125; contact Wellington
Wood Products at 1-800-265-2397 or
519-323-2904, Email
wwp@wightman.ca or
www.wwp.on.ca

Classifieds are free for members. Simply
send your information to the OFFMA of-
fice and it will be included in the next
newsletter.
ANDREWS SCENIC ACRES and SCOTCH BLOCK WINERY
Leading fruit and vegetable farm and winery in the Greater Toronto Area FOR SALE OR LEASE
All options will be considered, fifteen excellent Mexican workers are key to present success.
Awarded July Business of the Month by the Halton Hills Chamber of Commerce
A recent recipient of the Premiers Award for Agri-Food Innovation, School tours are part of the
present marketing mix.
In addition to pick your own sales and farm market sales, ANDREWS SCENIC ACRES attends 7
high sales Farmers Markets in the GTA.
25 minutes from the Toronto Airport, not in the Greenbelt or the Niagara Escarpment. Long term
land values are expected to increase.
Financials and April to July profit and loss statements available. A land appraisal book is also
available.
We are having an excellent year and pumpkins are yet to come.
Please contact BERT ANDREWS at cell 905-691-2672 for further follow up
Update on Paul Watsons accident

In the middle of August, Paul Watson from
Watson Farms in Bowmanville had a
serious farm accident. A tire he was filling,
blew up fracturing his skull and breaking his
arm. Paul was in a coma but is now con-
scious and talking.
Your prayers, thoughts and best wishes were
requested to help Paul make a full and
speedy recovery.

Here is the latest update from his wife
Tami
Paul is doing well. Better and better every
day. He has come leaps and bounds but still
has a long road ahead of him. He has
a broken arm, broken jaw, a fracture around
on eye, a fracture on the back of his skull.
His other eye has had more damage and is
still too early to tell if its permanent. He was
on a breathing machine for 5 days. He's now
alert, going for long walks. He is not fond of
his new diet with only liquids. He is heading
to rehab in Toronto but they do not feel he
will be there long.
SOOOOOOOO much better. What a scare!
We are blessed to have an amazing support
team here to look after the kids and farm.
Everything is running perfectly.
Thanks for all the messages, prayers, emails,
cards, flowers, food and so much more!
~~~~~~~~~~
Please keep Paul in your thoughts and pray-
ers. We all want him back to the farm as
soon as possible.
Page 3 Newsletter #299
The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair, Canadas largest indoor food, agriculture and
equine trade show, has released its 2014 competition information online, includ-
ing The Royals canning competitions, which include jams, jellies, pickles and
chili sauces. All competition information is now available at royalfair.org under
the tab For Exhibitors. The Royal also runs maple syrup and honey competi-
tions.
The Royals canning competitions have really taken off in the past couple of
years, says Peter Hohenadel, Director, Agriculture and Food at The Royal.
Home canning and preserving has come back into fashion both with rural and
urban enthusiasts. New this year is the Heritage Category for pickles and jams,
sponsored by the Culinary Historians of Canada. The recipe is to be from a his-
torical source and historical is defined as from 1967 or earlier.
The competition, which The Royal has run for decades, is open to Canadians of
all ages. Entries are shipped to The Royals offices at Exhibition Place in Toron-
to and entry fees are only $5.
Its a great opportunity to match your skills against hundreds of other competi-
tors from across Canada, Hohenadel adds. Plus, all competitors receive
judges comments, which is an opportunity to improve your canning skills. The
Royal offers cash prizes for top finishers and ribbons for various placings, de-
pending on the category.
For full competition details, go to royalfair.org and click on For Exhibitors at the
top of the screen.
Consider the Royal for your preserves
Page 4 Fresh Facts
Farming is a very stressful occupation. It
is considered one of the most stressful
occupations in Canada. In the United
States, their National Institute for Occu-
pational Safety and Health examined 130
occupations and found laborers and farm
owners had the highest rate of deaths
due to stress-related conditions like heart
and artery disease, hypertension, ulcers,
and nervous disorder. It is important to
know how to manage stress levels and to
reduce the effects of unwanted stress.
Too much stress can make a person
more accident-prone. This is why it is
important to identify common stressors,
recognize the symptoms of stress, and
manage stress. By doing these three
things, you will make the work place saf-
er.

Stress is:
Energy in a blocked or chaotic state.
It can occur suddenly. For example,
your combine starts on fire and burns up
in the middle of har-vest.
Stress can build up, as one thing after
another goes wrong in a single day.
It can also build up over a period of
time.

Common Stressors:
Farm families experience the same
stress that nonfarm families face; howev-
er, they have added pressures during
harvest and planting seasons. There are
also added stres-sors associated with
agriculture, such as, uncontrollable
weather, handling of dangerous pesti-
cides, variable crop prices, and machin-
ery breakdowns.
Common situations and events that ef-
fect stress levels in farm families:
No control of weather
Large debt loads
Government regulations
High interest rates
Machinery breakdowns
Livestock problems
Working long hours
Crop yield uncertainty
Disagreements with other family members
in the operation of the farm
When these situations and events begin to
pile up on each other, farm life can become
very stressful. To prevent this from happen-
ing, individuals needs to recognize the
symptoms of stress and then manage the
stress.

Early warning signs or symptoms of
stress:
Stress can surface in the form of physical,
emotional/mental, or behavior/relationship
changes depending on the person and the
situation. People react to stress in different
ways and have different thresholds of
stress.

Physical symptoms:
Headaches
Stomach problems
Rising blood pressure
Rapidly beating heart
Clenched teeth
Dropping sexual interest

Emotional/mental symptoms:
Impatience
Frustration
Depression
Angry blow-ups
Difficulty controlling emotions
Low self-esteem

Behavioral/relationship symptoms:
An increase in smoking and/or drinking
Trouble adapting to changing circum-
stances
Finding it hard to relax or to sleep
Communication problems
Verbal and or physical abuse
Sarcastic arguments

Stress Management
Once your symptoms of stress have been
identified, you must learn how to manage
the stress because the bodys reaction to
stress can have serious implications to your
health. By managing stress, you will ease
some of the actual stress of your everyday
life. Successful stress management in-
Recognizing and Managing the Stress of Farm Life
Page 5 Newsletter #299
cludes: taking care of both your mental
and physical health, knowing the warn-
ing signs of stress, and controlling your
reaction to stressful events.

To Control Stress:
Control events that can later cause
stress.
Plan ahead. Replace worn machinery
parts during the off season instead of at
the last minute.
Plan to use time efficiently by setting
priorities for tasks to be accomplished.
Prior to stressful seasons, such as
planting or harvest, determine who will
take care of everyday chores.
Learn to say no to extra commitments.
Control attitudes that can lead to addi-
tional stress in your life.
Set realistic goals and expectations
daily.
Emphasis what was accomplished,
not what failed to be accomplished.
See the big picture: Its a good thing
the tractor quit working in the driveway
instead of in the middle of the highway.
Shift from worrying to problem solving.
In Summary
Reduce life and work stress by:

Eating a well-balanced diet.
Keeping a positive attitude.
Exercising a half hour a day every
other day.
Getting enough sleep to meet the
demands of your body.
Accepting that stress is a part of life.
Clearly defining home and work re-
sponsibilities.
Managing time efficiently.
Setting realistic goals.
Learning to relax.
Spending time with your family.

Sourced from The Ohio State University
Extension article by Thomas L. Bean and
Julia A Nolan, Department of Food, Agri-
cultural, and Biological Engineering

Erin McLean, from McLeans Berry Farm,
suggested this topic to help farmers deal
with stress in their busy lives. If you have
suggestions for a newsletter topic, please
contact the OFFMA office.
Fresh Facts Page 6
SpreadingtheWord:SimpleOpportunitiesforAgEducation
By Jessica Kelly, OMAF Direct Marketing Lead
Over the past century, the proportion of
Canadians that farm has decreased from
over half to less than two percent. The in-
teraction that a consumer has at a farmers
market, on-farm market, or agri-tourism
destination may be as close as they come to
connecting with a producer. This raises the
question how can we educate consumers
about where food comes from and help
them eat better? How can we embed
learning into the fun activities and buying
experiences on-farm? Here are a few sim-
ple, cost-effective ideas to consider:

Informationsignsinlivestockareasandani-
maldisplayareas
You may be surprised how little visitors
know about livestock. Start with the basics
what the animal is, what products we get
from the ani-
mal, what it
eats. Include
some adult-
focused infor-
mation chil-
dren arent the
only ones eager
to learn!

Demonstrations
For some consumers learning what produc-
ers do is not enough, they want to know
how they do it. Think about ways that you
could demonstrate aspects of
your farm operations either
live or through the use of
video. Activities that involve
craftsmanship or advanced
technology (for example,
GPS) may be especially en-
gaging and interesting.
Visualsconnectingproducetoproduction
Increasingly, consumers are demanding
convenient, ready to eat product. In meet-
ing this demand, the connection between
the food product and how it is grown is
often lost. Why not include a photo of
the item growing in your field or green-
house on signage?
Photo: Byward Market

You are the face of farming to your cus-
tomers. You or your staff may be asked
some tough questions about the complex
issues of agriculture. Farm and Food
Care has a library of Farm Fact Sheets,
including commodity-specific and cross-
cutting issues (biotechnology, farm labour,
organic versus conventional) to help equip
you with key messages that you can con-
vey to customers. http://
www.farmfoodcare.org/farm-fact-sheets


Photo: Aberfoyle Farmers Market
Photo: Forsythe Family Farms
Newsletter #299 Page 7
Lyme Disease on the Rise
By Gary J ohnson, OFFMA Membership Coordinator

Recently, Cathy and I stayed at a farm bed & breakfast where the woman had
contracted Lyme disease. Her story has prompted this article as she has suf-
fered for 4 years and even after treatment is still trying to cope with it.

Although Lyme infection is not exclusive to rural areas, it is more common in
rural areas. For farmers, there is a greater risk of exposure due to the nature of
the farm work environment. We think its important to provide the following infor-
mation for the protection of our farm fresh members.
Areas of the farm to pay particular attention to are leafy wood areas and over-
grown grassy habitats. Its best to avoid these kinds of areas especially in the
spring and early summer when nymph ticks feed. Adult ticks are a bigger threat
in the fall. The deer tick is the most common carrier of Lyme disease.

Here are some precautions that should be taken:
1. Wear long pants and long-sleeved shirts. Tuck your pants into your
socks to prevent ticks from getting inside your pants.
2. Check your clothes for ticks often. Ticks will climb upwards to find an
area of exposed skin.
3. Wear light coloured clothing to make it easier to spot ticks.
4. Walk on pathways or trails and stay in the middle. Avoid low-lying brush
or long grass.
5. Apply insect repellent to your skin and clothing especially in the ankle,
wrist and neck areas.

Lyme disease is a complex illness and its symptoms are widely varied. It can
appear quickly or gradually. The first physical signs are often flu-like
symptoms sore throat, headaches, congestion, and stiffness.
During its nymph stage, a tick is only the size of a period in a sen-
tence. Fifty percent of people dont remember being bitten. The dis-
ease hasnt any consistency in symptom signs.

Some people get the classic bulls eye rash at the site of the bite
(over 50% dont). Rashes on other parts of the body (50% report no
rash of any kind). The rash can be basically circular, oval and
spreading out.
There can be other symptoms and it runs the gamut of just about
everything affecting head, face, neck, vision, hearing, digestive
track, breathing, bone pain, depression, fatigue, memory loss, and
fatigue.

Little wonder, doctors have had a tough time diagnosing such a debilitating dis-
ease.

If you suspect that you may have it, go to your doctor. It can be treated and
should be treated as early as possible.

For more information, go to www.canlyme.com, the web site for the Canadian
Lyme Disease Foundation.
Page 8 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: info@ontariofarmfresh.com
www.ontariofarmfresh.com
2014-15 OFFMA Board of Directors
Brian Hugli, President
Huglis Blueberry Ranch
Leslie Forsythe, Vice President
Forsythe Family Farms
Jesse Lauzon, Past President
Springridge Farm
Hollis English, Murphys Farm Market &
Bakery
Cara Epp, Associate Member
Edana Integrated Marketing
Nicole Judge, Spirit Tree Estate Cidery
Steve Martin, Martins Family Fruit Farm
Colleen Pingle, Pingles Farm Market
Steve Smith, Smiths Apples
Dana Thatcher, Thatcher Farms
Jessica Kelly, OMAF and MRA Advisor to
the Board
On the OFFMA Website

Podcastshave you checked these out?
We have recorded conversations with different and interesting farmers in order to help
you get a glimpse into their lives. Each podcast is themed around a topic that is relevant
to on-farm marketers.
Some of the topics being presented..

Diversifying your farm with Sarah Jollay from Jollay Orchards
Birthday Parties on the Farm with Amy Williams from Springridge Farm
A day in the life of an on-farm baker with Anne Burnham from Burnham Family
Farm Market
Raising and Selling Meat with Dana Thatcher from Thatchers Farms
Hiring and Retaining Employees with Amy Strom from Stroms Farm

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wholesale Database - a listing of OFFMA members who offer non-perishable prod-
ucts at a wholesale rate. If you are looking to carry other Ontario produced products in
your market, this is the spot to check out.
Upcoming Events
Sept. 9-11 Canadas Outdoor Farm Show, Woodstock, ON
Visit www.outdoorfarmshow.com for more information

Sept. 16 Packing Line Tour, Farm to Fork University Workshop,
3-6pm, Martins Family Fruit Farm, Waterloo, $10 with a l
ight dinner. Please RSVP to the OFFMA office.

Oct. 8-9 Canadian Greenhouse Conference, Scotiabank Convention Centre,
Niagara Falls, ON Visit CanadianGreenhouseConference.com for
additional information

Oct. 22 Preserving Your Bounty, Farm to Fork University Workshop, 2-5pm,
Harvest Goodies, Milton, $10 with a light dinner. Please RSVP to the
OFFMA office.

Nov. 2-5 OFFMAs Bus Tour to Simcoe County and Muskoka Region....save the
dates, reg form included with this newsletter.

Nov. 13 Creating Soups on the Farm, Farm to Fork University Workshop, 2-5pm,
Frootogo Orchards, Waterdown, $10 with a light dinner. Please RSVP to
the OFFMA office.
Delicious Food Show, October 17-19, 2014
The Delicious Food Show is a 3 day food-lovers event designed
to engage the consumer in a delicious, all food, lifestyle and
entertaining experience featuring hundreds of exhibitors, cook-
ing demos, tastings, hands-on workshops, book signings, and
appearances by Food Network and international celebrity
chefs. New this year there will be an area called LOVE ON, ded-
icated to featuring the best Ontario has to offer.
OFFMA will have a booth at this event. We would like to share
the booth with OFFMA members. Contact the office if you
would like to showcase your product at this event.
Mystery Shopper Program
Do you want feedback about the level of cus-
tomer service at your farm market? OFFMA
is organizing a Mystery Shopper Program
whereby customers are hired to visit and shop
at your farm. A complete report is provided.
Please contact the OFFMA office if you are
interested in participating in this program.