Program

Dr. Xueming Yang is a research scientist in the AAFC Harrow Research and Development Centre where he studies soil health with special interest in the relationships between agronomic management practices (tillage, rotation, cover cropping) and soil carbon and nitrogen charateristics and dynamics.

Tia Loftsgaard is the Executive Director of the Canadian Organic Trade Association.

With extensive experience working in the organic food industry, Tia co-founded Camino (La Siembra Co-operative) in 1999, going on to become the organic and Fairtrade cocoa company’s Director of Sales until 2009, when she joined Fairtrade Canada. As its Business Development and Licensing Director, she led strategy, building the not-for-profit’s membership base and encouraging sustainable & ethical sourcing standards. In 2013, she moved over to Fairtrade America, where as its Chief Operating Officer, she successfully developed advocacy initiatives and grew U.S. market opportunities for small farmers via the Fairtrade model. Tia joined COTA as the Executive Director in March 2016.

Paul Holmbeck, director Holmbeck EcoConsult, stepped down in 2020 after 25 years as CEO and Political Director in Organic Denmark (Økologisk Landsforening). Organic Denmark represents organic farmers, consumers, food professionals and food companies, representing 90% of organic sales in Denmark. Since 1995, Paul has played a leading role in developing Denmark’s and the European Union’s ambitious organic goals and policies, including the world’s first National Organic Action Plan and first EU Organic Action Plan.

Pauls lobby work is credited with securing support for organic policy from 10 of 11 political parties in the Danish parliament, and he is co-author of much of the broad policy framework in Danmark for organic innovation, market development, farm conversion and 60 percent organic in all public kitchens. Policies that won a UN Future Policy Award for development of Agroecology in 2018.

Paul was pivotal in unifying the organic movement in Denmark; and in creating Organic Denmark in 2002 as a driving force for market development, farm innovation, consumer support and strong organic food politics. Much of this through a unique level of collaboration across the supply chain and with a range of policy makers and NGO actors.

Paul also spearheaded the close strategic collaborations between Organic Denmark and major retailers in Denmark. These partnerships are– together with effective consumer communication– credited with making Denmark number one in the world for organic sales, with 13 percent of the food market, and organic market shares of 30-50 percent for many basic products like milk, oats, flour, eggs and a number of fruits and vegetables. Over 80 percent of Danes buy organic food, and over 75 percent now buy organic food every week.

Today, Paul advises governments, business associations, NGOs, retail leaders around the world on organic policy development, market strategies and communication. Most recently (June 2022) delivering a strategy for a new organic policy framework and market growth in The Netherlands. He is also advising in Ireland, France, UK, Uganda, Tanzania, USA and, of course, Denmark, and has been key note speaker on organic policy and market development in parliaments, ministries and summits in most of these countries. Paul is the 2021 Grand Prix winner of the One World Award for agroecology. In September, 2021 Paul was elected to the IFOAM – Organics International World Board.

More info: https://paulholmbeck.com/

Cathy Nesbitt is a Worm Advocate and Founder of Cathy’s Crawly Composters. Established in 2002 this environmental business specializes in vermicomposting (indoor composting with worms) and organic diversion. Vermicomposting is a leading-edge answer to our organic waste problem.

Gillian Flies owns and operates The New Farm with her husband Brent Preston. The New Farm provides high quality, organic produce to fine restaurants and specialty retail stores in the Toronto and Collingwood areas.

Gillian grew up on a sheep farm in rural Vermont. After graduating from the University of Vermont, Gillian joined the Peace Corps and spent two years teaching math in Botswana. She went on to work for human rights and democratic development organizations on four continents, and organized observer delegations for landmark elections in Nigeria, Indonesia, East Timor and elsewhere.

Gillian worked as a management consultant in Toronto for six years before abandoning her successful career and moving to the farm in 2003. Since then, Gillian and Brent have built The New Farm into a thriving business and a leading light in the good food movement, providing organic vegetables to some of the best restaurants in Canada and raising almost a million dollars to make local, organic food accessible in low income communities. Gillian is also a Board Director and Ex-Officio President with Canadian Organic Growers.

David has been interested in farming his entire life. After university, his grandmother sold him a quarter section of land (640 acres), and his farm has grown ever since. David chose organic and gluten-free farming because he is interested in growing not just a commodity, but food for his community.

David loves playing sports with his 3 kids. He feels that the most challenging aspect of farming is climate change, as erratic weather and climate make every year an adventure. His favorite thing about farming is being proud of the food he grows and knowing that he is feeding other families. He is excited to share his knowledge and passion for farming with his kids, as they grow older and are becoming interested in learning more.

Vivian Kaloxilos is passionate about the natural world, assisting and documenting life and biodiversity as it bounces back from states of degradation. She is an ecologist who specializes in soil ecology and applied soil life regeneration. She sees herself as a support system to farmers and landowners who are at the front lines of the regenerative movement. Through her company Docterre, founded in 2015, she has been educating, supporting and accompanying farmers in their processes of regenerating soil biodiversity, understanding the connection between the health of subterranean biodiversity and above ground plant and ecosystem health and performance, and helping them to develop the practical skills needed to do so. She has been looking at agricultural soils and composts across Quebec and Ontario under her microscope for a decade, supporting the work of ecologically innovative farmers and documenting their trials this way. Vivian is a master compost maker, providing compost inoculums that are ecologically balanced and biologically rich, which her clients use to make liquid compost extracts on farm. She has guided many farmers in on farm compost extract production, on farm composting, microscopy, and understanding the agroecological systematic approaches needed to go hand in hand with soil ecology for results in the field. She’s seen the reality of applying regenerative practices on many types and scales of farms. Before founding Docterre, she taught and mentored Dr. Elaine Ingham’s soil consultants around the globe, was a graduate of McGill’s School of Environment and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in applied field ecology, and completed her Permaculture Design Certificate. Today she sees herself as an ecologist at the service and support of a farmer-led regenerative movement, and her wish above all else is to see a renewed and thriving culture, reintegrated in ecology, and that the natural balance be restored.

Ken Laing farms with his wife Martha and daughter Ellen at Orchard Hill Farm near St.Thomas, Ontario. Ken has a degree in Horticulture from the University of Guelph. In his 40+ years of farming he has grown a wide variety of field crops, small fruit and vegetables organically. For the last 3 years his farm has been a Living-Labs site for Agricuture and Agri-Food Canada and EFAO. This was EFAO’s horticulture site and Ken was developing no-till strategies for organic vegetables.

Ben Caesar brings 20 years of experience growing a wide variety of perennial crops, and 10 years operating a nursery devoted to providing the best food-producing perennials for Ontario. “I’ve experimented wildly over the years, and have developed a set of favourite perennials that supply a large portion of my meals.”

Tia Loftsgaard is the Executive Director of the Canadian Organic Trade Association. With extensive experience working in the organic food industry, Tia co-founded Camino (La Siembra Co-operative) in 1999, going on to become the organic and Fairtrade cocoa company’s Director of Sales until 2009, when she joined Fairtrade Canada. As its Business Development and Licensing Director, she led strategy, building the not-for-profit’s membership base and encouraging sustainable & ethical sourcing standards. In 2013, she moved over to Fairtrade America, where as its Chief Operating Officer, she successfully developed advocacy initiatives and grew U.S. market opportunities for small farmers via the Fairtrade model. Tia joined COTA as the Executive Director in March 2016.

My–Lien Bosch is the Government Relations and Regulatory Affairs Manager at the Canada Organic Trade Association (COTA). Prior to joining COTA, she was the Director of Technical Services at the Animal Nutrition Association of Canada and had worked for several companies on technical, regulatory and certification files.  My–Lien has a MSc in food science and also has a background in food manufacturing and product development for human and animal food.

Dr. Susan Beal, DVM is the Agricultural Science Advisor for PASA: The Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture.

Dr Beal comes from a long background of holistic veterinary practice, ranging from mixed practice through emergency medicine, equine, and companion animal practices. Before joining the team at PASA, Dr Beal was employed by Big Run Healing Arts, a non‐speciated veterinary practice dedicated to providing holistic care for animals and the environment.

She also provided educational programs, consulting and coaching for her clients as well as farmers, producers and consumer groups. Susan is particularly interested in whole farm/whole system pasture based ecology, and offers common sense advice and counsel with the goal of health from the ground up – thriving individuals and ecosystems.

Raised just outside of Kingston, Ontario Stuart Oke grew up in a non-farming family. After an accidental season spent working on organic farms in Ireland, as a member of WWOOF, he turned to farming full time in 2009. Since then, Stuart has farmed throughout Ontario and in Quebec. He has had the privilege of learning from and apprenticing under some truly inspirational and professional farmers over the years. In 2017 he co-founded Rooted Oak Farm, a vegetable and cut flower farm serving the Ottawa and Kingston area. Stuart is a proud member of the National Farmers Union and has worked as an organizer at the grassroots, provincial and national level of the organization. He served as the National NFU Youth President for three years. He is the current Vice-President of Canadian Organic Growers and is a passionate advocate of ecological and organic production.  He chairs the NFU Climate Committee and works in various capacities for the farmer coalition Farmers for Climate Solutions.  In the winter months and when not otherwise working you can hear him on the Who Will Feed Us Podcast where he is a producer and co-host.

Brent worked as a human rights investigator, election observer and journalist on four continents before becoming a farmer. For the past fifteen years he has run The New Farm, a wholesale vegetable operation near Creemore, Ontario, with his wife, Gillian. The farm supplies specialty retail stores and some of the best restaurants in Canada. Brent speaks often on food and farming issues, and has written for the Huffington Post, Globe and Mail, and other publications. His memoir of starting a sustainable farm was a national bestseller.

Brent is the President of the Ecological Farmers Association of Ontario.

Anne Verhallen is a Soil Management Specialist Horticulture at the University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus, Agronomy Building.

Areas of Focus:

• Field demonstration trials in cover crops, soil quality and irrigation scheduling
• Provide technical support in the area of wind erosion control, compaction, irrigation scheduling and other soil management issues related to the production of horticultural crops
• Editor of the Cover Crop Best Management Practices book

For the past twenty-three years Allan Kuhn has been working in Organic Agriculture. He completed both the Provincial Apprenticeship and the Demeter Apprenticeship and graduated from Organic Agriculture Management College all in North Rhein Westphalia, Germany. Since 2007 Allan has been with Camphill Communities Ontario, helping their five-acre Market Garden Program.

For the past twenty-eight years Annette has been working in Organic Agriculture. She completed her training in the Horticultural Program at Banting in Alliston. Since graduating she has been part of the Agricultural Day programming at Camphill Communities Ontario, helping in the Market Garden, the Herb Garden and with the Maple Syrup.

Jennifer Osborn is the artist and farmer at All Sorts Acres Farm & Art Studio along with her partner Tim Fisher. Starting in 2007 on just over an acre outside of Guelph with the goal of creating an integrated art-farm, the two persevered until finally purchasing the land they currently farm in 2016. The 50-acre farm, located an hour north of Guelph, is managed using regenerative, ecological, permaculture, and circular economy principles and practice that revolve around sheep. With a certified commercial kitchen, wool processing facility, and on-farm store and gallery, almost all of what the farm produces is processed on farm creating value added sheep milk gelato, yogurt, cheese, kefir, milk, wool items, and pastured lamb. Bees, ducks, chickens, berries, and willow contribute to the farm identity and product base that includes charcoal, paint, honey, eggs, flavours for their gelato, and farm inspired artwork that includes original pieces and plantable greeting cards. In addition to products, in 2022 they opened a space for reactive dogs and their people to visit.

Brenda Hsueh is a Chinese Canadian woman farmer, who has been farming Black Sheep Farm in Grey County since 2009. She first came to farming single and jaded from years of working a desk job in Toronto. Now she farms with her partner Skyler, and their daughter Emma, often tired and pessimistic about the state of the world, but ever hopeful, watching nature’s regenerative cycles in action. They produce organic vegetables on a no-till 1 acre garden for CSA members, and raise sheep for their regenerative grazing to combat the climate crisis, while producing meat for food, fibre for clothing, fertilizer and mulch, and compost for fertility for the vegetable garden. Brenda is passionate about all things sheep and fleece related and is hopeful for a future where wool is valued, processed, and used more extensively in Canada.

Change-maker Rick Clark offers a practical, proven example of how regenerative farming methods can transform global agriculture… and so much more! Rick Clark is a 5th generation farmer from Williamsport, IN. The main goal on the farm is to build soil health and achieve balance with Mother Nature. Rick has developed and is constantly improving a systematic approach to regenerative farming. He is most proud of incorporating regenerative farming practices with all acres being certified organic. He calls it regenerative organic stewardship with no tillage. He will suppress weeds and build soil health with cover crops and no tillage. Rick also cares deeply about human health, as it is another important driver behind the organic no till style of farming. Rick is building a system that will be viable and profitable for generations to come.

Jamie Israel —  3Gen Organics – named for the three generations who own and operate the farm – takes a holistic and systems-based approach to farming. With this holistic approach, the Israels began to transition their entire operation to organic in 2015. Over the course of the next five years, they certified their hog operation and all their fields and continued to grow their business by renting new land in the area.

They are able to make cover crops work with any of their field crops and even seed a four-species blend into their standing corn while maintaining strong yields. “[The] cover crop looks great and helps break down corn residue, and we’re still getting 150-180 bushel corn.”

Currently they grow soft red winter wheat, hard red spring wheat, winter and spring barley, cereal rye, hybrid rye, triticale and peas for forage production. Most of the grain and all of the forage is fed to the pigs, either fresh or ensiled. They are able to market most of their wheat locally through 1847, a Foodland Ontario artisan miller in Fergus.

Mary–Howell Martens and her family farm 2000 acres of certified organic grain, forage and dairy in upstate New York.  They have been certified organic since 1992. Additionally, she owns and operates Lakeview Organic Grain, an organic seed and animal feed operation serving dairy, poultry and vegetable farmers throughout the Northeast.   She served on the USDA Advisory Committee for Agricultural Biotechnology, the Cornell University Dean’s Advisory committee, and the NOFA-NY Board of Directors.  In earlier years, she worked in the grape breeding program at Cornell University and taught biology and plant physiology at Finger Lakes Community College.  She has a BS in Horticultural Science from North Carolina State University, and a MS in Plant Breeding/Vegetable Crops from Cornell University.  She also loves to bake with home-grown, home-ground grains!

Carolyn Young (OCO),
Hugh Martin,
Jackie Clark (EFAO),
Geoff Smith (Agricorp),
Melissa Mckeown (1847 Milling),
Amanda Peer (The Anderson Group),
Andrew St. Jean (Beechwood Agri Services),
Rob Langford (Crooked Creek Acres),
Rita Felder (Field Farms Marketing),
Mike Edwards (Jones Feed Mill),
Marshall King (King Grain),
Rob Wallbridge (SureSource Commodities),
and Harro Wehrmann (Wehrmann Grain).

Hannah Kaya is a farm worker working and living in unceded Anishinaabeg territory. She serves as the Farm Worker Organizer for the National Farmers Union.

Briana Vanular is a Policy and Research Coordinator with OCO working on the Labour Project. While studying Human Environment and Environmental Assessment at Concordia University, she became passionate about organic and regenerative farming as one solution to the environmental challenges we face today. She is particularly interested in themes of food sovereignty, accessibility, and community food operations.

Phil Fung, P.Eng., is the President and Founder of HiGarden who helps run an indoor, community-centre farm in Markham, as well as an off-grid container farm (with aquaponics) for City of Brampton.

Dr. Matt Hammond is an ecologist and urban agriculture specialist who helps run an indoor, community-center farm in Markham, as well as an off-grid container farm (with aquaponics) for the City of Brampton.

Heather Lee is a co-founder of No-More GMOs, a CBAN member group based in Toronto that is focused on local advocacy and education. She studied Canada’s regulatory and policy-making framework for GE Foods for her undergraduate and graduate theses and has given talks on GMOs everywhere from community events and farmers’ markets to national academic conferences. She has collaborated to raise awareness, and counter misinformation, about GE foods with community groups, co-ops, the Organic Council of Ontario, the National Farmers Union, and non-GMO focused distributors, farmers, producers, and retailers. Heather is also a founding member of the Toronto Non-GMO Coalition.

My–Lien Bosch is the Government Relations and Regulatory Affairs Manager at the Canada Organic Trade Association (COTA). Prior to joining COTA, she was the Director of Technical Services at the Animal Nutrition Association of Canada and had worked for several companies on technical, regulatory and certification files.  My–Lien has a MSc in food science and also has a background in food manufacturing and product development for human and animal food.

Ken Laing farms with his wife Martha and daughter Ellen at Orchard Hill Farm near St. Thomas, Ontario. Ken has a degree in Horticulture from the University of Guelph. In his 40+ years of farming he has grown a wide variety of field crops, small fruit and vegetables organically. For the last 3 years his farm has been a Living-Labs site for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and EFAO. This was EFAO’s horticulture site and Ken was developing no-till strategies for organic vegetables.

Kels is an Environmental Scientist leading Aspire’s Frass R&D initiatives with an approach that is rooted in authentic collaborations, strategic planning, and scientific rigour. In leading these interdisciplinary efforts in the frass space, she plays a small – but “contagiously passionate!” – part in the global movement towards regenerating the strength and resilience of our planet & soils, growing more nutritious food to feed the world, and transitioning to a true circular economy.

She has fifteen years of experience working in corporate sustainability, environmental stewardship, and organic horticulture, with the last five years focused on the research and commercialization of cricket frass. Kels studied at Queen’s University, earning a BScH in Environmental Science; obtained a certificate in project management from York Schulich School of Business; and has training and certificates in LEAN business, SME management, marketing, and communications. She’s also completed Dr. Elaine Ingham’s Living Soil Foodweb Courses, the Canadian Compost Council’s Compost Facility Operator Training Course, and a Sustainable Medicinal Cannabis Production Managers Mastercourse.

Ben Cullen is the Founder of Cullen’s Foods, an organic food company that promotes Canadian organics by working directly with Canadian farmers and offering full traceability from the consumer to the farm. Ben shares a weekly column in the Toronto Star with his dad Mark Cullen, where they write about a range of environmental topics from gardening to agriculture, and recently co-authored a book together, Escape to Reality: how the world is changing gardening, and gardening is changing the world. Ben holds a Diploma in Agriculture from the University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus and a Bachelor of Commerce from Dalhousie University. Ben believes in the potential of organic agriculture to address the dual climate and biodiversity crises while feeding the world.

Ben is also the President of the Organic Council of Ontario.

Mary–Howell Martens and her family farm 2000 acres of certified organic grain, forage and dairy in upstate New York. They have been certified organic since 1992. Additionally, she owns and operates Lakeview Organic Grain, an organic seed and animal feed operation serving dairy, poultry and vegetable farmers throughout the Northeast. She served on the USDA Advisory Committee for Agricultural Biotechnology, the Cornell University Dean’s Advisory committee, and the NOFA-NY Board of Directors. In earlier years, she worked in the grape breeding program at Cornell University and taught biology and plant physiology at Finger Lakes Community College. She has a BS in Horticultural Science from North Carolina State University, and a MS in Plant Breeding/Vegetable Crops from Cornell University. She also loves to bake with home-grown, home-ground grains!

Phil Oegema is an organic farmer in St. Thomas Ontario. Him and his father grow corn, soybeans, wheat, spelt, and dry edible beans for the organic market. They started transitioning their farm to organic in 2013 after a long history of conventional crop farming. They are now fully certified on all of their 1100 acres.

Andrew St Jean is an organic farmer from St Mary’s, Ontario and the organic manager for a local elevator dealing exclusively in organic grains.

Klaas Martens grew up farming intensively with chemicals; now he and his wife Mary-Howell are organic devotees operating a thriving farm and grain mill helping boost the regional economy in upstate New York.

Tyler Robertson is a 6th generation farmer outside Ridgetown, Ontario. As the youngest among Cullen’s growers, Tyler is a recent graduate from the University of Guelph with an innovative approach to farming – including home-built equipment to deal with the constant weed pressure of organic farming.

Research Scientist, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada focused on the development of sustainable, economical, environmentally safe weed management strategies using integrated weed management principles in field and horticultural crops

Research Scientist, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada focused on dry bean disease screening and development of germplasm with disease resistance and emerging threats for Ontario dry beans

Dr. Andrew Hammermeister is the Director of the OACC and Science Director of Canada’s Organic Science Cluster. He has been leading national organic science priority setting and Cluster proposal technical development since 2008.

Dr. Emmanuella Ellis is a research Associate with the OACC. Her work has focused on studying the impact of organic science on stakeholders.

Meg Sears PhD is a scientist leading the national group Prevent Cancer Now, working to make “least-toxic” the norm. She champions healthiest choices by individuals, and by governments on behalf of the public. Meg brings over two decades of scientific, policy and public health engagement on pesticides to a discussion of Canada’s “pesticide management.” This includes reducing the pesticides portfolio and use, and the need for more effective, healthier practices to prevent and manage pests as achieved with organic practices.

Humble Bee Inc was founded by Luc Peters in 2013. They are primarily urban beekeepers, managing hundreds of hives at over 30 locations in the greater Hamilton area, including the Royal Botanical Gardens, Hamilton Port Authority, McMaster University and roof top hives at the Cotton Factory. In addition to their Hamilton business, Humble Bee also manages hives for the Toronto Beekeeper’s Collective at the Fairmont Royal York, Ontario Science Centre, Black Creek Community Farm, and Downsview Federal Park. Humble Bee’s philosophy is to put the needs of the bees first, with the understanding that maintaining healthy, thriving colonies is in the best interests of both the bees and the beekeeper. Our colonies are managed without the use of antibiotics or synthetic miticides, and they select for gentle, disease-resistant and hygienic stock.

Sophie Clark has been with Trout Lily since 2015, first as assistant manager and then taking the leap at age 24 to become owner and operator. Her interest in helping farmers find suitable and fair land access comes from her own experiences of negotiating contracts for the business sale and land rental when Trout Lily’s ownership transitioned, as well as having the all-too-common experience of exploitation on some farms early in her farming days. Sophie has seen situations for land use crumble to leave farming pals in stressful spots, and she’s also seen some great successes. Her hope for this panel is to encourage folks seeking land, and those leasing land, to create detailed and formal documents to clarify terms of any agreement and safeguard all parties against harm. A good faith handshake is great until it isn’t!

Ginelle Skerrit is the Programme Director at Adinkra farm, as well as a senior leader, international public speaker, moderator, facilitator, trainer and coach with a broad range of experiences including administration, social enterprise development, fundraising, youth development, anti-racism, diversity and inclusion training, organizational development, communications and economic inclusion. Her current focus is on promoting community safety, policing reform, Food Sovereignty and African Indigenous Knowledge. Her current focus is on promoting community safety, policing reform, Food Sovereignty and African Indigenous Knowledge.

John is a Holistic Soil Consultant, teaching people how to heal their soil. John has studied with Dr. Elaine Ingham of The Soil Foodweb Inc at Rodale Institute, and the University of Guelph. He believes that you should feed your soil so your plants will feed themselves. Also that “there should be a microscope on every farm!” (Dr. Elaine Ingham). John has practiced sustainable land use over the last 40 years in erosion control, bio remediation, landscape design, construction, project management and organic farming.

As operations manager of The Glen Road Organics and The Glen Road Natural Landscapes for 20+ years John takes great pride in producing bio-diverse compost and potting mixes, and teaching organic farming and gardening practices. The farm is a leader in teaching and producing thermal compost, organic regenerative farming practices and in building healthy, resilient biologically diverse soils.

Nicole grew up on a conventional farm in Southwestern Ontario. She has since graduated  University of Toronto with Honours Bachelor of Science and a diploma from Durham College. Since then she has taken interest in regenerative agriculture practices and organic food production.

At The Glen Road Organics Nicole manages the market garden plot as well as works making compost and potting mix.

Nicole is currently working towards becoming a certified soil consultant.

Stephanie Cairns: Stephanie Cairns, M.Sc., is the 2022-23 Kinross Chair in Environmental Governance, a knowledge exchange chair at the University of Guelph. She has singular breadth from working on circular economy, climate and clean energy, natural capital, and ecological restoration, alongside depth and perspective developed over three decades with leading NGOs, policy institutes, expert panels, and advising political leaders. She served on the 2021 Council of Canadian Academies’ Expert Panel on Circular Economy, and led the circular economy program of Smart Prosperity Institute from 2017 to 2021. She usually lives in Coast Salish territory in British Columbia, where she is actively engaged in protecting, stewarding and restoring Gulf Island ecosystems.

Mkomose (Dr. Andrew Judge) is an Assistant Professor of Anishinaabe Studies at Algoma University. He has lectured at Sir Wilfrid Laurier University, The University of Waterloo, and coordinated Indigenous Studies at Conestoga College, where he established a network of Indigenous leaders to restore land. Mkomose specializes in Anishinaabe cultural knowledge, ethnomedicine, and land-based learning. Mkomose has learned from, worked and consulted with, and served Indigenous Elders and community leaders for over a decade. He has founded several community-led Indigenous knowledge-based programs at elementary, secondary, and post-secondary levels and works tirelessly to promote Indigenous land-based sustainability practices.

Fran Freeman studied Apiculture and Sustainable Urban Agriculutre at University of Guelph, has taken numerous beekeeping workshops, and completed her Permaculture Design certificate ten years ago. She has managed or co-managed a number of small scale apiaries using organic/ecological practices in a variety of rural and urban settings since 2005. Currently, She runs bee yards at two Humber College campuses as well as the Humber Arboretum, all in Toronto. She developed and teaches a 45-hour Sustainable Urban Beekeeping course at the Centre for Urban Ecology at Humber. She is a returning speaker at GOC. Additional speaking engagements include: Apimondia International Congress (Montreal, 2019), the Eastern Apicultural Society Conference (Guelph, 2015), the Green Living Show (Toronto, 2015) and the Urban Agriculture Summer School (UQAM, Montreal, 2014).

Aliyah is the owner and operator of Lucky Bug Farm, a one quarter acre market garden located on leased land just outside of Kitchener, Ontario. In her second season, Aliyah grew a variety of vegetables and herbs for a 30+ person CSA utilizing minimal tillage, ample compost and other, ecologically friendly growing practices. Though she is now a farmer, Aliyah graduated from the University of Waterloo with an undergraduate degree in Environmental Studies in 2019 and worked briefly as an Urban Planner before becoming immersed in farming. She lives in Kitchener with her partner Thomas and her cat Frankie.

Raised just outside of Kingston, Ontario Stuart grew up in a non-farming family. After an accidental season spent working on organic farms in Ireland, as a member of WWOOF, he turned to farming full time in 2009. Since then, Stuart has farmed throughout Ontario and in Quebec. He has had the privilege of learning from and apprenticing under some truly inspirational and professional farmers over the years. In 2017 he co-founded Rooted Oak Farm, a vegetable and cut flower farm serving the Ottawa and Kingston area. Stuart is a proud member of the National Farmers Union and has worked as an organizer at the grassroots, provincial and national level of the organization. He served as the National NFU Youth President for three years. He is the current Vice-President of Canadian Organic Growers and is a passionate advocate of ecological and organic production.  He chairs the NFU Climate Committee and works in various capacities for the farmer coalition Farmers for Climate Solutions.  In the winter months and when not otherwise working you can hear him on the Who Will Feed Us Podcast where he is a producer and co-host.

Paul Smith is a sustainable agriculture consultant engaged with the Greenbelt Foundation and lives in Guelph with his family. Paul worked for the Ontario government for 30 years at the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, and other ministries. He worked on a variety of agri-environmental topics including soil health, nutrient management, the Environmental Farm Plan, Federal-Provincial agricultural programs, and on-farm biodiversity. He holds degrees from the University of Guelph and the University of Waterloo and is currently on the board of the Ontario Soil Network.

Jamie Richards has managed Am Braigh Farm, a year-round market garden for the last 27 years.  Inspired by the work of Eliot Coleman, he offers a range of vegetables year-round using minimal heat, relying on season extension techniques.  Although using complex rotations and lots of compost, he has come to the realization that his on-farm sources of fertility are not adequate and his level of soil disturbance was not creating long term soil health.  Now utilizing a range of regenerative practices, he has seen a dramatic improvement in soil structure, yields, and resilience to drought and rain events.  The farm generated fertility is now showing significant economic returns.

Dr. Aaron De Laporte is a Senior Research Associate in the Department of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of Guelph. His research focuses on the economic and environmental effects of beneficial management practice adoption. He employs financial and economic analysis tools that integrate biophysical and spatial modeling. He has examined soil health, wetland conservation, bioenergy, nitrogen management and other practices in Canada and the United States. He is the co-author of 15 academic publications, along with numerous reports, including assessments of soil health and greenhouse gas mitigating practices with the Greenbelt Foundation and Farmers for Climate Solutions.

Ken Laing farms with his wife Martha and daughter Ellen at Orchard Hill Farm near St. Thomas, Ontario. Ken has a degree in Horticulture from the University of Guelph. In his 40+ years of farming he has grown a wide variety of field crops, small fruit and vegetables organically. For the last 3 years his farm has been a Living-Labs site for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and EFAO. This was EFAO’s horticulture site and Ken was developing no-till strategies for organic vegetables.

Krista Long is a passionate advocate for family farms, farmland protection, ecologically viable farming practices, and local, equitable food systems. She has over 20 years experience in the not-for-profit sector with a variety of organizations including the Canadian Organic Growers, the Waterloo Region Food System Roundtable, and the Ontario Farmland Trust. She brings her experience in fundraising, policy, research, and program development to her role at the NFU-O.

Theresa manages Garden Party – a 4 acre cut flower farm outside of Kitchener Waterloo. Before switching to specialty cut flowers in 2012, Theresa operated a certified organic CSA. She switched as a retirement project, but unknowingly found herself in the rapid escalation of the ‘field to vase’ movement in North America. She has sold flowers in multiple channels including: CSA/subscriptions, farmgate, farmers’ markets, weddings/events, wholesale to designers & food hubs, and cut-your-own. In 2023, she is beginning (finally) her retirement and is focusing on selling wholesale to designers and selling specialty cut flower plugs (small plants) to other flower farmers.

Kelly is OCOs Communications and Membership Manager. She is a communications and marketing professional with a formal education in graphic arts and brand development. She holds a diverse portfolio including many iconic Canadian brands. Her campaign development experience has given her the opportunity to develop culinary tasting events showcasing local chefs and produce. As the former Executive Director of a national not-for-profit, she was tasked with building the movement for proportional representation in Canada. She also comes from a long line of family farmers. When not working as a communications professional, she and her partner run a regenerative, rotational grazing, farm-to-fork business serving the GTA.

Aaron is the father of three, husband of one, and an aspiring amateur weekend athlete. He is an experienced executive with a demonstrated history of working within the natural, organic, and wellness industry for over 18 years. Aaron has led the health divisions for both food and non-food at Canada’s largest grocery retailer (Loblaw Companies), as well as co-founded Canada’s 16th fastest growing company, GreenSpace Brands (2018 Maclean’s Growth 500). 

Aaron is passionate about improving the health and well-being of Canadians through the support and activation of people, products, and organizations in the health and wellness industry. 

Kate is a certified nutritionist and healthy food systems advocate. For 10 years her work at The Big Carrot has focused on championing organic agriculture, building better food literacy, and fostering creative partnerships in the community.

The Big Carrot is a worker-owned natural food market that has been committed to local, organic, non-GMO and sustainable food systems since 1983. Growing from 9 founding partners to a thriving worker-owned business, The Big Carrot is run in the same democratic manner as when it first opened. Its approach to health includes creating and protecting sustainable, robust food systems and facilitating community innovation. Each year The Big Carrot funds two grant streams: Carrot Cache and Natures Finest Fund which support sustainable farming and equitable food systems in Ontario.

Matt Soltys is a fifth-generation Guelphite and a long-time community orchardist. Matt managed Ignatius Farm’s community orchard from 2019-2022, and in 2021 he founded his business, The Urban Orchardist, specializing in fruit tree consulting and pruning, and operates a diverse fruit & nut tree nursery. He completed a permaculture design certification in 2005, organized food security projects like the Guelph Fruit Tree Project throughout his 20s, and recently graduated from an interdisciplinary biology and philosophy degree at the University of Guelph. He lives with his family on a large urban property which he has turned into a diverse food forest with more than 25 species of fruit and nuts.

Kim De Lallo is the Member Relations & Business Development Manager for the Canadian Organic Trade Association.

Aaron joined High Mowing Organic Seeds in the summer of 2020 as a Commercial Grower Sales Representative, working with farmers throughout Canada. He spent the previous decade managing organic farms in western Washington state. In addition to growing diversified vegetables, he’s grown seed crops on contract for High Mowing and other seed companies, has participated in variety trials on a regional and national level, and has developed his own breeding projects in addition to collaborating on breeding projects with industry and research partners.

Hanna Jacobs grew up on a horse farm just north of Toronto and spent much of her 20’s travelling throughout Europe and North America visiting various sustainable farms and alternative communities whose focus included renewable energy resources, co-operative living and local food delivery systems.

She attended Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Institute in Ottawa, Ontario, where she received certificates in both culinary and patisserie arts, allowing her to spend over a decade in restaurants and pastry shops.

In 2006 after the birth of her first child, she began Matchbox Garden & Seed Co. to provide reliable and safe food for her family and others in the community. A passion for feeding people quickly transformed from cooking meals to farming vegetables and herbs. Inspired by her first chef, Hanna‘s mantra in the kitchen and on the farm is always, “your meal is only as good as your raw ingredients”.

Matchbox Garden now resides in Haldimand County where Hanna focuses on seed production, soil health, and garden education. No till methods, celestial planting, and biodiversity are cornerstones for all the gardens. When Hanna isn’t farming or teaching others about it, she can be found teaching yoga or at her local Karate club.

In 2006, Paul Irwin and his wife fell in love with a 100-acre farm located outside of Rocklyn, Ontario. It reminded him of his Scottish heritage and a rallying point called Boars Rock for all of Clan McLaren to meet. So, they decided to call the farm Boars Rock to become a rallying point for their family’s agricultural future.

Not long after, Irwin purchased 5 bulbs of Music garlic from a local farm store with no idea on how to grow it. As all garlic farmers know, 5 grew into 30, and after a couple of years, they outgrew their little garden. Irwin started planting up to an acre from their original garlic seed. In a couple more years, they got their organic certificate from EcoCert and expanded to 50,000 acres. That was the year that disaster struck and they lost almost 90% of their seed stock and had to cancel a big contract of selling a large portion of the garlic.

What was left was about 10,000 cloves to plant and a tiny portion that Irwin’s wife, Lorraine asked if she could use to dehydrate and produce garlic powder. Irwin was not very supportive until he saw how fast she sold out of it at a farmers’ market. People wanted to know what was put into it and they both said nothing but pure music garlic. Those 10,000 cloves have now grown into 3 acres and over 120,000 garlic plants. They continuously grow their original seed stock and have expanded to produce some of the best garlic products available under the name of Pure Music Garlic by Boars Rock Farm. All of this was possible by replanting their clean seed stock that has adapted very well to their soil and environment.

David Cohlmeyer learned how to operate his organic market garden as a successful business. After retiring from the farm, he has been consulting with many producers to develop effective ways to increase income and reduce expenses – to have more time and money for enjoying a chosen lifestyle. Good record-keeping is the best tool for enabling this. David will share practices he has learned to simplify the process of recording farm activities; then using this information to optimize decision-making.

Deirdre Laframboise is the Executive Director of Canadian Organic Growers. Her career has focused in the areas of sustainability and health in the not-for-profit sector. She co-founded and led the charity Clean Air Champions to international and national awards for its ground-breaking, curriculum-connected programming in air quality, climate change and health. She went on to lead two other national charities as Executive Director including the Canadian Climate Forum and the Canadian Water Resources Association. Deirdre also served as Director, Knowledge and Sector Development at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities where she led a team responsible for designing two national energy efficiency and affordable housing programs. She has served on several national science and research advisory and is a two-time certified trainee of The Climate Reality Project. Deirdre has a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies (minor in Biology) and a Master’s in Environmental Resources Management (minor in Business Administration). She was a member of a national sport team and enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, reading and being active outdoors.

Harry is the Director of Harry Cummings and Associates (HCA) which was established in 1997. Harry has a Masters and Ph.D. in Geography from Clark University in Massachusetts and a B.A. (HON) Geography from Western University in London, Ontario. He is a Registered Professional Planner (RPP) and Credentialed Evaluator. He speaks English, Indonesian and French fluently.

Named by Landscape Ontario as 2020 and 2021’s Garden Communicator of the Year, gardening has been Sean James’ hobby and profession for almost 40 years. A graduate of Niagara Parks School of Horticulture, a Master Gardener, writer, and teacher, Sean focuses on eco-gardening techniques, which makes sense since he grew up surrounded by nature near Crawford Lake in Campbellville. He has spoken from the Maritimes to Seattle and landscaped from Nova Scotia to California. Sean has had the honour to be part of creating the new Ontario Landscape Tree Planting Guide, the Grow-Me-Me-Instead guide, the Ontario Horticultural Apprenticeship Curriculum and the national Red Seal Occupational Standard, and the Master Gardeners Reference Manual. He has participated in chairing the Environmental Stewardship Committee for Landscape Ontario, the Environmental Committee for the Perennial Plant Association, moderating the Master Gardeners of Ontario Facebook page, judging the All-American Selections garden competition and Hamilton’s Monarch Awards. He has been the Ontario spokesperson for Garden Days Canada, He has appeared on many radio shows and on television. Sean owns ‘Sean James Consulting & Design’ and instructs at Mohawk College.

Dr. Andrew Hammermeister is the Director of the OACC and Science Director of Canada’s Organic Science Cluster. He has been leading national organic science priority setting and Cluster proposal technical development since 2008.

Dr. Emmanuella Ellis is a research Associate with the OACC. Her work has focused on studying the impact of organic science on stakeholders.

Robert Pavlis is a chemist, biochemist and longtime gardener who frequently lectures on soil, plant science and composting. He is also the author of several books including Soil Science for Gardeners and Microbe Science for Gardeners.

Taylor Stanley brings with him a diverse background in international business development, where he has always maintained a focus on sustainability. After completing his B-Comm undergrad, Taylor realized his passion for travel and combined that with post-graduate studies in International Development Management. Taylor has worked in Canada, Australia, Mexico, and most recently China before returning to his hometown of Oakville in early 2020. Today, Taylor leads Riverside Natural Foods’ sustainability efforts in collaboration with the many sustainability champions across the organization. Current initiatives Taylor is focused on include developing internal communication & governance systems to embed Riverside’s Sustainability Strategy, leading the development of the organizations Product Life Cycle Assessment initiative, and supporting Scope 3 Value Chain Emissions measurements and future reduction strategies.

Markus Pfenning grew up on Pfenning’s Organic Vegetable farm in New Hamburg, which was founded by his grandparents Wilhelm & Barnhild Pfenning in 1981. After a few years away from the farm, he has returned to work alongside his family. This means he can work on what he values most – growing nutritious, delicious, and safe food! And to do so in a way that honours not only the environment (now and in the future), but also the people that grow it. He is involved in just about every aspect of the farm business: crop planning, managing plant health, making deliveries to customers, preparing for inspections, ensuring traceability records are in good order, and tracking sales.

Kate is a certified nutritionist and healthy food systems advocate. For 10 years her work at The Big Carrot has focused on championing organic agriculture, building better food literacy, and fostering creative partnerships in the community. The Big Carrot is a worker-owned natural food market that has been committed to local, organic, non-GMO and sustainable food systems since 1983. Growing from 9 founding partners to a thriving worker-owned business, The Big Carrot is run in the same democratic manner as when it first opened. Its approach to health includes creating and protecting sustainable, robust food systems and facilitating community innovation. Each year The Big Carrot funds two grant streams: Carrot Cache and Natures Finest Fund which support sustainable farming and equitable food systems in Ontario.