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Inaugural Farm & Food Care executive elected

May 16, 2012  By David Manly


May 16, 2012, Guelph, ON – Farm & Food Care held its inaugural board meeting and elected its first executive at a meeting in Guelph on May 11th.

John Maaskant will serve as the first chairman of Farm & Food Care.  John is the Chicken Farmers of Ontario representative and the past chair of the Ontario Farm Animal Council. He and his family farm near Clinton, Ontario.

“We are excited about the future of this organization as we build on our strong foundation and look forward to the future,” said Maaskant.  “Farm & Food Care’s work will benefit the whole agri-food sector by cultivating awareness and building appreciation for food and farming.”

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Larry Lynn, representing Grain Farmers of Ontario, has been chosen as the organization’s Vice Chair.  Rounding out the executive is Treasurer Joe Hickson representing the Seed Growers’ Association and Executive member at large Heather Copland representing Grober Inc.

All four executive members formerly sat on either the board of directors of the Ontario Farm Animal Council or AGCare – Agricultural Groups Concerned about Resources and the Environment. The organizations amalgamated to become Farm & Food Care Ontario in January which has been operating with an interim board of directors until this meeting.

Other directors include:

  • Lianne Appleby – Hendrix Genetics
  • Marinus Bakker – Ontario Bean Producers’ Marketing Board
  • Bruce Christie – Nutreco Canada Inc.
  • Beth Clark – Ontario Pork
  • Jim Poel – Ontario Processing Vegetable Growers’ Association
  • Gerald Rollins – Ontario Cattlemen’s Association
  • Ed Scharringa – Christian Farmers’ Federation of Ontario
  • Murray Sherk – Dairy Farmers of Ontario

At the meeting, the board focused on setting direction for the coming year, approving a business plan and financial statements. Board members will go through a strategic planning exercise in June.

About Farm & Food Care

Farm & Food Care Ontario is the first coalition of its type in Canada, bringing together tens of thousands of farmers and related businesses with a mandate to provide credible information on food and farming in Ontario. To learn more about Farm & Food Care Ontario or to support the organization’s efforts, visit www.farmfoodcare.org.


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