Farmers and food industry come together

September 26, 2012 – Farming and food leaders from across Canada and the United States came together in Mississauga last week at the inaugural North American Forum on Sustainable Animal Agriculture.  Farmers, processors, retailers, agri-business, researchers, government and other food industry leaders discussed issues of critical importance to everyone in attendance, in particular, defining sustainable animal agriculture in a way that supports agriculture while building consumer trust.  The forum was co-sponsored by the Farm & Food Care Foundation, based in Ontario, and the Center for Food Integrity, an American organization with a mandate to build consumer trust and confidence in food and farming.
 
The line-up of internationally-recognized speakers included Dr. John Kennelly of the University of Alberta; Sylvia Rowe, president of SR Strategy; David Smith of Sobeys, Inc.; Dr. Tina Widowski of the University of Guelph; Moon Mukkar-Poyser of Cargill Inc.; Colin Siren of Ipsos Marketing and Martin Gooch of the Value Chain Management Centre.
 
Hog farmer Amy Cronin, Chair of Ontario Pork, was a dynamic feature speaker. Cronin talked about sustainability as it relates to managing her family farm.  As a hog farmer, Cronin told the audience that it’s currently costing her $170 to grow a hog to market weight – when it’s sold for $130. That’s not sustainable farming, said Cronin, although it’s an unfortunate reality of the current marketplace.
 
Bruce Christie, Chair of the Farm & Food Care Foundation said that the forum brought an audience together who shares a “collective desire to provide safe, affordable food with predictable, secure demand and supply”. He added that cooperation between all sectors of agriculture is paramount to successfully address the sustainability challenges facing the industry and the need to feed a growing population.
 
Charlie Arnot, Chief Executive Officer for The Center for Food Integrity added, “because of the change in size and structure of the food industry and the use of new technology, consumers are expressing growing concern about a wide range of issues including animal well-being, food safety, nutrition and others.” Arnot continued, “Events like this bring us together to openly discuss the challenges and potential solutions.”
 
Several of the speakers said that sustainability has to include five pillars of a food system including food safety, human well-being, animal health and welfare, the environment and economics/food affordability.  The challenge ahead is to determine how all five pillars can be supported by a strong social contract while keeping food affordable.  David Smith of Sobeys challenged the farmers and food industry leaders in the audience to define sustainability before it’s done for them.  The Forum concluded with discussion on next steps and actions that the agri-food sector needs to take to continue the dialogue and work on developing a social contract between the people who grow the food, the industry and governments related to food and farming, and everyone who eats.
 
Copies of the presentations from the Forum will be available on the Farm & Food Care Foundation’s website at  www.farmcarefoundation.ca