Sean Dunbar, owner/operator of Northampton Brewing Company which makes Picaroons' Traditional Ales discusses their organic brews and their desire to use local organic hops and grain in their future brews (which they are now doing as of 2012!).

Growing Locally is one in a series of inspirational videos with Klaas and Mary Howell-Martens talking on organic farming at the Growing More Organic Conference, Cornwall, PEI, 2007.

Gift of Organic Farming is one in a series of inspirational videos with Klaas and Mary Howell-Martens talking on organic farming at the Growing More Organic Conference, Cornwall, PEI, 2007.

Crop Rotation is one in a series of inspirational videos with Klaas and Mary Howell-Martens talking on organic farming at the Growing More Organic Conference, Cornwall, PEI, 2007.

On Monday (July 28th, 2008), ACORN co-hosted a tour of the Maritime Organic Grains Network's field crop trials in NB. The site was near Sussex, at Tom Lask's farm.

With 235 experimental plots set up across Canada to test different cereals' response to a variety of fertility treatments, the tour was extremely well attended (about 30 people) with an inquisitive crowd who were eager to see which of the tested treatments yielded positive results.

Mark Bernard of Barnyard Organics explains his organic approach for his farm located in Freetown, PEI (2008).  (1m:29s)

This newsletter includes articles about the revival of the MOGN, with guest articles about:  Global Organic Grain Market by Tom Manley; Small-scale variety trials in Albert County, NB (quinoa, hulless oats and hulless barley) by Janet Wallace; The Potential for Malt Barley in the Maritimes by Aaron Mills; A Realistic View of Cash Grain Production On the Organic Farm by Jack Lazor; as well as an update from Speerville Flour Mill; and an article about Participatory Plant Breeding by ACORN's Regional Seed Program Coordinator, Steph Hughes.

Le guide fournit des informations détaillées sur la superficie des terres agricoles canadiennes consacrée à la production biologique de céréales et d’oléagineux, les prix du marché, les couts d’exploitation, les marges et les rendements. Il donne également une liste des ressources qui peuvent aider les agriculteurs à faire le saut vers la production biologique.

This guide provides details of the Canadian acreage devoted to organic cereal grains and oilseed production, prices, operating expenses, margins and yields, and points producers towards resources that can help them transition from conventional to organic. (Disponible en français)

Andrew Hammermeister (OACC), Mark Bernard (Barnyard Organics) and Niki Clark & Ian Curry (Nikian Farms) present at the 2014 ACORN Conference. View Nikian Farms' slideshow presentation here.

 Rachel Cheverie (Perennia, NS) and Matt Dykerman (Red Soil Organics, PEI) present at the 2014 ACORN Conference.

View Rachel Cheverie's slideshow presentation here.

We are working on this list on an ongoing basis. If you have edits or additions to suggest to this list, please be in touch with us! Contact Steph at seed@acornorganic.org.

This newsletter includes contributions from:

 - Jason Freeman writing about Saskatchewan's wildly successful Farmer Direct Co-op, a fair-trade organic field crop and livestock marketing co-operative

 - Dr. Martin Entz about his Maritime visit to organic participatory plant breeding sites in PEI and NB

 - Farmer Alan Stewart and his initiative to start a Nova Scotia-based Organic Malting Facility

 - Dr. Heather Darby and her latest findings about growing organic flax in northern climates

Dr. Aaron Mills, Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada presents at the 2014 ACORN Conference.

This newsletter includes contributions from:

-ANDY HAMMERMEISTER on  The Anatomy of Cereal Seed (reprint);

-JOANNA MACKENZIE on Challenges from the European Wireworm (reprint);

-JACK VAN ROESTEL on Considerations in Growing Cereals,

and MARK BERNARD with an article entitled Get a Good Start (reprint).

The 2014-15 production year found the Atlantic Organic Sector meeting steady demands for growth, or in some cases, confronting more than demand for growth than can be met with existing production. Learn more about the state of the Atlantic Organic Sector in this report, including current and planned production, education and training needs, and market information.   

Presented by Josee Owen at the 2015 ACORN Conference

View the slideshow presentation here

Presented by Kim Delaney, Hawthorn Organic Farm at the 2015 ACORN Conference

View slideshow presentation here

Presented by Jeff Moyer, Executive Director Rodale Institute at the 2015 ACORN Conference PEI

View slideshow presentation here

Presented by Denis LeFrance, CETAB+ at the 2015 ACORN Conference PEI

Presented by Denis LaFrance CETAB+ at the 2015 ACORN Conference PEI

Presented by Jeff Moyer, Executive Director of Rodale Insitute

Presented by Jeff Moyer, Executive Director Rodale Institute

Presented by Ruth Knight, Organic Consultant Inc. at the 2015 ACORN Conference

Access Slideshow here

Presented by Jean-Guy Vaillancourt, Homestead Organics at the 2015 ACORN Conference PEI

Access Slideshow here

Presented by Will Bonsall at the 2015 ACORN Conference PEI

View Will Bonsall's slideshow here

Presented by Gail Kern of Summer Garden B & B at the 2015 ACORN Conference PEI

View slideshow here

The Newfoundland Organic Opportunities Conference took place January 13-14, 2016 in St. John's Newfoundland. The event was jointly hosted by ACORN and the Newfoundland Federation of Agriculture, and attended by over 50 people, including stakeholders in government, academia, and the non profit centre. Conference participant Dan Rubin, of Pouch Cove, kindly took notes and shared them with ACORN for distribution. 

Loic Dewavrin owns and operates a 1500-acre farm in Quebec, approximately 35 minutes from Montreal. Loic’s primary product is oil from his sunflower field crop, producing over 12,000 litres of oil per year. In this presentation Loic discusses the basics of oil production, differentiates between cold and hot pressed oils, and reviews his trials of various oil seeds. Over the years he has chosen to work primarily with sunflower seed for his oil products. The farm distributes throughout the Quebec region through grocery stores, reselling to other farms and through a cooperative (for more info on the co-op see the notes for Agro-bio: Experiences in a Grain Cooperative). This presentation does not go into the marketing of oilseed; rather it focuses on production and weighs pros and cons of various seeds types.

Sébastien Angers from the 2013 ACORN Conference in Moncton.

Growing organic no-till soybeans requires a well thought out rotation and planning that involves corn, soy and green manures. The technique of being able to incorporate residues and weed control without tilling requires much tinkering and accurate use of tools, but the improved soil structure and mineralisation provide many benefits to the crops.

In this presentation from the 2013 ACORN Conference in Moncton, Loic Dewavrin discusses how he helped found a grain cooperative in Quebec, touching on the benefits and challenges of small producers banding together. The talk covers the creation of the co-op, the reasons for starting, the current projects they are undertaking, and their hopes for growth and future work.

In this workshop from the 2013 ACORN Conference in Moncton, Tegan Wong-Daugherty, co-founder of Buckwheat Flats Natural Foods (NB) provided a hands-on workshop on how to make sourdough bread. Sourdough bread is special in that it uses the local bacteria and yeasts present in your home as a levener, which makes for distinct flavors and characteristics in each loaf. She outlines the steps and ingredients necessary for successful sourdough from start to finish.

At the 2016 Homesteading Symposium in Moncton, Alyson Chisholm of Windy Hill Farm explained what options there are for extending your garden’s season and maintaining a continuous harvest.

This report was completed by Research Assistant Shelby Jamieson in 2016. A joint project of ACORN and Carleton University, this report provides a scan of current seed security work, an overview of some potential partnership opportunities, and seed challenges and issues in Newfoundland. This report will be the basis of further consultation in the region, and helps lay the foundation for a program that will help address some identified issues.

Eric Gallandt presents at the 2016 ACORN Conference.

Ellen Mallory and Heather Darby present at the 2016 ACORN Conference.

Heather Darby presents at the 2016 ACORN Conference.

Ellen Mallory presents at the 2016 ACORN Conference.

At the 2017 ACORN Conference, Dr. Gailans discussed why it is worthwhile for farmers to do their own on-farm research and how to conduct the research and gain quality results.

Based on his research, Dr. Henry discussed options for cover crops for weed control, soil building, and fertility management at the 2017 ACORN Conference. 

Stefan Gailans, Research & Field Crops Director for Practical Farmers of Iowa, discusses on-farm variety trails at the 2017 ACORN Conference.

Canada’s ecological seed growers are often looking for tools and equipment to suit a “medium” scale of production. Bigger than home-scale, but smaller than industrial-scale. This document—written and compiled by Rebecca Ivanoff in 2017 for The Bauta Family Iniative on Canadian Seed Security —provides links to seed production equipment sources, from harvesting through to storage and seed testing. 

Seed producers, organic growers and groups like The Bauta Family Initiative on Canadian Seed Security who are committed to advancing organic and ecological seed production in Canada face a severe lack of information on the market for this seed. In 2013, The Bauta Family Initiative embarked on a project in partnership with the Canada Organic Trade Association (COTA) to assess the market for organic vegetable and field crop seed in Canada. This groundbreaking study was completed in 2014. It highlights current and potential markets, provides crop- and region-specific information for stakeholders interested in expanding the market, takes a detailed look at derogation requests for organic seed, and makes recommendations to grow and track the market on an ongoing basis.

The OACC offers research srticles on soils, horticulture, field crops, livestock and other.  Also, web-based courses on Composting, Organic Field Crop Production, Organic Livestock Production, Principles of Organic Horticulture and the Transition to Organic Agriculture.

Articles covering a wide variety of topics, including many relevant or about the Atlantic region

Canada’s Organic Science Cluster (OSC) ran from 2009-2013, and was a collaborative effort led jointly by the Organic Agriculture Centre of Canada (OACC) at Dalhousie University's Agricultural Campus and the Organic Federation of Canada (OFC). The Organic Science Cluster is part of theCanadian Agri-Science Clusters Initiative of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's Growing ForwardPolicy Framework and is supported by contributions from industry partners.

The goals of the Organic Science Cluster are to facilitate a national strategic approach to organic science in Canada, link scientists across the country and disseminate the knowledge generated to organic stakeholders.

The Organic Science Cluster identified 10 sub-projects, including 30 research activities that were conducted by over 50 researchers plus 30 collaborators in approximately 45 research institutions. Activities of the Organic Science Cluster included work in fruit horticulture, agronomy, cereal crop breeding, soil fertility management, vegetable production, greenhouse production, dairy production systems, parasite control in ruminants, environmental sustainability, and food processing.

This research came at a time when there was renewed emphasis on innovation, efficiency (energy, labour, economics), and capturing value-added markets. Most of this research directed toward organic agriculture can also be applied to conventional production systems, drawing interest to this cluster from producers across Canada.

Part One of ACORN's 3-part Webinar Series on the Canadian Organic Standards. Organic Crop Production with Rochelle Eisen B.Sc.(agr), P.Ag - Resilient Solutions Consulting. This one-hour webinar outlines the difference between the Organic Products Regulation and the Canadian Organic Standards as well as overview transition requirements and explain the connection between the Canadian Organic Standard and the Permitted Substances List. Learn more about the crop production sections of the Standards in regards to land requirements, environmental factors, seed and planting stock, soil fertility and pest and disease management.

How to cultivate and process sunflowers and other oilseeds