Deconstructing Dinner at the Dairy Farmers of Canada / Rally for Farms, Farmers & Food Security

Deconstructing Dinner at the Dairy Farmers of Canada On February 5, 2009, Deconstructing Dinner's Jon Steinman addressed the Dairy Farmers of Canada at their annual policy conference in Ottawa. The Dairy Farmers of Canada is the national policy, lobbying and promotional organization representing Canada's 14,600 dairy farms. According to the organization, they strive to create favourable conditions for the Canadian dairy industry, today and in the future. They work to maintain policies that foster the viability of Canadian dairy producers and promote dairy products and their health benefits. The organization is run for producers, by producers and has existed since 1934. To help speak to the organization's interest to prepare for the future, Jon's talk focused on the rapidly changing perspectives of food and farming among Canada's urban populations. The talk was not void of the critical approach that Deconstructing Dinner uses when covering the many issues addressed on the show and used as a foundation for the talk was a magazine-style publication titled the Real Dirt on Farming - a tool designed to communicate agricultural education to Canada's urban populations. While Jon commended the effort put into the publication, there was much to be found within deserving of a critical eye. Rally for Farms, Farmers & Food Security On April 18, the Farms, Farmers & Food Security rally was held in front of the British Columbia Legislature in Victoria. The intention of the rally was to raise awareness of the many underreported concerns around food and agriculture leading up to British Columbia's May 12 provincial election. Members of the three major political parties were invited, and The Green Party and NDP were both in attendance. The BC Liberals were not. Event co-organizer Jordan Marr ensured the rally was recorded for Deconstructing Dinner listeners. Guests Tom Henry, Editor, Small Farm Canada (Metchosin, BC) - Small Farm Canada is a national magazine promoting small-scale farming as a legitimate and viable endeavour. The magazine's editorial position is that the lives of small-scale farmers and their families are worthy, complex and rich in possibility, and that the communities serving small-scale farmers are unique and dynamic. Tom farms on Vancouver Island. Voices Jordan Marr - Farmer (Sooke, BC) - In 2006 Jordan graduated from a bachelor program in the Faculty of Land and Food Systems at the University of British Columbia, and then apprenticed for seven months on an organic farm in Nova Scotia. Jordan now farms in East Sooke. Brent Warner - , White Loaf Ridge Management (Saanich, BC) - White Loaf Ridge Management Company (WLR) is an independent contractor that was born out of interest on the part of owner Charlie Touchette, to satisfy the agricultural industry with educational and business development opportunities in order to nurture the livelihood of families who operate farms. Brent spent 20+ years working for British Columbia's Ministry of Agriculture & Lands and serves as the interim Executive Director of Farmers' Markets Canada. Linda Geggie - Food Policy, LifeCycles Project Society (Victoria, BC) - LifeCycles is a nonprofit organization dedicated to cultivating awareness and initiating action around food, health, and urban sustainability in the Greater Victoria community. We work proactively to promote and create personal, shared and community gardens, research, and educational activities and youth skills development programs.