The Simcoe County Federation of Agriculture made a $4000 donation on Canada’s Agriculture Day
By Jackie Clark
Staff Writer
Farms.com
Members of the Simcoe County Federation of Agriculture made a $4000 donation to food banks on Canada’s Agriculture Day to celebrate local agriculture and support local charities.
Representatives donated $500 to each of eight local food banks, John Morrison, a member of the Simcoe County Federation of Agriculture, told Farms.com.
“Last year we made a donation to the food banks for Food Freedom Day,” he explained. “We usually send gift baskets to local radio stations to promote Food Freedom Day and tell the listeners what it was all about.”
Food Freedom Day is calculated as the day of the year a Canadian household with average income has earned enough to afford their grocery bills for the year. It usually falls in early February.
This year, members of the organization thought that a donation to food banks would be a good way to celebrate Canada’s Agriculture Day on Feb. 23.
“Usually food banks, around Christmas time, get lots of donations,” Morrison explained. However, after the holiday season, they can sometimes experience a lull. So, the timing of the donation worked out well.
Local ag organizations receive funding for initiatives like this through the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA).
“We’re all OFA members and we pay a membership fee to the OFA. And the OFA gives a grant back to each County depending on the number of OFA members,” Morrison explained. “That’s how we get our money to operate throughout the year to help promote agriculture in the community.”
Typically, the Simcoe County Federation of Agriculture hosts school children for days of learning about the ag industry and safety on the farm.
“We’re not able to do that because of the pandemic, so this is one way that we can do something,” Morrison said. “I thought that would be a good way to promote agriculture in the area.”