2024 Annual General Meeting

Jul 03, 2024

On Tuesday June 18th the Ontario Farmland Trust hosted its Annual General Meeting. The meeting was held hybrid again this year, with members and friends joining both virtually and in person!

The meeting was overseen by Board Chair Margaret Walton, Secretary Megan Mills, and Treasurer Bethanee Jensen. Executive Director Martin Straathof also highlighted OFT’s 2023 achievements, viewable in our 2023 Annual Report.

The Board extended their thanks to Bernard Pope, who has concluded the maximum of three consecutive terms on the Board of Directors. We are incredibly grateful for the hard work, expertise and steady presence Bernard has provided over the past few years! Thank you as well to outgoing board member Spencer McDonald for his service this past year.

After the AGM elections, OFT’s new Board of Directors consists of returning board members Bethanee Jensen, Mike Douglas, Mark Reusser, Peter Peeters, Spencer McDonald, Margaret Walton, Megan Mills, Matthew Colley, Judy Coward and Collette Aeschlimann.

We welcomed three new additions to the OFT Board: Krista Kapitan, Marsha Paley, and Melanie Williams.

Guest speaker Dr. Michael Classens gave the attendees much to think about during his presentation on the history of land relations and policy in Canada, and how that history has resulted in inequities within land access and the food system today.

Thank you to everyone who attended, we look forward to seeing you next year!

Click here to see more...

Video: Dicamba Returns for Georgia Farmers: What the New EPA Ruling Means for Cotton Growers

After being unavailable in 2024 due to registration issues, dicamba products are returning for Georgia farmers this growing season — but under strict new conditions.

In this report from Tifton, Extension Weed Specialist Stanley Culpepper explains the updated EPA ruling, including new application limits, mandatory training requirements, and the need for a restricted use pesticide license. Among the key changes: a cap of two ½-pound applications per year and the required use of an approved volatility reduction agent with every application.

For Georgia cotton producers, the ruling is significant. According to Taylor Sills with the Georgia Cotton Commission, the vast majority of cotton planted in the state carries the dicamba-tolerant trait — meaning farmers had been paying for technology they couldn’t use.

While environmental groups have expressed concerns over spray drift, Georgia growers have reduced off-target pesticide movement by more than 91% over the past decade. Still, this two-year registration period will come with increased scrutiny, making stewardship and compliance more important than ever.