From soil to supper – how farmers care for the Earth all year long

Every April, countries around the world mark Earth Day – an excellent and vital opportunity to raise awareness about the importance of caring for and protecting our environment.

As farmers, we often like to say that every day is Earth Day on the farm, and while that sounds a bit cliched, it actually is very true. That’s because in raising livestock and growing crops of all kinds, farmers work very directly with the soil, the air, and the water every single day.

The weather is our constant companion and more than almost anything else, will influence the kind of year we’re going to have. Whether it’s too much or too little rain, temperatures that are hotter or colder than normal, or snow, ice and rain storms, it all impacts the quality and quantity of the products we’re able to produce on our farms.

I farm near Burford close to Brantford with my wife and son where we raise sheep and grow hay, corn, and soybeans as well as a biomass crop called miscanthus. I’m also a director on the board of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA), where I’ve represented farmers in Brant, Haldimand and Norfolk counties since 1989.