OCTOBER 7, 1952 – JUNE 22, 2017
Farmer; outdoorsman; passionate local food advocate. Born Oct. 7, 1952; died June 22, 2017 in Meaford, age 64.
A foundational figure for local food in Grey and Bruce Counties, Freeman Boyd died suddenly following a cardiac event at his home in late June.
Raised on a Guelph-area poultry farm, Freeman and his wife, Marion, acquired their own farm near Walters’ Falls in the 1970s.
“We travelled a bit and … wanted to buy some property in Ontario somewhere (but) didn’t have much money,” Marion said in a recent interview, recalling their move to a scenic, Niagara Escarpment acreage. As a market gardener, chicken farmer and small-scale poultry processor, Freeman gradually learned the ins and outs of direct retailing at the Owen Sound Farmers Market.
He advocated for small-scale poultry processing plants and small-scale agriculture in general. Eventually, his interest became academic and, by 2006, he completed a University of Guelph doctorate in agricultural ethics. Freeman subsequently taught veterinary and environmental ethics.
He later accepted a joint appointment from Grey and Bruce County municipal governments to establish local food programs in an area that remains among the province’s leading local food regions.
Boyd family photo
Written by Jim Algie.
Originally published in the December 2017 edition of Better Farming.