IS SUSTAINABILITY PRODUCTIVE? I have been thinking a lot about productivity. Although sustainability has really been the attention-grabber lately, where does that leave productivity? As it goes, productivity is a big part of being sustainable, especially economically. Economics is a foundational element of sustainability that also includes environmental and social sustainability. To be truly sustainable is to find a good balance between all three. Typical metrics in agriculture in Canada are really designed to measure monoculture. Some feel that conventional food production systems must broaden their objectives to remain sustainable. Bushels per acre is a familiar productivity reflection that has no bearing on the environmental or social impacts made by farms. But it will take a paradigm shift in thinking about food sovereignty to shift resources from trade centric production focused farm and food policies. A real and discernable shift to ‘onboarding’ food production at every scale in every region in Canada is required. It is an exciting time to embrace food production, preservation and processing at every scale. To sustain it we must find ways to add value both conventionally and unconventionally from the balcony to the back-forty. Each person has a role to play. Our cover-shot contributor made a shift from a micro-dairy to advocacy and education. It was hard to find cheesemaking help in the micro-dairy at Sweetwood Farm, so teaching others to be cheese- makers seemed a good solution—multiple cheesemakers equal productivity multiplication! More on making cheese in the May/June issue of Small Farm Canada magazine. 250 & UNDER Cover photo Heather Squires, Sweetwood Farm, Mahone Bay, NS EDITOR Julie Harlow | 1-866-260-7985 ext 272 Julie.Harlow@SmallFarmCanada.ca ADVERTISING SALES 1-866-260-7985 Sales@SmallFarmCanada.ca DESIGN | Andrea Williams CIRCULATION & SUBSCRIPTIONS Ashleigh Benedict | 1-866-260-7985 x252 Subscriptions@SmallFarmCanada.ca MARKETING & OPERATIONS Denise Faguy | Denise.Faguy@Farms.com PUBLISHER | Farms.com Canada Inc. PRINT: The print magazine for Small Farm Canada is published six times each year by Farms.com Canada Inc. Subscription rate for one year: $25.95 (+tax). Single copy price is $5.95. SUBSCRIBE NOW! DIGITAL: Small Farm Canada Lite is published 6 times each year, tandeming the Small Farm Canada magazine print issues. Contact INFO@ SMALLFARMCANADA.CA for your free subscription. Your privacy is important to us. Occasionally we may send you information from reputable companies whose products or services we believe may be of interest to you. If you would prefer to have your name removed from the list, contact us at Info@SmallFarmCanada.ca. Contents copyrighted by Farms.com Canada Inc. and may be reprinted only with permission. Copyright © 2026 Farms.com Canada Inc. All rights reserved. ISSN 1710 4955 Acceptance of advertising does not constitute endorsement of the advertiser, its products or services, nor do Small Farm Canada, or Farms.com Canada Inc. endorse any advertiser claims. The publisher shall have no liability for the omission of any scheduled advertising. 90 Woodlawn Road West, Guelph, ON N1H 1B2 www.SmallFarmCanada.ca PROUD TO BE CANADIAN OWNED! We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada. Get social with Small Farm Canada IN THE NEXT PRINT ISSUE: MAY/JUNE 2026: SOIL ISSUE Booking deadline: Friday, April 10, 2026 Ad material due: Thursday, April 16, 2026 Soil health by adding livestock is our focus in the May/June issue. We cover rotational grazing systems and other soil health promoting measures of having livestock on the land. Ayers, Carter, Jones and Kerr report on research, profile farmers and identify trends towards living a productive sustainable lifestyle that builds soil, foodways and communities. Want the print issue? Subscribe here! IN THIS ISSUE April 2026 | Vol. 2 Issue 2 5 NEWS & NOTES BY JULIE HARLOW Leakier forests, influenza D, fibremaxxing, horse vaccine PSA, UK turkey test 7 GARDEN VOLUNTEERS BY JEFF CARTER Gardening that happens without intervention. 10 GROWING IN LABRADOR II BY DAN RUBIN SFC’s second installment on Tom Angiers and growing in Labrador. 13 WASTE NOT BY AMY HOGUE AND FINN HOGUE Pine tea, cardboard useful and seed savings. CLOCKWISE (R-L) HEATHER SQUIRES - SWEETWOOD FARM | TOM ANGIERS - SPRUCE MEADOWS FARMS | MINTRA - ADOBE STOCK Spruce Meadows Farms, NL
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