2022 is the second year for the hot pepper variety trial, with purpose to diversify the local horticulture market. The peppers are being grown in the same location as last year, due to the continuation of collaboration with the growers as well as two new locations in Sault Ste. Marie. The six varieties, with Scoville heat units (SHU) are as …
Due to the short growing season and colder temperatures in northern Ontario, cover crops are not always an option. Cover crop is defined as ‘a crop grown for the protection and enrichment of the soil’. Normally, the underseeded/interseeded crop gets started, is established with good roots, then goes dormant, while the cash crop (corn) shades them. Once the cash crop …
Biostimulants are a large part of agricultural inputs and there is a growing number of commercial microbial inoculants. These aim to restore soil health and enhance crop yields after resource intensive crops or soil disturbance. While farmers may be compelled to apply commercial inoculants, whether they are effective is unknown, which perpetuates a sentiment of skepticism toward these products among …
Restrictions, lockdowns, delays, shortages – these words have largely characterized peoples’ lives on a global scale since COVID-19 became widespread and the pandemic took hold. We’ve become very familiar with the ways our own daily lives have been changed due to coronavirus, but the impacts certainly haven’t stopped there. Our food systems have also been dealing with these effects both …
The Slate River Valley is a historical agricultural hub in northwestern Ontario. Breukside Dairy Farm, Breukelman Dairy Farm and Jasper’s Dairy Farm are three of the many dairy farms that operate within this community in the Thunder Bay district. To improve their operational efficiencies and profitability, the three farms were collectively looking to increase the yield of feed crops, extend …
Wave Fibre Mill (Parry Sound, ON) is excited to launch their new fibre processing mill, the first of its kind in northern Ontario, through the support of the Sustainable New Agri-Food Products & Productivity (SNAPP) Program funding for collaborations. The program supported their vision for a circular economy for fibre products in northern Ontario. The new venture formed because of the excessive lead …
Rogers Crop Enterprises is owned and operated by Selina and James Rogers. The Rogers family settled in Kapuskasing from Saskatchewan in 2017, where they have been applying their 20 years of agricultural experience to establish a farm in northern Ontario. A true family-owned business, Selina, James and their four children work on the farm and are involved in all aspects …
Today we’re excited to announce we’re launching a podcast with NORDIK Institute called The Packsack Project! It’s all about people that are building resilient communities in the rural, urban and remote places of Northern Ontario. We speak with leaders, farmers, entrepreneurs, chefs (and others!) who are inspiring change and overcoming complex challenges unique to the North. Why did we call …
The Sustainable New Agri-Food Products and Productivity (SNAPP) Program supports Community Shared Agriculture. Farming in northern Ontario is not without its challenges. Shorter production seasons, distance to markets and lack of economies of scale are just some of the challenges that can make business growth and profitability difficult for producers. Northern farmers have had to find different ways to sell …
In 2021, a variety trail was developed to look at five different varieties of hot peppers in two different locations in Algoma. These locations were chosen due to the availability of greenhouse space. The five varieties, with Scoville heat units (SHU) are as follows: Devil Serrano- 6,000 SHU Fresno 3429- 10,000 SHU Primero Red Habanero- 100,000+ SHU Helios Habanero- 75,000 …
