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Organic Farming
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| Author: | OMAFRA Staff |
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| Creation Date: | 09 July 2001 |
| Last Reviewed: | 7 May 2008 |
A1. There are many things that will help you determine which crops can be grown on a farm, such as farm location, climate, and soil types. Your farming experience/knowledge and your time availability will also be factors in determining which crops are most suited to you.
For more information on local crop suitability for your soils and climate you should contact the Agricultural Information Contact Centre at 1-877-424-1300 or ag.info.omafra@ontario.ca. A first step to determining what you should grow is to determine what markets are available in your area and what you need to do to supply the quality and quantity that your customer or selling agency will require. Organic crops have some special needs and will require more effort to market them. Grains are generally easier to plant, harvest and market than fruits or vegetables. General information on organic farming is in the OMAFRA factsheet called Introduction to Organic Farming. The ministry also produces other publications on starting a farm. Also see the infosheet Transition to Organic Farming.
A2. Organic production of crops is very similar to regular production for planting, harvesting. Varieties are usually the same. Fertility, weeds and other pests need to be managed in a more intensive way. Crop rotation and timing of mechanical cultivation are critical to success. The integration of livestock, to help supply manure/compost nutrients will also be a benefit. Consider joining several of the organic farming associations such as Canadian Organic Growers (COG) or Ecological Farmers Associaton of Ontario (EFAO) to increase your network of organic farming contacts especially among other organic farmers in your area. The OMAFRA factsheet called Introduction to Organic Farming lists organizations and their addresses. For more information there is also a Directory of Organics available from COG, and the Guelph Organic Agriculture Conference that is held each January at the University of Guelph.
A3. On December 21, 2006 the Canadian government introduced regulation for organic products. There is a two year implementation period and after Dec 2008 organic farms and processors will need to be certified by an accredited certification body (CB) for export and interprovincial product sales. The two CB that certify the majority of organic farms in Ontario are the OCPP/Pro-Cert Canada Inc. (OC/PRO Canada) and Ecocert Canada. For more information on certification and addresses see the infosheet Organic Food and Farming Certification. Contact these associations to get a copy of their organic standards and the other information on how to be certified. The cost of certification is about $500-1000/yr depending on your situation and CB.
A4. In 2005 there were approx. 500 certified organic farms in Ontario with over 90,000 acres of certified land. This is more than double the comparable numbers for 1996. Growth of organic food sales in North America is frequently reported as being consistently around 20% per year for the past 10 years.
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