For immediate release: 6 November 2006

McGuinty Government Supports Agri-Food Innovation

Outlook Conference Explores Opportunities for The Agri-Food Sector

Queen's Park - The Ontario government is hosting a conference that will look at how innovation in Ontario's agriculture and food industry can create more opportunities for farmers and rural communities and lead to better health for Ontarians, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Leona Dombrowsky announced today.

"Innovation is key to transforming Ontario's agri-food industry, benefiting both farmers and society," said Dombrowsky. "This conference will help create new opportunities for Ontario farmers, by contributing to new markets and ideas for value-added foods, bio-products and bio-energy."

The two-day conference, hosted by the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, offers an exciting line-up of international keynote speakers and interactive panel discussions. Farm leaders, food industry executives, scientists, and government officials from Ontario and other jurisdictions will have a forum to share their perspectives for innovation in the sector.

The Outlook Conference is another step in the McGuinty government's plan to help create new opportunities for the province's agriculture and food industry. Other government initiatives include:

• Recognizing innovation in the province's agriculture sector by creating the five-year, $2.5-million Premier's Awards for Agri-Food Innovation Excellence
• Helping to fund 17 new projects under the Alternative Renewable Fuels Fund and the Life Sciences Agri-Food Innovation Fund
• Investing $520 million in the Ontario Ethanol Growth Fund to expand ethanol production in Ontario.

The conference will be held November 8 and 9 at the Delta Chelsea Hotel in Toronto. Details are available at www.outlook2006.ca.

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Contact:
Christopher Flavelle
Minister's Office
(416) 326-3072

Dave McLeod
Communications Branch
519-826-3198

Outlook Conference

The McGuinty government values Ontario's agricultural and rural communities and the contributions they make to the quality of life for all Ontarians. It is committed to working with the agri-food sector to ensure that it continues to prosper through innovation. Research and innovation for the sector are important priorities for this government.

Through the Outlook Conference, the Ontario government is encouraging innovative thinking by providing a forum for Ontario farmers and food industry leaders to discuss emerging trends for the agri-food sector with world experts.

Conference Program Highlights

Keynote Speaker:
Edgard Pisani - Pisani is a celebrated author, former minister of agriculture for France, and one of the key architects of the European Union's Common Agricultural Policy. He modernized French agriculture and industrialized European farming during the 1960s, transforming an import-dependent region into the world's second-largest food exporter.

Pisani is also a hero of the French Resistance, single-handedly defending a police station from Nazi attack (a feat that was later depicted in the film, "Is Paris Burning?"). For his bravery, he was inducted into the French Legion of Honour at the age of 27. Pisani has gone on to serve internationally for the United Nations, elected by the UN General Assembly to a seat on the Economic and Social Council.

He ignited a firestorm of public debate with the 2004 publication of his book, An Old Man and the Land. In this book, he questions the relentless pursuit of greater production, arguing that the agri-food system must instead pursue environmental and social goals.

Other Featured Speakers:
Joel Salatin - Salatin is a Virginia farmer and noted author. Recently profiled in the New York Times Best Seller, The Omnivore's Dilemma, Salatin has been labeled the most innovative farmer in the world.

His third-generation, alternative farm serves more than 400 families and 30 restaurants through on-farm sales, markets and buying clubs. The farm's innovative marketing creations include salad bar beef, pastured poultry, 'eggmobile eggs and "pigaerator" pork. The family's farm has been featured in National Geographic, Gourmet and numerous other media.

Some of Salatin's recent speaking engagements include: Yale University's 2006 Colloquium on Agrarian Studies; 2005 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Agriculture; The 2004 Terra Madre, Slow Food International Conference in Turin, Italy, and an in-house seminar of sustainability for the Nike Corporation.

Merrit Cluff - Cluff is a senior economist with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). He has spent a career investigating how economic policy affects agriculture and food. His experience with economic models led him to his work with the FAO, which leads international efforts to defeat hunger.

Cluff's 30-year career began at Statistics Canada in 1976, but he spent most of his time at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, working on commodity market policies. He spent three years at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) working on the "Aglink" modelling project and evaluating the impact of OECD policies on world agricultural markets.

In 2002, Cluff moved to Rome where he has led a collaborative modeling effort between the FAO and OECD, the goal of which is to enhance the analysis of world commodity markets, and in particular, the impact of policies and events on the food security of developing countries. Part of this work entails the production of a 10-year projection for major international markets.

Derek Holt - Holt has been a part of the economics team for the RBC Financial Group in Toronto since 1995. As assistant chief economist, he is responsible for producing forecasts and directing research on the financial industry, general macroeconomic conditions, Canada's provincial economies, U.S. regional conditions, and consumer and business finances in both Canada and the United States.

Holt is a popular speaker on a range of issues concerning current and expected global economic and financial market conditions.

Francy Pillo-Blocka - Pillo-Blocka combines expertise in science and nutrition, with experience in the corporate world in her role as president and CEO of the Canadian Council of Food and Nutrition. The Council is perhaps best known for its Tracking Nutrition Trends survey, which tracks adult consumers' knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours concerning food and nutrition.

The 2006 survey, the sixth since 1989, obtained key information on food claims, perceptions of health programs, reading menus and functional foods. Other findings on attitudes about food and nutrition, sources of information, labeling, lifestyle and eating habits will also be presented.

Frances Fast - Fast is executive director and founder of the Toronto Network of Angels. This organization has developed an association of sector-focused angel investment groups to provide Ontario with a new source of professional capital. The group invests between $100,000 and $2 million in companies, an investment range not generally served by formal venture capital funds. The goal is to link emerging technology growth companies with the right management talent, superior mentorship and key strategic connections.

David Sparling - As Executive Director for the Institute of Agri-Food Policy Innovation, Sparling combines a business education with agri-business work experience. He has been president of a primary agricultural production company, an agribusiness insurance company, and a biotechnology start-up commercializing a fibre-optic DNA identification technology. Before joining the University of Guelph, Dr. Sparling taught in the faculties of business at McMaster and Wilfrid Laurier universities. In early 2006, Sparling began his term as director of the Institute of Agri-Food Policy Innovation. He is also a member of the research team for the National Centre of Excellence on Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods.

Ken Knox - Knox, president and CEO of the Innovation Institute of Ontario, has devoted his career to supporting and spurring Ontario's science and innovation community. Following a 27-year career in the Ontario government, including six years as a deputy minister, Knox currently manages almost $2 billion as the CEO of a number of programs and funds that support research and development and innovation, through the Institute.

These include the $1.1 billion Ontario Innovation Trust that supports R & D in Ontario public institutions; the $750 million Ontario Research and Development Challenge Fund that aims to increase the capacity of research institutions through public and private sector partnerships; and the Medical and Related Sciences (MaRS) Discovery District, that brings together Ontario's business and scientific communities to commercialize research developed in Ontario.

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Contact:
Christopher Flavelle
Minister's Office
(416) 326-3072

Dave McLeod
Communications Branch
519-826-3198