Blog Category: Policy

Policy for new and young farmers

Mar 1, 2025: ARMSTRONG, BC – Pastured Poultry Production and Policy Primer at Fresh Valley Farms

Posted by Kat Roger on January 31, 2025

You’re invited to a Pastured Poultry Production and Policy Primer at Fresh Valley Farms in Armstrong, B.C. co-hosted by Young Agrarians and the Small-Scale Meat Producers Association (SSMPA). Join us if you want to learn about raising poultry, connect with other poultry farmers or share your experiences and ideas for provincial and national farm policy. We will gather at Fresh Valley Farms, a fourth-generation certified organic farm run by Annelise Grube-Cavers and Steve Meggait, who raise beef, chicken, turkey and heritage pork on pasture. The day will start with an introduction circle, followed by a primer on the SSMPA from … Continue reading Mar 1, 2025: ARMSTRONG, BC – Pastured Poultry Production and Policy Primer at Fresh Valley Farms →

Feb 22, 2025: MERVILLE, BC – Production, Policy and Community Mixer for Market Gardeners

Posted by Kat Roger on January 16, 2025

Calling all market gardeners! You’re invited to a Production, Policy and Community Mixer on Saturday, February 22 in Merville, BC. This event will be co-hosted by Young Agrarians and the National Farmers Union (NFU), a direct-membership, farmer-led organization that has advocated for food systems rooted in social and economic justice as well as agroecology and international agrarian solidarity since 1969. Join us to hear stories from successful market gardeners, share resources, connect with other farmers and food lovers, share a delicious meal and build community around vegetable farming in BC. This event will also provide you with an opportunity to … Continue reading Feb 22, 2025: MERVILLE, BC – Production, Policy and Community Mixer for Market Gardeners →

FEB 4 OR 13, 2025: ONLINE – PRAIRIES VIRTUAL FARMER POLICY CIRCLES

Posted by JoHana Harcourt on January 08, 2025

WHAT DO YOU WANT POLICYMAKERS TO KNOW ABOUT THE FUTURE OF FARMING? Let’s talk about it. You’re invited to a series of virtual brainstorming and consultation sessions on February 4 and 13, 2025 to share your experiences, ideas, and insights into how the provincial and national policy landscape can better serve new and young farmers. Since 2012, Young Agrarians (YA) has worked to support the growing wave of new and young people coming into agriculture. Through hands-on program delivery, YA’s farmer-to-farmer approach supports farmers to tackle barriers ranging from access to land and capital, to technical and regulatory requirements, to … Continue reading FEB 4 OR 13, 2025: ONLINE – PRAIRIES VIRTUAL FARMER POLICY CIRCLES →

FEB 6 AND 11, 2025: ONLINE – B.C. VIRTUAL FARMER POLICY CIRCLES

Posted by Kat Roger on January 07, 2025

WHAT DO YOU WANT POLICYMAKERS TO KNOW ABOUT THE FUTURE OF FARMING? Let’s talk about it. You’re invited to a series of virtual brainstorming and consultation sessions on February 6 and 11, 2025 to share your experiences, ideas, and insights into how the provincial and national policy landscape can better serve new and young farmers. Since 2012, Young Agrarians (YA) has worked to support the growing wave of new and young people coming into agriculture. Through hands-on program delivery, YA’s farmer-to-farmer approach supports farmers to tackle barriers ranging from access to land and capital, to technical and regulatory requirements, to … Continue reading FEB 6 AND 11, 2025: ONLINE – B.C. VIRTUAL FARMER POLICY CIRCLES →

MAR 5, 2025: ONLINE – GROWING KNOWLEDGE & ADAPTATION SUPPORTS

Posted by Melana Roberts on December 20, 2024

CURIOUS ABOUT FARMER MENTORSHIP PROGRAMS? LOOKING FOR TECHNICAL SUPPORT FOR YOUR FARM? UNSURE WHERE TO START? JOIN THE CONVERSATION! With approximately ⅔ of new farmers in Canada not coming from family farm backgrounds, many have limited access to inter-generational knowledge. making it tougher to weather unpredictable weather changes, assess soil conditions, predict market demands and volatility, and adapt. This capacity is essential for new farmers, many of which have limited access to capital and access to land, to stay afloat in a changing agricultural landscape. In this final instalment of the Breaking Barriers: Growing Future Farmers Webinar Series, we will … Continue reading MAR 5, 2025: ONLINE – GROWING KNOWLEDGE & ADAPTATION SUPPORTS →

FEB 12, 2025: ONLINE – ACCESSING CAPITAL

Posted by Melana Roberts on December 20, 2024

LOOKING FOR OPERATING CAPITAL? WANT TO UNDERSTAND FARM CAPITAL IN CANADA? INTERESTED IN NEW APPROACHES TO ACCESS FUNDING FOR FARMING? In Canada, the agricultural sector is at a crossroads, with new, young, and underrepresented farmers facing significant challenges to accessing the capital needed to succeed. The third installment of the “Breaking Barriers: Growing Future Farmers” webinar series will shine a light on this critical issue, emphasizing the need for comprehensive support to empower the next generation of farmers. At the heart of the struggle for many aspiring farmers is the concept of market failure in Canadian agriculture. Market failure is … Continue reading FEB 12, 2025: ONLINE – ACCESSING CAPITAL →

Jan 15, 2025: ONLINE – Farmer Wrap Around Supports

Posted by Melana Roberts on December 20, 2024

NEED MORE SUPPORT? TRYING TO NAVIGATE EVERYDAY CHALLENGES, LIKE ACCESS TO HOUSING, LABOUR, CAPITAL AND LAND? WANT TO KNOW WHAT OTHER FARMERS ARE DOING? JOIN US TO FIND OUT! As the agricultural landscape evolves, so too does the need for innovative responses to support new, young, and underrepresented farmers. This second instalment of the “Breaking Barriers: Growing Future Farmers” series sheds light on the role wrap-around support programs can play to tackle and reduce the challenges new and young farmers face. These complex challenges impact new farmers across the country, and the compounding weight of barriers—access to capital, land, labour … Continue reading Jan 15, 2025: ONLINE – Farmer Wrap Around Supports →

MAR 15-16, 2025: PARHAM, ON – NATIONAL POLICY JAM / JAM POLITIQUE NATIONAL

Posted by Ayla Fenton on December 20, 2024

[EN; texte français ci-dessous] Calling all new farmers and farm policy nerds! You’re invited to the “Breaking Barriers: Growing Future Farmers” National Policy Jam in eastern Ontario this March 15 and 16, 2025. Join us to connect and mobilize around policy action to support new farmers across Canada. The gathering will be a coast to coast convening of new and young farmers, farmer organizations, farm policy leaders and allies looking to learn, connect and mobilize around better supports for new and young farmers, including access to land, capital, knowledge, and wrap-around supports. About the Policy Jam The Policy Jam will … Continue reading MAR 15-16, 2025: PARHAM, ON – NATIONAL POLICY JAM / JAM POLITIQUE NATIONAL →

NOV 13, 2024: ONLINE – Land Access: Strategies and Stories

Posted by Melana Roberts on October 22, 2024

TROUBLE ACCESSING LAND? CURIOUS ABOUT LAND ACCESS MODELS? If you’re a new farmer and want to learn land access strategies, this webinar is for you! Help grow the national conversation on land access for new farmers! Land access is one of the biggest challenges new and young farmers face. With over 40% of Canadian farmers retiring by 2033 (RBC, 2023), and growing land speculation across the country, stable access to growing space and farmland is increasingly difficult. Many established farmers need to use their farmland to fund retirement, creating further pressure on land prices with a 51% increase over the … Continue reading NOV 13, 2024: ONLINE – Land Access: Strategies and Stories →

Growing the Next Generation of Farmers – Policy Recommendations

Posted by Darcy Smith on August 20, 2021

Young Agrarians launched in 2012 as an educational farmer-to-farmer resource network. Now in year 10, we’ve connected with thousands of farmers across Canada online, at events, through our land access, business development, and apprenticeship programs, and through farmer consultation and advisories. The federal, provincial, and territorial governments fund agriculture through 5-year agreements – many of you will have heard of Growing Forward 1 and 2, and the current funding agreement, the Canadian Agriculture Partnership. Negotiations are currently under way for the Next Policy Framework, which will determine what programs and funding are available to farmers starting in 2023. There is … Continue reading Growing the Next Generation of Farmers – Policy Recommendations →