The Municipal Agriculture Economic Development & Planning Forum, hosted annually by the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food & Rural Affairs (OMAFRA), was held outside southern Ontario this year for the first time – and the Bioenterprise Canada team was excited to be part of the event.
The purpose of the three-day forum was to bring together people from across the province who are interested in rural planning, economic development, and other aspects of the agriculture sector, including food, farming, and worker attraction and retention.
“Our goal as a participant was to connect with economic development staff from different regions of Ontario with an interest in the agri-food sector and learn about what their priorities are and where we may find common interests,” says Emily Nanne, Bioenterprise Canada’s Relationship Development & Advancement Manager who attended the event.
About 80 people attended the event online and in person in City of Temiskaming Shores, with 60 people participating in a bus tour of agri-food businesses in the host municipality. host municipality of City of Temiskaming Shores.
“It was a pleasure for the City of Temiskaming Shores to host the forum in partnership with OMAFRA to highlight the thriving agri-food sector in the Timiskaming District. We had attendees from regions all across Ontario represented by regional economic development professionals, private industry, not-for-profits and government,” says James Franks, Economic Development Officer with the Corporation of the City of Temiskaming Shores. “It was an exciting opportunity to highlight the economic contributions of the agri-food sector in the region which might have previously been unknown.”
Among the participants were Bioenterprise Canada partners Link North, Timmins Economic Development Corporation and University of Guelph, as well as broader innovation network participants Northern Foodways Development Network, Local Food and Farm Co-op, Invest Durham and the Northern Ontario Farm Innovation Alliance.
According to Nanne, the agri-food sector is growing in the region, which offers Bioenterprise opportunities for continued engagement with producers and agricultural innovators and entrepreneurs. Their interest in diversified and innovative uses also suggests that Bioenterprise’s services beyond traditional agriculture, such as those in the bioeconomy, provide value to farmers and food producers who are implementing these technologies into their farm businesses.
“A highlight for Bioenterprise was learning about some of the priorities of agri-food producers regionally and understanding the gaps that exist in the services that are available to them through their local economic development agencies,” adds Nanne. “Bioenterprise is able to support the economic development departments of the various regions across the province with services that are relevant to the goals of their scaling agri-food producers.”
Next year’s event will be hosted October 22 to 24 in Renfrew County.
“We look forward to hosting the Municipal Agriculture and Economic Development Planning Forum next October,” says Melissa Marquardt, Manager of Economic Development at the County of Renfrew. “Bringing this event to Renfrew County is an opportunity to showcase innovative technologies and advancements in our agriculture sector while fostering a collaborative environment for economic growth.”
As a follow up to the event, Bioenterprise will be continuing conversations that were started with economic development officers from various regions across the province. There is particular interest in what Bioenterprise can bring to agri-food businesses in their own regions, notes Nanne, and the opportunity to enhance or supplement existing programs and services with Bioenterprise resources and support.
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