Ontario Farm Fresh Marketing Association

Fresh Facts

Providing knowledge and leadership to grow the farm fresh experience.

Presidents Message

Newsletter #316

Well, I finally did it. I completed my first ever on line customer satisfaction survey and it was prompted by sheer frustration, not delight. Weve all got receipts
with the survey requests promising a treat when completed. Ive ignored them
till now when I have seen consistently poor service and efficiency at of all
places, McDonalds. It is not that I care that much, its just that it is my most convenient way to get a coffee and sandwich on the way to market early Sunday
mornings but waiting at least 20 minutes for your food once ordered gave me
the feeling of being held hostage- I couldnt leave, I had already paid. I now feel
that I have taken a positive step in alleviating my frustration.

Volume 32, Number 7

Sept. 2016

I am using this experience as a way of looking at the layout and systems we

have on our farm to handle people and manage a crowd - putting myself in our
customers shoes. If you look around and cant see any necessary changes,
maybe you need a new pair of eyes. Offer to critique another OFFMA members
layout if they do the same for you. Sometimes it takes a new perspective to see
opportunities that are right in front of us. The fall is quickly approaching and for
us it is our busiest time of year. It is a time of optimism tinged with some anxiety
that we will be busy but able to manage everything well to make for a great farm
visit.
Memories from the round table discussion on crowd control at last Februarys
conference come to mind. One way traffic flow with separate entrance and exits
for cars, spreading out attractions and food options to alleviate congestion in
one area were all suggested. Effective landscaping and placement of trees and
bushes can also direct people to areas you want them to go or stay out of.
Good customer service including knowledgeable staff is essential as watching
incompetent staff leads to great frustration.
Good customer experiences are essential for word of mouth advertising
which is important for all of us. May all your fall happenings on the farm
be delightful.

Leslie Forsythe
OFFMA President

Inside this issue:

Membership News

Ideas from the

field

Farm & Food

Cares Public Trust
Summit

Say Yes to Local

Food Authenticity

How Colour Affects

Peoples Spending
Habits

Upcoming Events
and Updates

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Fresh Facts

MEMBERSHIP NEWS
Classifieds
FOR SALE:
Delhaven Orchards Ltd.,
Blenheim, ON
Frozen, pitted sour cherries
available for wholesale and retail
Call 519-676-4475 or
e-mail delhaven@ciaccess.com

Last year at this time we were recognizing

the many weddings that were happening
among the OFFMA family. It is then not
surprising that we have some baby news
this year.

FOR SALE:
Mini straw bales (12x10x24)
$1.75 each, picked up at Shantz
Family Farm in Petersburg, ON. Contact Kevin Shantz 519-634-5252 or
email
info@shantzholmpumpkins.ca
These bales usually retail for $4.00$5.00.
Classifieds are free for members. Are you
looking for something? Selling something?
Send your information to the OFFMA office
and it will be included in the next newsletter.

The Den Haan Family at Sheldon Creek

Dairy welcomed Wyatt John Allen on August 11th. Mom (Marianne), dad (Mike)
and baby are doing fine.

Hollis and Jason English

from Murphys Farm Market & Bakery had TWINS,
also on August 11th.
All the Murphys are very
excited and Hollis staff
are already coming up
with marketing angles
they can use..i.e. two
for one sale, anyone?

If you have any news

you would like to share,
please send it to the
OFFMA office. We love
hearing about the special events in your lives.
This newsletter is available electronically. If you would prefer to get this newsletter electronically, just let the OFFMA office know. It is also available on the OFFMA website in
the members only section.

Newsletter #316

Ideas from the field

Huglis Blueberry Ranch got a great

response on Facebook when they decided to offer a tub of ice cream as the
prize in their contest. Facebook followers had to like and share this picture in
order to be considered for the contest.
According to Brian Hugli, the picture
got a total of 121,500 shares.
Thats a great way to get your name
out there. Just goes to prove that people love ice cream.
At 19th Avenue Farm Market in Markham, many of the crops that they grow and sell
are not close to the market. They decided to plant a few of everything they grow right
by the parking lot and their sign. Their customer are learning more about agriculture
and are appreciative of their efforts. All that greenery also dresses things up.

Heeman gains retailer award

Will Heeman of Heemans is the winner of the prestigious Dmmen Orange/
Green Profit Young Retailer Award for 2016.
The award is given to the top garden centre retailer under the age of 35 in North
America.
Heeman, 28, was the lone Canadian among the three finalists. The other two
were from Virginia and West Virginia.
The young retailer award is organized by Green Profit, a horticulture trade magazine, and selected by a four-person panel of industry judges.
Heeman is only the second Canadian to ever win the award.
Will is the Chief Daymaker at Heemans. He is responsible for the customer experience, marketing as well as other roles. He draws from his sabbatical experience working at a New Zealand garden centre when developing new ideas.
Heemans is a family-owned garden centre in Thorndale.
Congratulations Will! The Heemans are long time OFFMA members.

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Fresh Facts

Farm and Food Cares Public Trust SummitOttawa

Submitted by Erica Pate, Direct Farm Marketing Lead, OMAFRA
This past June, Farm and Food
Care and their newly launched division, Canadian Centre for Food Integrity (CCFI), hosted a Public Trust
Summit in Ottawa.
The CCFI, established to help build
public trust and confidence in Canadas food system, compiles and
communicates consumers opinions
and concerns, and will develop best
practices to help strengthen the relationship between the agri-food
sectors and the public. By hosting
the Public Trust Summit, the CCFI
and Farm and Food Care provided
an opportunity for agri-food leaders
from across Canada, the U.S., Europe, and the UK to come together
and discuss current issues related
to the publics lack of trust in food
and farming, and opportunities to
change that mindset.

Research-Report.pdf) was released. The Report provides information on how consumers view agriculture, farmers, and the Canadian
food system. It also outlined how
the industry can work to effectively
communicate and reach its consumers.
Farmers make up less than 2 per of
the Canadian population; it is easy
for the agri-food sectors messages
to go unheard.
The report highlights opportunities
that exist for farmers to build consumer trust:

The June Summit provided participants with insights from leading experts, companies and organizations, and featured a consumer
panel that shared with participants
a first-hand account of their perspectives.

Dr. David Hughes, an international

speaker on global food system issues, had one comment that caught
my attention: Farmers have been
reactive for too long; time to be proactive and get positive messages
out.

During the Summit, the Canadian

Public Trust Research Report
(http://www.farmfoodcare.org/
canada/wp-content/
uploads/2016/05/2016-Public-Trust-

93 per cent of consumers

know little to nothing about
farming practices; 60 per cent
would like to know more and
69 per cent view farmers favourably,
74 per cent of millennials
(those born between 1985 and
1995) wish that companies
were more transparent about
how food is manufactured,
Hormones and pesticides in
agriculture are a common concern amongst consumers,
69 per cent of consumers view
farmers favourably, compared
to their view of grocery stores /
food retailers (39 per cent),
and food industry associations
(30 per cent),
Confidence (shared values) is
at least three times more important to consumers than
competence in building trust.
Consumers trust farmers more
than other groups because
they believe farmers share

Newsletter #316

their values,
The top 5 information sources
for consumers are: Websites
(15%), Friends not online
(12%), Family not online
(12%), Google (12%), Local TV
(10%)

There is an opportunity to take advantage of consumers favourable

opinion towards farmers and to build
an open, transparent relationship. As
direct farm marketers, you have a
unique opportunity to interact with
the public on a daily basis. By forming personal relationships, you have
a chance to be an advocate for agriculture and address the biggest agricultural concerns identified in the report. Educating your customers is
an effective method to spreading a
positive message about the sector
and how agriculture is moving in the
right direction.
Let consumers know:

Canadian food safety is one of

the best in the world,

Farm productivity has tripled

in Canada since 1961, with
an average growth rate of 2.3
per cent per year,
Input use efficiency has also
increased; Canadian farmers
produce twice as much per
unit of input/resources used
compared to 50 years ago,
Interest in soil conservation
practices has increased over
the years; the amount of soil
tillage had declined while the
use of cover crops and crop
rotation has increased.

Resources:
Farm, Food & Beyond: our commitment to sustainability
(Sustainable Farm and Food Initiative)
2016 Canadian Public Trust Research. The Canadian Centre for
Food Integrity. http://
www.farmfoodcare.org/canada/wp
-content/uploads/2016/05/2016Public-Trust-Research-Report.pdf

Useful Resources
Some of these are American but still worth looking at.

Integrating Safety into Agritourism - This website contains a variety

of walk-throughs, checklists, signs and other resources to help owners identify and fix health and safety hazards.

AgritourismReady website - Created by Ohio State University Extension: A One Stop Shop for preparing your emergency management plan

UC Small Farm Program Agritourism - research reports, factsheets

and guides, handouts and presentations from workshops, articles
and current projects

http://www.agsafetyweek.ca/resources.html - resources to help keep

everyone safe on the farm including kids

Hand Signals on the Farms - a copy has been included with this
newsletter

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Fresh Facts

Say Yes to Local Food Authenticity

The local food movement has been a great
revenue generator for vendors at farmers
markets and on-farm markets. The consumer continues to look for fresh local
food products and this has been an exciting time for direct farm sales. Everyone in
this industry wants the movement to continue and to continue growing. But, there
are cracks that are beginning to show. Its
hard for us to point fingers, but there are
some farmer vendors taking short cuts and
trying to take advantage of the local food
movement. There is nothing wrong with
buying in product from a neighbouring
farmer or The Food Terminal. You cant
grow everything and sometimes you just
have to satisfy your customer base or lose
the customer. The part thats not right,
deceitful, and fraudulent is when the product is promoted as your farm grown product. The industry runs the risk, if this behaviour is prevalent, of losing credibility
with the consumer and undermining the
whole local food movement for a few quick
bucks.
Its important to be authentic, to be upfront
with your customer. Let them know what
you are growing and what you are buying
in. The consumer will respect you for it and
in turn you will maintain your integrity and
credibility and foster a long term relationship with your customer.
To help with this consumer/farmer relationship, the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture,
Food & Rural Affairs has set up regulations and standard formats for Retail display signs for produce.
No person shall sell at retail any produce

unless a sign appears on or immediately

over the display of produce setting out the
following information:
1. The country or province in which the produce was grown or harvested,
i. using the words Product of, Produce
of, Grown in or Country of Origin followed by the name of the country in which
the produce was grown or harvested, in the
case of produce grown or harvested in a
country other than Canada, or
ii. using the words Product of, Produce
of, Grown in, Country of Origin or
Province of Origin followed by the word
Canada or the name of the province in
which the produce was grown or harvested,
in the case of produce grown or harvested
in Canada.
2. In the case of peppers, the word sweet
or hot, as appropriate.
3a. If the produce is sold by weight, the
price per unit of weight. O. Reg.119/11, s.
24 (1).
3b. The print on a retail display sign shall
be readily discernible and of a size reasonable in proportion to the size of the
sign. O. Reg. 119/11, s. 24 (2).
This past summer, officials have been visiting farmers markets and on-farm markets
to enforce this regulation. They have also
been fining vendors who are not in compliance, so make sure you have a look around
your market and make adjustments if necessary.
The success of the local food movement is
in your hands.

Trends to watchGlamping
What is glamping you ask? Glamping is going camping, but with glamour. A combination of the two words. It's
like regular camping , but with nicer things than usual, being warmer, and more comfortable. Glamping is not
done by usual outdoor types who climb mountains.
Want to learn more?
Check out 1. The website, Glampinghub.coman Airbnb of various takes on glamping accommodations; including barns, yurts, treehouses and teepees.
2. The book, Glamping with MaryJane by MaryJane Butters. This is a visual tour of the art of Airstream renovation, cast iron cooking over a wood fire and even how to turn fishing lures into earrings. Butters also launched
an International Glamping Weekend, held annually the first week of June. Go to InternationalGlampingWeekend.com to find gatherings near you or better yet host one of your own.

Newsletter #316

How COLOUR Affects Peoples Spending Habits

When you are out shopping, youll spot
nearly every shade of the rainbow on
signs, labels, doors, shopping bags. But
did you know that those colours may
have been strategically placed to influence your spending? Marketing experts
say that people subconsciously associate
specific colours with specific social or
cultural messages. Knowing this, retailers
can carefully select the colours they use
in an effort to get consumers to loosen
their purse strings. Here experts explain
how 10 different shades affect your
purchasing habits.
BLACK the signature colour of sophistication (hello, little black dress), it dominates high-end makeup packaging and
can even make inexpensive blushes and
lipsticks seem more upscale.
BLUE Most everyone likes blue. No
wonder it connotes trust and dependability and is a favourite logo colour for financial institutions seeking to make people feel secure. Blue can improve customer loyalty too. Patrons are 15 percent
more likely to return to stores with blue
colour schemes than those with orange
colour schemes.
BURGUNDY This colour reminds us of
all things rich and refined (think red
wine), so dont be surprised if the Merlot
duvet cover you covet costs more than a
white one in a similar style. Its prismatic
cousin, brown, has similar connotations
of luxury.
GREEN Retailers often employ this
colour to attract eco-minded clients.
Many ag-related businesses and organization have at least some green in their
logos and branding strategies.
ORANGE the colour is associated with

fairness and affordability, which is why

youll find it at stores offering good value, like Home Depot.
PINK this sweet colour has calming
effects. Scientists found that seeing
pink slows peoples endocrine systems
and tranquilizes tense muscles. How
that might influence your wallet? Feeling relaxed may make it less painful to
part with cash.
RED Although plenty of shops embrace
this colour (and still find financial success), market experts warn that, just
like a stop sign, a red placard can make
consumers hit the brakes. It serves as
an alarm, triggering a more careful consideration of their outlays.
VIOLET Purple reigns in the beauty
industry, especially in the category of
anti-aging products. When people see it,
they think of royalty. Consequently, a
purple box may help persuade us that
the product has special properties and
is worth a princely sum.
WHITE In branding, white suggests
simplicity and purity. It also stands for
modernity and honesty, which may be
why Apple swears by it.
YELLOW a mainstay at fast food restaurants, yellow evokes energy and increases appetite, perhaps explaining
why your stomach may start to growl
when you pass those golden arches.
What are your company colour(s)? Why
did you pick them? What do they say
about your on-farm business? Something
to think about.
Information in this article originally appeared in Real Simple magazine.

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Fresh Facts

Upcoming Events
Sept. 13-15

Outdoor Farm Show, Woodstock, Ontario

Visit outdoorfarmshow.com for further information.

Nov. 6 10

OFFMA Bus Tour to the Eastern Townships of Quebec

Details included with this newsletter

Nov. 24

F2F at OAFVC, ColborneSee below for details

Nov. 28Dec. 2

Consultations with Erin Pirro, contact the OFFMA office for more
information only 2 spots left

Dec. 13

F2FRunning a Scratch Bakery, Leaping Deer Farm, Woodstock

See below for details

Ontario Farm Fresh

Cathy Bartolic, Executive Director
2002 Vandorf Rd. Aurora, ON L4G 7B9
Phone: 905-841-9278
E-mail: info@ontariofarmfresh.com
www.ontariofarmfresh.com
2016-17 OFFMA Board of Directors
Leslie Forsythe, President
Forsythe Family Farms
Nicole Judge, Vice President
Spirit Tree Estate Cidery
Brian Hugli, Past President
Huglis Blueberry Ranch
Kristin Ego MacPhail, Ego Nurseries Ltd.
Hollis English, Murphys Farm Market &
Bakery
Cara Epp, Associate Member
Edana Integrated Marketing
Steve Martin, Martins Family Fruit Farm
Dana Thatcher, Thatcher Farms
Karen Whitty, Whitty Farms
Erica Pate, OMAFRA Advisor

Farm to Fork University Workshops

Cost for each workshop is $20 per person.
November 2411 am to 2 pm Touring the Ontario Agri-Food
Venture Centre (OAFVC)
Northumberland County has built a not-for-profit,
small-batch food-processing facility. Designed with
farmers in mind, OAFVC supports fresh fruit and vegetable valueadding opportunities to increase farm revenue. The facility also helps
"foodies" with recipe development while staff work with foodprocessing start-up companies and expansions, in Ontario, to progress R&D, test batches, and to facilitate small-batch co-packing.
Join us for lunch and learn all about the OAFVC while you are there.
December 13 - 4pm to 7pm Running a Scratch Bakery,
Leaping Deer Farm, Woodstock
Learn the ins and outs of a scratch bakery. How to make it run efficiently and how to market your products. Light dinner will be served.

Coming Soon
A series of PYO videos. Some members have expressed frustrations in
dealing with PYO customers who dont seem to understand the rules
developed to keep themselves and others safe on the farm and to ensure the farmer is making a sustainable living by offering PYO.
OFFMA is in the process of developing videos for PYO apples, PYO
strawberries, PYO blueberries and PYO vegetables that will be on the
OFFMA Facebook page. Members can link to the videos on their own
websites or have them playing when customers are heading out to the
field.
Stay tuned, we will let you know as soon as they are available.

Last word..Gratitude can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger
into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today
and creates a vision for tomorrow.