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Mike von Massow

Sep 8, 20222 min read

Average Farm Size Has Stopped Growing

By Reanna Braeker and Alfons Weersink Average farm size in Canada has fallen! In the 2021 census it was only 809 acres, down from 820...

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Farm Numbers in Canada Continue to Fall but the Trend is Slowing

Mike von Massow

Jul 12, 20223 min read

Farm Numbers in Canada Continue to Fall but the Trend is Slowing

By Reanna Braeker and Alfons Weersink Farm numbers in Canada have been falling since the Great Depression and the numbers continue to...

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Fertilizer Prices and Corn Profit Margins: What Are the Impacts of Higher Input Prices?

Mike von Massow

Mar 5, 20224 min read

Fertilizer Prices and Corn Profit Margins: What Are the Impacts of Higher Input Prices?

Nicholas Bannon, Daniel Schuurmann, and Alfons Weersink Despite the recent frigid temperatures and piles of snow, many Ontario farmers...

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Fertilizer Price Increases: Should Farmers be Worried?

Mike von Massow

Jan 31, 20223 min read

Fertilizer Price Increases: Should Farmers be Worried?

Nicholas Bannon, Daniel Schuurmann, Alfons Weersink, and Ken McEwan While overall inflation is at its highest level in 30 years, this...

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Mike von Massow

Oct 21, 20214 min read

Is Fertilizer Canada Crying Wolf?

Daniel Schuurmann and Alfons Weersink A report[1] released in late September claimed Canada’s emissions targets on fertilizer could cost...

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A PRICE ON CARBON AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR ONTARIO FARMERS

Nicholas Bannon

Jun 2, 20214 min read

A PRICE ON CARBON AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR ONTARIO FARMERS

Nicholas Bannon, Aaron De Laporte, Daniel Schuurman and Alfons Weersink The Supreme Court of Canada ruled in March 2021 that the federal...

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Squeezing Processors Will Lead to Higher Prices and Less Choice

Mike von Massow

Oct 28, 20203 min read

Squeezing Processors Will Lead to Higher Prices and Less Choice

Food retailers are getting a lot of attention lately related to increases in supply chain fees imposed on their suppliers. These fees are...

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Precision Agriculture Survey Points to Early Success of 4R Nutrient Stewardship Initiative

Mike von Massow

Aug 24, 20203 min read

Precision Agriculture Survey Points to Early Success of 4R Nutrient Stewardship Initiative

By Nicholas Bannon, Sean Mitchell, and Alfons Weersink Fertilizer Canada implemented the 4R Nutrient Stewardship Certification Program...

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Barriers to Precision Agriculture Adoption Across Canada and in the United States

Mike von Massow

Aug 7, 20203 min read

Barriers to Precision Agriculture Adoption Across Canada and in the United States

By Nicholas Bannon, Sean Mitchell and Alfons Weersink Farm size, crop types, topography, climate, and labour use are only some of the...

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Mike von Massow

Apr 6, 20205 min read

Farming in the Era of COVID-19

We are experiencing unprecedented disruption to normal life and commerce in order to flatten the pandemic curve due to COVID-19. Physical...

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A Thought on Dumping Milk During COVID-19

Mike von Massow

Apr 3, 20204 min read

A Thought on Dumping Milk During COVID-19

I received a sad text from a friend of mine who is a dairy farmer. They are being asked to dump milk as the processors to whom it is...

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The family farm is changing - but not dying

Mike von Massow

Aug 14, 20193 min read

The family farm is changing - but not dying

One of the greatest myths of Canadian agriculture is that the family farm is dying. If family farms could talk, they’d likely echo Mark...

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From cannabis edibles to plant proteins: 2019 food trends

Mike von Massow

Feb 13, 20195 min read

From cannabis edibles to plant proteins: 2019 food trends

A piece that my colleagues Alfons Weersink, Aaron De Laporte, Liam Kelly and I published on the Conversation on February 12th, 2019. Food...

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The two key issues on the table to bring Canada back in to NAFTA

Mike von Massow

Sep 12, 20185 min read

The two key issues on the table to bring Canada back in to NAFTA

This was also published on the conversation.com on September 3rd, 2018. Negotiations for a revised North American Free Trade Agreement...

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Mike von Massow

Jan 15, 20184 min read

Meat tax will not significantly lower emissions and might just prevent reductions

This is a piece that I wrote with my colleague John Cranfield in the Conversation. Published on January 14th, 2018. Will taxing meat...

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RELATED PROJECTS

Considering the complexity of food, it is no surprise that conversations about it can be broad and diverse. In order to better understand how people think about food, Mike is involved in several projects. Learn more about each project below.

UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH SUSTAINABLE RESTAURANT PROJECT

Our team is a group of students, faculty and community partners that are committed to working towards a more sustainable future for the restaurant industry. Every year we hold a forum, bringing prominent speakers to the University of Guelph to discuss issues in the Canadian Restaurant Industry.

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foodFOCUS

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BLOG

Keep up with the conversation here.

RELATED PROJECTS

Considering the complexity of food, it is no surprise that conversations about it can be broad and diverse. In order to better understand how people think about food, Mike is involved in several projects. Learn more about each project below.

UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH SUSTAINABLE RESTAURANT PROJECT