On October 15 and 16, 2018 COTA hosted our annual Organic Policy Conference and Parliament Day. We had a wonderful group of COTA Members and key industry stakeholders come together to share, learn and push forward critical organic issues with parliamentarians. We look forward to seeing everyone again next year!
Organic Policy Conference
On October 15, the Canada Organic Trade Association hosted its annual Organic Policy Conference at the Lord Elgin Hotel in Ottawa. Peggy Miars opened the conference with her keynote speech on The Future of Organics, discussing Organics 3.0, and drawing on innovative and exciting examples from other parts of the world to help inspire us in the work that we do.
The Conference was a great success, and brought together 55 organic industry leaders from government representatives, provincial association leads, farmers, processors, and academics for a whole day of informative speaker sessions. This was our second year running a full program with presentations ranging from panel discussions on organic integrity, to an Organic Value Chain Round Table (OVCRT) Strategic Planning overview, to a presentation on Facilitating Greater Access to Global Markets, with additional breakout sessions to allow participants the time to delve further into issues and get updated on specific topics of interest. COTA will work to continue to host more events that deepen our collective knowledge and expertise on the pressing organic issues in Canada. View full Organic Policy Conference schedule.
Parliamentary Reception
Following the Policy Conference, we held our Organic Parliamentary Reception on Parliament Hill in Centre Block. The Reception was hosted by Senator Diane Griffin (Chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture & Forestry) and brought together key political decision makers and the organic industry for a beautiful soirée featuring organic foods and beverages.
Over 80 Parliamentarians and political staffers attended the reception. Senator Griffin shared a few words, along with opening remarks by the Honourable Lawrence MacAulay (Minister of Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada) and MP Pat Finnigan (Chair of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food) outlining how much progress we have achieved together in advancing organic production and trade in Canada, and their commitment to continue working with us to advance the sector.
Parliament Day
The next day, Tuesday October 16, was our Parliament Day, and was our most successful one yet! COTA members stormed the Hill with our two Policy Asks in hand (Ask 1- Full funding on the Canadian Organic Standards technical review) (Ask 2 -Developing a national data collection plan for the organic sector) to attend meetings with 32 MPs and Senators, including a meeting with Minister MacAulay. We have left this year’s Parliament Day with a feeling that our future is bright and the opportunities are boundless for our sector. COTA will continue to push our Policy Asks forward on behalf of our members.
COTA's Executive Director, Tia Loftsgard, had an op-ed published in The Hill Times on October 15th focused on the government's responsibility regarding the Organic Standards. Read article here.
Thank you again to all of our sponsors for making these events possible!