A recent study of environmental farm plans found they are still valuable tools that could play more significant roles in a future focused on sustainability and climate change.
Bronwynne Wilton of Wilton Consulting said EFPs are evolving after about 30 years of use. Her research and surveys of EFP stakeholders across Canada led her to several recommendations to keep the program relevant.
The first is to formalize a group of EFP administrators and proponents who already meet regularly to share best practices. Along with this, she suggested developing a national framework to standardize EFP programs and share data.
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Wilton said this doesn’t mean creating one single plan across the country because regional and sectoral flexibility is key to the success of the program. They are delivered differently depending on the province.
The other recommendations are: to look at integrating sustainability programs’ standards and content into EFPs and perhaps align with the market-driven programs that many companies are implementing; core fund EFPs possibly through the federal-provincial cost-shared framework; and incorporate climate change and greenhouse gas mitigation.
Wilton said 2017 data showed that about 40 percent of Canadian farmers had updated
Traditionally, EFPs were educational tools to help farmers adopt better management practices but the increasing focus on sustainable agriculture points to new ways the individual farm plans could be used.
Wilton said the study found EFPs are changing in terms of delivery, coverage and focus, and the staff complement that delivers them.
Most delivery has been virtual the last couple of years and survey respondents said they are concerned about losing the face-to-face value of education. Some said farmers require incentives to participate, which would result in greater uptake.
In terms of coverage and focus, updating the program content and making sure all types and sizes of farm operations can participate are key.
And, in terms of staff, the study found a risk of losing institutional knowledge as the programs and staff both change. Cuts to extension programming in some places also are a concern.
Wilton said the real value in the existing EFP program is regional specificity but the ability to communicate nationally is a big opportunity.
There is also the possibility of developing a standard reporting tool to be able to collect and manage data more easily.
Andy Graham with the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association said a 2015 study found that the EFP workbooks across the country reflected regional variations and priorities but were strongly aligned.
“We have been invested, in all products, to keep it relevant,” he said during a webinar.
The EFPs began with emphasis on erosion control and surface water and are now including soil health, biodiversity and more, he said.
Susie Miller from the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Crops said that organization strongly supports grain farmers’ use of EFPs.
“There are advantages to an EFP that do not exist in any other instrument in terms of its breadth, depth, and ability for a farmer to focus on their own land and own operation,” she said.
Miller said EFP practices are based on science and the plans are flexible.
“What we heard from grain farmers when we talked to them about a national code of practice is that it must be flexible farm to farm to farm,” she said.
Dairy Farmers of Canada has a national sustainability strategy to reach net zero at the farm level by 2050, and Julia Buckingham, manager of sustainable production, said EFPs are valuable for awareness and action.
She said the on-farm assessment is wide-ranging and includes potential risks but also areas of strength.
“Noting strong points is really important because it helps build momentum,” she said.
Buckingham also said allowing each farm to develop a personalized action plan based on the assessment is important for sustainability “because we know that a one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work.”
Wilton said one of the things to watch going forward is the trend toward more market-driven sustainability standards. They vary across commodities and regions and she said farmers shouldn’t be going through multiple audits and verifications. EFPs might be able to play a role in aligning those standards.
