Now in its third year, the Chicken Farmers of Ontario (CFO) Women in Leadership initiative continues to grow. Beginning on Oct. 15, over twenty female farmer-members from across the province came together for the annual CFO-sponsored Advancing Women in Agriculture Conference held in Niagara Falls, Ontario.
Each year, CFO sponsors a group of female farmer-members who attend the conference and participate in an advance CFO workshop focused on: gender diversity; strength finding; communication skills; and outreach strategies – geared towards farmer-members who are looking to become more involved in their communities.
“When the Board launched the CFO Women in Leadership initiative, we set out to generate more female farmer-member involvement at the local level and as part of our overall governance strategy,” said Ed Benjamins, Chair, Chicken Farmers of Ontario. “What has transpired since then has been a wide success as there is a real sense of community surrounding this group – they are continuing to build momentum and help move our industry forward.”
“I decided to join the CFO Women in Leadership initiative in 2015,” stated Wendy Lantz, chicken farmer from Petersburg, Ontario and District Committee Representative (DCR). “At the time I was interested to learn more about how the CFO Board leads the chicken industry, and I was looking to connect with more of my fellow farmers at the local level. Since that involvement, I have been elected by my peers to represent District 8 farmers as a DCR, and I am contributing towards growing our future.”
