Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 6046 FOCUS - APRIL 2017 Historically, farm work is a career forged in muscle and blood. But Zac Cohoon will tell you that modern farmers have to work smart, in addi- tion to working hard. “You have to manage your land,” he explains. “And as much as pos- sible, control those natural elements you can: things like moisture, fertility, drainage, and erosion.” Recently named the “2017 Inno- vative Farmer of the Year” by the Innovative Farmers Association of Ontario (IFAO), Zac has obviously mastered both elements of his trade. His award-winning innovation grew out of necessity, the result of changedcircumstancesinhisbusiness. “The farm used to be livestock- intensive, which gave us a steady supply of manure to use as fertilizer,” he explains. “But as we began to shift our focus to cash crops, we kept fewer animals, so we had to come up with an alternative.” The solution, he reasoned, should satisfy more than that single need. “Retaining moisture in the soil is just as important as fertility. So ideally, we needed a product which could provide that element as well.” Atlantic Packaging, a manufac- turer of cardboard boxes, provided a critical part of the puzzle. The arrangement would benefit both parties. “They had a supply of de-inked, ground-up cardboard and news- print which was perfect for what we wanted,” Zac remembers. “And they were looking to get rid of it! That ma- terial provided the base for compost production.” Atlantic’s paper would not be the mixture’s only component. “The finished product needed to be four parts paper-based and one part other composted material. We added leaves, food and yard waste, broiler manure [a nutrient-rich mix- ture of chicken droppings, the birds’ bedding and straw], and mushroom compost. We let it sit for a year. That combination would add moisture to Zac’s “Green” Solution Earns Accolade Zac inside the grain elevator at one of his 12 farms, is as passionate now as when he was a youngster. Photo by MARYANN FLEMING