News

Congratulations to FARE alumnus Dr. Gervan Fearon on being named an honorary degree recipient by the University of Guelph.

OAC’s Department of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE) was recognized with prestigious honours at the Canadian Agricultural Economics Society (CAES) Annual Meeting, held June 3–5 in Ottawa. 

The Ontario Agricultural College is proud to congratulate Dr. Saeed Ghazani, Research Associate in the Department of Food Science at the University of Guelph, on being appointed a Fellow of the American Oil Chemists’ Society (AOCS), one of the highest honours in the fats and oils research community.

The Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) mourns the passing of Donald Pestell (RCAT ’62), a visionary entrepreneur and generous supporter of U of G and its Ridgetown Campus, whose legacy will continue to shape the campus for generations to come.

Born and raised on a small farm in Ethel, Ontario, Don’s life reflected the values of hard work, determination and curiosity. From his rural beginnings, he built an extraordinary career as an entrepreneur, achieving global business success while remaining deeply connected to his agricultural roots and committed to giving back.

We are thrilled to share that FARE PhD graduate, Dr. Jamie Naylor, has been recognized with an Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Award for his dissertation “Three Essays in Applied Economics: Identifying and Measuring Strategic Behaviour in Food and Water Systems” (supervised by Professor Brady Deaton, Jr.) by the Canadian Agricultural Economics Society.

Dairy producers, veterinarians and calf industry professionals will gather at the University of Guelph this month for Producer Day 2026, a one-day event focused on calf health, colostrum management and practical on-farm strategies.

Taking place on May 23rd at the U of G campus, the event is part of the Second International Scientific Meeting on Colostrum, an international conference bringing together experts in lactation biology and animal health. 

Two new faculty members are joining the University of Guelph’s Department of Food Science in the Ontario Agricultural College (OAC). 

The Ontario Farmland Value and Rental Value Survey was launched in 2016 to address the lack of publicly available county-level data on farmland values and rental rates across Ontario. The initiative is a collaboration between the University of Guelph, the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness, and provincial farm organizations.

The Department of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics Professor Brady Deaton shared insights from the 2025 Farmland Price and Rental Survey and discuss related issues in farmland markets. The Ontario Farmland Value and Rental Value Survey is designed to generate public information on farmland values and rental rates in Ontario. Results are reported at the census division level to support farmers, landowners, and other stakeholders. Survey reports and updates are available through the project website.