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Daily Commodity Report

Women’s Grain Symposium

Join us for the 2025 Women’s Grain Symposium

Registration is now closed

December 9-10, 2025
Delta Hotel
50 Stone Rd W, Guelph, ON N1G 0A9

Making Connections

Grain Farmers of Ontario’s Women’s Grain Symposium is an opportunity for networking, professional development, and leadership development.

The Women’s Grain Symposium is open to women who are grain farmers, active members of their family grain operation, or working within the grain sector or agriculture business with a direct connection to farmers.

Cost: $150

NEW! Professional childcare services (provided by All About Kids) are being offered free of charge during the event. Please indicate whether you will use this service during online registration. Thank you to Agriculture Wellness Ontario for their support of this initiative.

2025 Agenda

Tuesday

Noon

Lunch
Sponsored by Diageo

1:00 PM

Welcome remarks

1:15 PM

Active Networking
An interactive session led by Eventology to foster participant engagement and create a collaborative environment. Teams will work through mental, physical, and creative challenges designed to help identify individual strengths and leadership abilities.

Sponsored by The Andersons

3:00 PM

Leadership Opportunity
A panel discussion with Grain Farmers of Ontario Directors highlighting the various leadership programs, training, and industry involvement that they have pursued during their careers, with a focus on the opportunities that have opened to them through their involvement with GFO. Invited panelists: Grace Pearson (Director District 1 Essex), Julie Maw (Director District Lambton), Ann Vermeersch (Director District 5 Elgin, Norfolk), Angela Zilke (Director District 7 Oxford, Waterloo).

Sponsored by Diageo

4:00 PM

Break
Sponsored by ALCO

5:00 PM

Reception
An opportunity for networking while enjoying light refreshments.

Sponsored by SeCan

6:30 PM

Dinner
Grain Farmers of Ontario’s Board of Directors has been invited to participate in our evening activities.

8:00 PM

Reinventing Leadership
A keynote speaker session with Hamza Khan, two-time bestselling author and multi-award-winning entrepreneur. Khan empowers audiences to amplify human potential through collaboration and technology while prioritizing long-term impact.

9:00 PM

Hospitality Suite
Networking continues until midnight.

Sponsored by SeCan

Wednesday

7:00 AM

Breakfast

8:30 AM

Succession Planning Success Points
Four 30-minute sessions that will provide insights into navigating the financial and emotional aspects of family farm transitions. Confirmed speakers: Andrea DeGroot (Farm Credit Canada), Trevor McLean (MNP), Joanna Brzozowska (Desjardins), Sandra Terceira (Scotiabank).

Sponsored by Desjardins Insurance, Farm Credit Canada, MNP, Scotiabank

10:30 AM

Break
Sponsored by Bayer

11:00 AM

Women in Leadership
This session will highlight the advancement of women in leadership positions in agriculture over the past decade and provide tips on effective and strong leadership within the workplace. Confirmed speaker: Jennifer Wright, Executive Director, Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council.

Sponsored by Syngenta

Noon

Lunch

1:00 PM

Navigating Uncertainty
A panel discussion led by Sankalp Sharma, senior economist with Grain Farmers of Ontario, exploring the role of ag policy to support farmers through volatile markets and uncertain economic times. Confirmed panelists: Margaret Zafiriou (Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute), Stephen Duff (OMAFA), Mike von Massow (University of Guelph).

Sponsored by Agricultural Credit Corp

2025 speakers

Hamza Khan

Future of Work and People-First Leadership Expert

Hamza Khan believes the future of work is more human, not less. He’s on a mission to help organizations revolutionize leadership and rehumanize the workplace by adopting a bold “people first” approach. Khan is a two-time bestselling author and multi-award-winning entrepreneur whose TEDx talk “Stop Managing, Start Leading” has been viewed millions of times. As a world-renowned keynote speaker, he empowers audiences to amplify human potential through collaboration and technology while prioritizing long-term impact.

Khan is the Co-Founder of SkillsCamp, an award-winning learning and leadership development company whose clients include FIFA, Shopify, Peloton, Deloitte, Microsoft, Mercedes-Benz, The United Nations, and hundreds of colleges and universities. These world-leading organizations trust Khan to enhance modern leadership, inspire purposeful productivity, nurture lasting resilience, and navigate constant change.

Andrea De Groot

Business Advisor
Farm Credit Canada

Andrea grew up on a small beef and crop farm in southern Ontario. After earning a degree in agriculture business at the University of Guelph, she worked in agriculture and commercial lending throughout
Ontario. In addition, she served as Managing Director of the Ontario Pork Industry Council for four years.
Andrea and her husband own and operate their family hog and crop farm outside Stratford.

Trevor MacLean

Partner
MNP

Trevor MacLean, MBA, BMgt, is a Partner with MNP’s Agriculture team. With a strong background in agribusiness and financial services, Trevor brings a unique and balanced perspective that allows him to fully understand his clients’ business. Trevor provides business and advisory services to agricultural producers and agribusinesses across Canada, delivering creative, customized and practical solutions to help his clients achieve their goals and enhance their success.

Joanna Brzozowska

Principal Account Manager & Team Lead, Southwestern Ontario – Agriculture
Desjardins Business Services

Joanna Brzozowska is a seasoned agricultural account manager with over 13 years of experience in agricultural banking. As Principal Account Manager and Team Lead for Southwestern Ontario at Desjardins Business Services, she brings strategic insight and a client-first approach to her work, helping drive the growth and sustainability of the region’s agricultural businesses.

A graduate of Brock University with a specialization in accounting, Joanna began her career in personal banking in Caledonia, Ontario. Her passion for agriculture led her to Dunnville, where she focused on serving clients across Haldimand and Norfolk Counties. Known for her expertise in financial analysis, credit writing, risk management, and portfolio management, Joanna is also a skilled leader and collaborator, committed to building strong relationships and delivering tailored financial solutions to agricultural clients.

Sandra Terceira

Senior, Insurance Consultant
Scotia Wealth Management

As an Insurance Consultant, Sandra is dedicated to delivering insurance solutions unique to you, that will help safeguard you, your family and your business from unexpected events or financial loss. Beyond that protection, Sandra will help optimize your wealth by recommending strategies that will allow you to enhance the wealth you distribute to your family. Whether you are an affluent investor looking to incorporate more tax-efficient investment options into your asset mix, a business owner who requires liquidity to effectively transition your assets and manage competing interests, or simply focused on leaving as much wealth and legacy as efficiently as possible, Sandra can demonstrate how life insurance can help.

Jennifer Wright

Executive Director
Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council

Jennifer grew up working in her family’s farm equipment dealership and helping on the farm in southwestern Ontario. She has worked in the field of human resource research and development for more than twenty years.  Jennifer has worked with several industries, including agriculture, leading initiatives related to inclusion and diversity, attraction and retention, work integrated learning, labour market research, skills development, training and education. In addition to her work experience, she holds a Masters of Business Administration from Royal Roads University. Jennifer worked with the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council as a consultant for more than ten years before joining the staff in 2019 and is currently serving as the Executive Director.

Sankalp Sharma

Senior Economist
Grain Farmers of Ontario

Sankalp Sharma is a Senior Economist at Grain Farmers of Ontario, a position he has held since January 2022. In this role, he analyzes policy developments that affect Ontario’s grain and oilseed producers, providing insights to support evidence-based advocacy and decision-making.

Dr. Sharma earned his Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and holds a Master’s degree in Economics from North Carolina State University. His professional background includes roles with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (Rome, Italy), the Nebraska Department of Agriculture, and the Council for Social Development. His research portfolio spans risk analysis, crop insurance, grain markets, and land acquisition policy.

Margaret Zafiriou

Senior Research Fellow
CAPI

Margaret Zafiriou, ( M.A. Economics) is an agricultural professional, with a career as an economist and policy analyst formerly with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC). Her more recent experience has involved consulting work for industry, including the Dairy Processors of Canada (DPAC), the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB) and the Livestock Research Innovation Corporation (LRIC) on trade, biodiversity and livestock innovation issues. She has consulted with the Edmonton Regional Metropolitan Board on its long term growth plan and related land use policies, and has completed several projects with the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute (CAPI) on climate change and agriculture, externalities, competing pressures on land use in Canada, and productivity and competitiveness of the Canadian food and beverage processing sector. She is currently a Senior Research Fellow with CAPI.  

Steve Duff

Chief Economist
Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Agri-business

Coming from dairy and beef background in Northumberland county, Steve completed a Masters in Ag Economics from the University of Guelph in 1996 focusing on trade liberalization in dairy between the US and Canada. After a year as policy researcher for the Ontario Milk Marketing Board, Steve joined OMAFRA in late 1997.

For close to 20 years, Steve was OMAFRA’s lead on business risk management programs such as AgriStability and the Risk Management Program. Steve is currently OMAFRA’s Chief Economist. Steve is also an adjunct professor in agricultural economics at the University of Guelph. Steve and his wife Robyn operate a beef and cash crop operation near Colborne Ontario. Steve is currently in his second term on the board of Farm Management Canada as a farmer director and is currently board Chair.

Michael Von Massow

Professor
University of Guelph

Michael is a professor in the Department of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of Guelph and the OAC Chair in Food Systems Leadership. He is interested in how people think about food with recent work focusing on cellular agriculture, plant based diets, gene-editing, animal welfare, and antibiotic use. Mike’s research also considers the structure and performance of food value chain as they evolve in response to consumer preferences, public attitudes, and other factors. He contributed economic analysis and perspective on Ontario Genomics Cellular Agriculture Report.

Dr. Von Massow is frequently interviewed in the media on food related topics. He speaks to a wide range of groups and has written broadly on food related topics including for the Globe and Mail and the Conversation. As a frequent blogger with a strong presence on broadcast, print, and social media, Mike is committed to public engagement and objective discussion on topics related to food which helps to inform public policy and private strategy. Mike has also introduced his FoodFocus podcast to discuss issues in the food space.

get our event app

NEW! Keep up to date on program details and connect with other participants using our event app! The 2025 Women’s Grain Symposium can be found on Eventee. Download the app and connect with our event at https://eventee.com/event/73548

Thank you to the 2025 Women’s Grain Symposium sponsors!

Sponsors

Supporters

Interested in sponsoring the Women’s Grain Symposium? Contact:

Joanne Tichborne
Advertising Sales Representative
jtichborne@gfo.ca
226-332-3637