Report on the Town Hall Meeting on the feasibility of re-establishing penitentiary farms at the Joyceville and Collins Bay Institutions

Memorial Hall Kingston City Hall
Kingston, Ontario

16 August 2016

Prepared for Correctional Services Canada Contract No. 21120-17-2404999-INII-00

By Monachus Consulting
19 September 2016

Executive Summary

Monachus Consultants was contracted by Correctional Services of Canada (CSC) to facilitate a Town Hall meeting in Kingston on 16 August 2016 to assist the public to convey their views in person on the re-establishment of penitentiary farms to the Honourable Ralph Goodale, P.C., M.P., Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness.

This report presents the results of the meeting based on the participants' input and, like the Town Hall meeting itself, forms one element for the consultations regarding the future of the penitentiary farms.

The subject matter of the Town Hall meeting was the feasibility of re-opening "penitentiary farms" and their attendant agriculture and agri-food rehabilitation and employment programs in the Kingston area, specifically the farms and their programs at Joyceville and Collins Bay correctional facilities.

The meeting was attended by approximately 300 people, all of whom, with the exception of two critics of the very notion of penitentiaries, were strong supporters of the re-establishment of at least some form penitentiary farm.

Two themes were identified for the meeting participants to address: the positive impact of penitentiary farms generally on rehabilitation and reintegration and proposals for specific types of penitentiary farms in which the government should invest.

The opinions and beliefs expressed by the participants have been summarized under 12 themes in Part IV of this report. These themes are:

• Closing the farms was a mistake - all but two of the 40 speakers supported re-opening of the farms;
• Bring home the cows - there was considerable support from members of the co- operative that had purchased some of the dispersed dairy herd and their supporters for re-establishing the dairy farm component;
• Agricultural labour generally rehabilitates offenders - there was a general consensus that working on the farm encouraged life skills, develops work behaviours, builds skills, etc.;
• Working with animals rehabilitates offenders- there was support for this view from all ages, from former inmates, from farmers and from others with prior knowledge of the farms;
• The farms prepare inmates for employment generally not just in the agri-food sector - there was a recognition that only a few offenders would end up in farming, but there was also a conviction that the skills and behaviours learned were transferable;
• There is a shortage of agricultural labour - several speakers noted that there were farm jobs available;
• Work release is another option - participants with volunteer experience in the penitentiaries noted that CSC's work release programs could also serve the farm community, but to date local farmers had not taken advantage of these programs;
• Explore the options for what will be produced- alongside the support for re-establishing the dairy herd there was support for a wide range of other animal and plant based production options;
• Look to local markets and outlets - many participants emphasized targeting the farm production at local options such as the area's penitentiaries and its food banks, while others encouraged a look at commercial channels;
• Choosea non-profit enterprise model - there was a general consensus that the CORCAN model should not be used and that various non-profit options and/or types of partnership should be investigated;
• Many benefits from prison farms- several speakers broadened the discussion by suggesting that the farms benefited CSC and the local community through greater visibility of rehabilitation, lower recidivism, etc.; and
• Investigate further- the participants recognized the need for, and were strongly supportive of, CSC undertaking a rigorous feasibility study on the type of agriculture-related rehabilitation, training and life skills programming should be put in place.

The participants' comments were opinions, based on personal observation and heartfelt beliefs and not upon any rigorous analysis of the actual impact of penitentiary farm programs on either rehabilitation or employability of inmates post release.

Given the presence of the close to 300 participants and time limitations, participants did not have an opportunity to provide in-depth advice or insight which would help the government design cost effective penitentiary farm programming that would efficiently meet its rehabilitation and employability objectives.

In conclusion, the comments of the Town Hall participants were strongly supportive of penitentiary farm based rehabilitation and employment programs, both animal and plant based. This opens the door for the government to design agricultural and agri-food programs based on a rigorous investigation of the potential production options and of best practices in the incorporation of agriculture related rehabilitation and training programming. Indeed, the participants strongly supported such a thorough investigation of the options.

I - Background

Closure of Joyceville and Collins Bay penitentiary farms

In 2008, the Government of Canada's Strategic Review process required that CSC review its existing programs to ensure that they operate in an effective and efficient manner and that they continue to meet its public safety mandate.

As a result of that review, CSC concluded that based on its cost-benefit analysis it should re- align its programming to focus on other, non-agricultural, labour market opportunities for inmates.

Over the course of 2010 and 2011 CSC closed its six penitentiary farms and their attendant agriculture and agri-food employment initiatives.

The closure of the penitentiary farms was the subject of considerable public protest in the Kingston area, protest that continued through to the Federal election in 2015 and beyond.

Much of the protest concerned the closure of the dairy farming operations and processing facilities. It is important to note that the public concern with the closure was as much about the process by which the decision to close the farms was made (i.e. lack of public consultation with stakeholders), as about the cessation of penitentiary farm activities.

After the closure, farming groups, advocacy groups, citizens, and public figures continued to express concern and opposition to the closure of penitentiary farms. Weekly demonstrations by the Sisters of Providence^{Footnote 1} and advocacy groups under the banner of "Save Our Prison Farms" were held throughout the period of 2010 - 2016. Following the Federal election in 2015 local residents expected the Liberal Government to reopen the penitentiary farms as a consequence of statements made during the local campaign.

An exchange between the Hon. Mark Gerretsen, M.P. for Kingston and the Islands and the Hon. Ralph Goodale, P.C., M.P., Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness in the House of Commons on June 2, 2016, committed the Government to consult with the public on the feasibility of restoring some form of penitentiary farm programming.

Challenges

With respect to the matter of the role of the farms in Canada's penitentiary system and in the rehabilitation of inmates and the preparation for future employment, the government is confronted with three challenges:

The first is a communication and consultations challenge, including the government's need to educate the public on the practical realities of modern day farming and food processing. The public has a strong expectation that the facilities and programs pre-closure should be re- established, particularly with respect to the dairy farm. Yet this option may be unrealistic given preliminary estimates of its expense. The public also needs concrete evidence that it is being heard. The challenge is to bring the public into a realistic discussion on the feasibility of re- opening the farms and to help manage expectations as to what is and what is not feasible.

The second challenge is to assess the economic viability of different options. The operating costs of maintaining the penitentiary farm program as they were, while they were operational, were found to be prohibitive for CORCAN. The capital costs associated with re-establishing the farms as they were could make it even less feasible. A cursory review of the facilities at Collins Bay and Joyceville revealed that the capital assets had deteriorated or been removed altogether.

The third challenge, which is related to the first two, is to close the gap between the perceptions of the advocates of penitentiary farms on their benefits vis-à-vis rehabilitation and employability, including the transferability of competences, and the absence of any rigorous data set on that impact. The absence of any statistics concerning the employment of inmates enrolled in penitentiary farm programs and their employment upon release makes it hard to develop a business case for re-establishing penitentiary farm programming.

II - Preparations for the Town Hall meeting

Facilitators' task

The consultants were tasked to facilitate a town hall meeting and produce a report with recommendations based on the information received during the town hall meeting, specifically to:

• Encourage group members to participate and interact productively and guide the group through an effective process;
• Stimulate a constructive and clear exchange of ideas among the members and promoting feedback; and,
• Encourage group members to dialogue about a feasible future for a correctional farm program.

Meetings with CSC officials

To design the format and agenda for the town hall meeting the facilitators held several sessions with CSC officials. These interactions resulted in several revisions to the meeting plan which were integrated by the officials and the facilitators into their final approaches to communications and the event.

The facilitators also met with the Chief Executive Officer of CORCAN in Ottawa to understand its business approach to operating penitentiary enterprises focussed on skills development and rehabilitation. It is clear that CORCAN's mandate requires its enterprises to be profitable or at least revenue neutral.

Meetings with interested parties

The facilitators developed a list of interested parties in consultation with CSC officials and proceeded to contact them by phone or in person. The objective of these calls varied, but in general, they were designed to identify issues that might come up during the town hall meeting and to assist the facilitators to shape their advice on the meeting agenda and format. The interested parties included:

• John Howard Society (Kingston)
• Organizers of the Save Our Prison Farms Rally (Kingston)
• Executive Director of Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council (Ottawa)
• Executive Director of Food Manufacturing Human Resource Council (Ottawa)
• Executive Director of Kingston Economic Development Corporation (Kingston)
• A former manager of the Bowden (Alberta) penitentiary farm (Ottawa)

CSC facilities visit - Joyceville and Collins Bay

On August 10th, the two lead facilitators travelled to the Kingston area with a CSC official to tour the former farm sites at Joyceville and Collins Bay. They had the opportunity to visit existing buildings which are in use for new purposes (e.g. a heritage designated barn now used for storage) and to see the remaining facilities that have been downgraded from their former uses (e.g. equipment removed, maintenance at minimal levels, etc.).  This review of the facilities revealed, amongst other things that:

• some of the barns appeared to be structurally sound;
• animal stalls had been partially dismantled;
• the greenhouses were in bad repair or were falling apart and its heating equipment had not been maintained;
• the agricultural storage facilities had not been maintained and were outdated; and
• the equipment for milking and processing had been dismantled and/or sold.

During this visit, the facilitators and CSC officials met with the current operator of the Joyceville abattoir and discussed its status and operations. This provincially licensed facility (Wallace Beef Inc.) now operates at a reduced level of production.

During the tour, the facilitators had access to current and former CSC staff that had been actively involved in the operations of the two penitentiary farms. Their contributions provided background on the facilities and the agriculture related operations that occurred prior to the farm closures. It was indicated that the market and regulatory environment had continued to evolve since the closures. For example, it was noted that:

• As of 2012, CSC has utilized the Bath facility centralized kitchen for most of its food services for the area penitentiaries and this facility operates under a rigorous food safety management system;
• Provincial dairy, environmental and food safety regulations had been updated and it would require substantial investment to meet these on the farm, in a milking parlour and in a small processing facility;
• Dairy quota would need to be purchased as the site had previously not been required to hold quota; and,
• High management costs, in terms of supervision, in the abattoir and in any other re- established processing facilities could make meeting market prices commercially challenging.

III - Town Hall Meeting Proceedings

Location

The Town Hall meeting was held 16 August 2016, at Memorial Hall, Kingston City Hall between 6 and 8 p.m. with an estimated 300 participants. Many of these attended a well-publicized rally across from City Hall starting at 4:30 p.m. organized by the "Save Our Prison Farm" group via its Facebook page and extensive local media coverage. The facilitators scheduled the opening of Memorial Hall for 5:15 p.m. and the majority of the participants arrived shortly thereafter.

Meeting plan

Within the two hour timeframe for the Town Hall meeting, the agenda allowed for 90 minutes for participants to express their views and offer insight into the feasibility of reopening penitentiary farms. This 90 minute period followed opening comments to the audience by the Hon. Mark Gerretsen, M.P. Kingston and the Islands, and the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, Hon. Ralph Goodale, P.C., M.P., brief comments and a very brief overview of some highlights of the CSC on-line survey and his instructions for the meeting format by the lead facilitator. Also in attendance were CSC Commissioner Don Head and Ontario Regional Deputy Commissioner Mike Ryan as well as several other CSC officials.

Mr. Gerretsen's comments

The Member thanked the Town Hall participants for attending and introduced the Minister. In his comments he noted:

• The participants in the meeting had waited a long time for the opportunity to make their voices heard on the future of penitentiary farms;
• That people in Kingston were passionate about prisons and about rehabilitation;
• That he welcomed the Minister and the government's willingness to consider the re-opening of penitentiary farms.

Minister Goodale's comments

The Minister gave a very brief introduction highlighting the following:

• That the rehabilitation programs that CSC offers to inmates are a "big" contributor to the safety of Canadians.
• That reintegration of inmates into the community when they are released requires "good and varied prospects for finding employment".
• That the government was looking at, with the benefit of both the online survey and the Town Hall meeting, "how feasible it would be to reopen those farms" for both "rehabilitation" and  "good and varied prospects for finding employment".
• That while the focus of the Town Hall meeting was on the feasibility of reopening penitentiary farms, he also wanted to hear "ideas on farm-related employment opportunities for offenders".

Facilitator's instructions

The lead facilitator explained that the agenda called for the participants to address two major questions:

1. What is the impact of penitentiary farm programs on the life skills, rehabilitation and employability of offenders including:
   1. how the penitentiary farm programs can help inmates learning marketable, perhaps even certified/accredited, skills, and
   2. how penitentiary farm programs can help offenders find and retain employment post release.
2. What are the production and market opportunities and challenges for farming and food processing given the land and facilities available at Joyceville and Collins Bay?

While addressing these two questions, the audience was also encouraged to assess the broad costs and benefits and the more specific financial implications of their proposals, and to provide suggestions on the type of institutional structure of the agribusiness.

Audience participants were reminded that the government was not tied to any one specific business model; it could be a public-private partnership; it could be a social enterprise; a cooperative; a program or an agri-food employment initiative delivered by CSC.

The lead facilitator noted that the concern with the closure of the penitentiary farms had as much to do with the sense of local residents that their voices were not heard during the process leading up to the previous government's decision to close the farms as with the actual closure.

He indicated that given the number of participants attending and seeking to be heard it would be necessary to limit a maximum of two minutes time at the microphone per speaker.

CSC on-line consultation: Some preliminary results

The lead facilitator provided participants with some preliminary highlights of the results of the CSC online consultation. These were based on a quick review of the raw data summaries that had been provided by CSC in the days preceding the Town Hall meeting and intended to clearly demonstrate:

• that the government was engaging the public on the issue; and
• that, while there was great support from respondents for re-opening penitentiary farms, the options for what type of penitentiary farm and attendant programs were not confined to dairy.

The highlights provided were as follows:

• There were over 5800 participants in the consultation. Of these, 1576 or 27% were from the Kingston area, about 1750 from the rest of Ontario and nearly half - 2500 - from the rest of Canada.
• 63% of participants self-identified as community members, 14% as federal or provincial government employees and 5% as involved in agriculture in some way.
• 95% of respondents reported that prison employment was extremely or very important in the rehabilitation of offenders.
• The survey also asked whether there might be unique benefits from the agri-business training - 84% agreed, but as to whether these benefits were exclusive to agriculture there was a 50/50 split in views across Canada with a somewhat more favourable view here in the Kingston area - 55% to 45%.
• On employability in agri-business after release - 2 out of 3 participants expressed the view that there would be jobs/employment.
• Of the just over 100 self-identified agri-business employers, 87% said they would hire an offender. This support was stronger than for the 500 plus self-identified non-farm employers where only 2 of 3 would hire.
• There were many questions on the survey about what should be produced/processed on a penitentiary farm - the overall result was that allthe production types - crops, dairy, greenhouses, gardens, livestock, poultry and mechanical trades - had the support of about 3 out of 4 participants who answered - some higher and few lower.
• Finally, 4 out 5 positively responded that the current land base should stay in agriculture.

IV - Participant's comments - Themes that emerged

Within the time constraint of 90 minutes, 40 participants had a chance to express their opinions and beliefs. Their comments have been gathered under the themes below:

Closing the farms was a mistake

The overwhelming view of the participants in the on-line consultation (in excess of 5800 responses) and the nearly 300 participants at the Kingston Town Hall was that closing the prison farms^{Footnote 2} was a mistake. The Town Hall audience expressed this view in many ways. They greeted the Minister and the local Member of Parliament positively, when they indicated that they had been concerned about the decisions taken by the previous government to close the farms without consultation and when they stated they were eager to hear the participants' views on the feasibility of re-establishing the farms. Of the 40 speakers, all but two expressed their support for re-opening the farms. The negative voices advocated closing prisons. Many put their support in the context of not just the Kingston area farms but prison farms across Canada.

Bring the cows home

"You have the land. You have the barns. All you are missing is the cows. And we have just what you need".^{Footnote 3}

The meeting was well attended by members of the co-operative, including farmers, which had purchased some of the dispersed dairy herd, and their supporters. They clearly and frequently spoke and strongly urged the Minister to re-establish the dairy operations, farm and processing facility. While no details or costs were provided, they indicated that they had a plan for achieving this goal and would share it with CSC. Time constraints and the lengthy line of speakers meant that critical issues such as the cost of rebuilding the dairy barns, purchasing dairy quota and processing equipment, implementing modern food safety regulation, etc. were not addressed.

Agricultural labour generally rehabilitates prisoners

"The prison farm program is not an Ag college. It is a program geared to correct mistakes that got people in there in the first place. … the skills learned on farms, team work, setting goals towards an end, becoming reliable, punctual. These are assets for any job. The skills learned help people to find and keep jobs when they get out".

There was a general consensus that farm work conducted outdoors was very effective at rehabilitating prisoners. It:

• encourages general life skills such as patience, empathy and responsibility,
• helps inmates to develop a work ethic, punctuality, setting goals,
• rebuilds skills related to work relationships (i.e. employee/employer not inmate to guard),
• creates team building opportunities and develops interpersonal communications skills.

Working with animals rehabilitates prisoners

"Caring for livestock develops compassion and empathy so often lacking in male prisoners … it is a form of therapy. It is all a part of the rehabilitation process providing an opportunity for further personal growth…"

"The cows taught me so many skills and they taught me patience, compassion. The skills I learned while milking the cows and making them well. …. I took that …. Lots of people could be damaged now because they don't have chance to work with the animals."

Not surprisingly, given the preponderance of interest in re-establishing the dairy farm, participants urged the Minister to consider how effective working with animals was at rehabilitating inmates. As highlighted by one participant, a former prison chaplain, working with animals helps "prisoners learn to think about something other than themselves". Others echoed this view and illustrated it either by their own experience as a young farm girl learning to train and groom calves for 4H and the local fair, farmers themselves, and as a former inmate now working not in agriculture but in cat rescue.

Two participants, while supporting the re-opening of prison farms raised objections to animal- based agriculture. They challenged the "bring back the cows" supporters to instead turn the dairy cows and their progeny over to the "sanctuary" movement and to focus the new farms on plant-based agriculture.

The farms prepare for employment generally not just in the agri-food sector

"… the term jack of all trades describes any farm worker … what one learns working on a farm one learns for life, the skills are immeasurably transferrable."

Many participants challenged the view that the training obtained through working on a prison farm must necessarily lead to post-prison employability on a farm or in an agriculture-related activity. They emphasized that the life and work skills gained, particularly in working with equipment were transferable and when combined with the opportunity to put the farm work down on their exit resume were very important outcomes. In their comments several recommended that a return to the incentivized pay system, where inmates could accumulate more funds than the CSC provides to all inmates to start their post-prison lives.

There is a shortage of agricultural labour

"We have people that come to the farm but they don't have the skills. … These are very valuable skills that can be learned. As an employer we do have a tough time to find all the workers that we need. There are these jobs out there …."

Several speakers raised the issue of current shortages of agricultural workers, particularly in the horticultural sector. While some acknowledged that these were seasonal jobs, others emphasized that they were there and that prison farms could start to prepare inmates with the basic skills that they would need to move into these jobs. One participant noted that it was his personal experience that accessing these jobs was not done through networking or "who you knew" but through government and community employment centres.

Work release is another option

"We can take the offenders to your cows through a work release program. I haven't heard of any farms, not at Pittsburgh, heard of anyone coming to look for workers".

Participants with work release program experience at local prisons noted that these programs could be used by local farmers and agriculture related employers to provide mutually beneficial rehabilitation and training opportunities for inmates.  They indicated that the CSC's programs successfully and carefully match employer needs and inmates. However, it was noted that the programs had not been and were not being utilized by the local farm community for this purpose.

Explore the options for what will be produced

"Consider plant-based agriculture and traditional animal production like bison and goats."

As noted above, there was a strong current in favour of "bringing back the cows". However, some participants voiced the view that other options should be explored. It was noted that the farms had previously had poultry and beef cattle. Some suggested that pigs, goats, bees, bison and other animals be considered. Several spoke against all types of animal agriculture. Cash crops, market gardening, greenhouses, bedding plants or other floricultural products were also raised. Others called for cheese production, expanding the use of the abattoir and re- introduction of poultry processing. Several participants indicated that novel enterprises or ones culturally relevant to the First Nations inmate population should be considered. It was noted that bio-mass had been slated for introduction at one farm prior to the closure - perhaps it could be considered again.

Look to local markets and outlets

"..we think there are great opportunities  in marketing and other opportunities in locally based ag…"

Some participants responded to the request for input on - where would the prison farm products go? Several suggested that the Kingston area penitentiaries were the natural market and urged CSC to return to more self-reliance in poultry, dairy and horticultural products.

Others supported distribution through local or regional food banks. A few took the position that there were opportunities for sales into local markets or perhaps through partnerships into broader markets. Several remarked on the importance of commercially linking the farms to the local community - although it was unclear whether this referred to the consumption of food products to the general consumer community or other agricultural products like bedding plants, etc.

Choose a non-profit enterprise model

"When it comes to the feasibility - will it be profitable? What are the parameters and metrics in making the decision? It is about rehabilitation Corrections Canada not profit making Canada. Keep focusing on the correction part of it and the rehabilitation part of it."

While there were divergent views expressed, the general consensus in the meeting was that CSC should re-establish the prison farms and related enterprises outside of CORCAN's perceived "for profit" model. Participants advocated for a range of models. Some spoke without providing detail about social enterprises and one participant offered the assistance of the Social Planning Council of Kingston and Area to undertake research and assist in designing this option. Others referenced co-operatives and community supported agriculture (CSAs). Several suggested partnership opportunities either with local farmers or businesses (the example of the abattoir was noted) or with large manufacturers or retailers. Several expressed concerns about "agri-business" models, production practices, etc. but others indicated that there had to be some commercialization of the products to return revenues to the CSC and, in part, sustain the farm programs. One speaker proposed that CSC enter into an arrangement where the inmates managed the farm, so as to combine the development of management skills as well as vocational ones. And, another suggested a residential model that facilitated community re- integration alongside gaining employable skills.

Many benefits from prison farms

"At this site [Pittsburgh] inmates who were granted parole while working at the farm had the lowest rate of parole suspension."

Several speakers broadened the discussion by exploring who benefits from the existence of the prison farms. One strand of this theme was that CSC benefits. The community can see that inmates are working on the farm, gaining skills and training. Rehabilitation is publicly demonstrated. Another opinion expressed was that the public benefits by increased public safety due to lower recidivism. Others noted that the farms had interacted with local businesses and the local community, provided tours and brought agriculture into the city.

Questions were raised about access by women and First Nation's inmates to work on the farms. And, it was pointed out that agriculture and related employment was not just a male preserve.

Investigate further

"..need a real feasibility study, I hope that the government is not just going through the motions".

Throughout the evening, participants expressed the view that re-establishing the prison farms required more than just the on-line consultation and this Town Hall meeting. They indicated that they are expecting further study.

For example, time and again, they stated that it is insufficient to conclude that prison farm programs do not lead to employment simply because inmates upon release do not findemployment on farms or in food processing facilities. They wanted to better understand the statistical relationship between prison farm program participation by inmates and their post- release employment.

Although there was strong support for re-establishing the farms with their former enterprises, particularly the dairy farm and processing facility, there was a strong recognition that the feasibility of other types of agricultural production needed to be studied. Several participants raised the potential differences in costs of re-starting old enterprises and starting new ones.

Others pointed to the need to explore more thoroughly market and non-market opportunities for products raised, grown and/or processed on the farms. A few noted that the land base was perhaps better suited to more intensive agriculture (stating some of it was "as good as the Holland Marsh" or "the best in Eastern Ontario").

As noted above, several speakers called for a broader perspective and greater use of the opportunities available at minimal cost through the work release programs.

In summary, participants strongly supported a rigorous feasibility study on what type of agriculture related rehabilitation, training and life skills programs should be put in place at Joyceville and Collins Bay penitentiaries.

V - Conclusions

Overall, the participants had a sense that they were being heard directly by the Minister and went away satisfied that the government was listening to stakeholders.

The Minister concluded the meeting with an appreciation of the participants' focus on the principles underpinning the "rehabilitation and safe reintegration" of inmates. He highlighted that the views expressed "would be very helpful in making the decisions we need to make."

The Town Hall participants' comments primarily reiterated the advice than that had been expressed over the past five (5) years. These comments were opinions, based on personal observation and heartfelt beliefs and not upon any rigorous analysis of the actual impact of penitentiary farm programs on either rehabilitation or employability of inmates post release.

Given the presence of the close to 300 participants and the time limitations, participants did not have an opportunity to provide in-depth advice or insight which would help the government design cost effective penitentiary farm programming that would efficiently meet its rehabilitation and employability objectives.

In conclusion, the comments of the Town Hall participants were strongly supportive of penitentiary farm based rehabilitation and employment programs, both animal and plant based. This opens the door for the government to design agricultural and agri-food programs based on a rigorous investigation of the potential production options and of best practices in the incorporation of agriculture related rehabilitation and training programming. Indeed, the participants strongly supported such a thorough investigation of the options.

Annex I - Kingston Town Hall Agenda

5:15 p.m. Memorial Hall opened to meeting participants

6:00 p.m. Facilitator opens the Town Hall meeting and introduces the Honourable Mark Gerretsen, M.P. Kingston and the Islands

6:05 p.m. Mr. Gerretsen addresses town hall meeting introduces the Honourable Ralph Goodale, P.C., M.P., Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

6: 06 p.m. Minister Goodale addresses the Town Hall meeting .

6: 08 p.m. Facilitator reviews how the Town Hall meeting will proceed

6:15 p.m. Town Hall Participants make comments

7:45 p.m. Facilitator brings participant comment period to a close and outlines next steps in the consultation process

7:55 p.m. Minister Goodale make closing remarks

8:00 p.m. Facilitator thanks the Minister, the Member of Parliament and the Town Hall Participants and adjourns the meeting.

Annex II - Monachus Consulting

Monachus Consulting and its project team have considerable experience in the Canadian agri- food industry. We have conducted studies and facilitated working groups, workshops and meetings for Agriculture and Agri-food Canada, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), the Canadian Fertilizer Institute, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA), Canadian On- Farm Food Safety Working Group, the Canadian Supply Chain Food Safety Coalition, the Pew Foundation, to name a few.

Our associates in this project have led consultations for the Canadian Agri-Marketing Council, the Agriculture Institute of Canada, the Agriculture, Food and Beverage SAGIT (under the auspices of the Minister of International Trade), the CFIA Dairy Industry Working Group, the CFIA Consumer Association Roundtable, the Ontario Agricultural College, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture, the Dairy Processors Association of Canada, Bio-Products Canada and federal-provincial-territorial negotiations for Agriculture and Agri-food Canada.

Project Team: The team was led by Albert Chambers. The lead and principal facilitators for the town hall meetings were Myles Frosst and Sally Rutherford.

Project Team Leader: Albert Chambers, Monachus Consulting

Albert Chambers has forty-three years of experience as an advisor to companies, national organizations, cabinet ministers and parliamentary committees in the agri-food sector. He is the President of Monachus Consulting, a firm he established in 1995 specializing in the provision of policy and communications advice to organizations in the agri-food industry. Albert is also the Executive Director of the Canadian Supply Chain Food Safety Coalition. He is currently the chair of the Standards Council of Canada's Canadian Advisory Committee on Agri-Food and its subcommittee on the ISO 22000 series of food safety standards. He has been leading delegations to ISO meetings since 2003. Chambers also sits on a number of advisory committees to federal departments and agencies, including the National Cross Sector Forum on Critical Infrastructure where he represents the agri-food sector.

A graduate of the University of Saskatchewan (BA, 1971) and the University of York in England (BPhil, 1982), Chambers started his career as a researcher in the Senate of Canada in 1973.

Lead Facilitator: Myles Frosst

Myles Frosst has thirty-three years of experience providing clients with economic, business management and public policy analysis of agriculture and food manufacturing competitiveness issues gained in public, private and not-for-profit sectors. Frosst applied his expertise in the facilitation of consultation and engagement of agri-food stakeholders while a Visiting Researcher for the Ontario Agricultural College (2010 - 2013), Executive Director of the Canadian Agri-food Marketing Council (1997 - 2007) and Executive Director of the Agriculture Food and Beverage Sectoral Advisory Group on International Trade (1989 - 1996).

As Chief Executive Officer of the Agricultural Institute of Canada (2007 - 2010), Frosst worked with and championed agrologists and academic leaders from universities and agri-food companies to further the contribution of animal, soil, plant and environmental sciences to profitable and sustainable Canadian agriculture and food production.

As an independent consultation and stakeholder engagement consultant Frosst also facilitated the Canadian Food Inspection Agency's (CFIA) Dairy Industry Working Group (2006) and CFIA's Consumer Association Roundtable (2010 - 2011) and prepared a stakeholder engagement of consumer associations strategy for the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (2013) towards a national food strategy for Canada.

A graduate of McGill University (BA, 1982), Frosst started his agri-food sector career as an economist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (1982 - 1989).

Principal Facilitator: Sally Rutherford, Sally Rutherford Consultants

Sally Rutherford has thirty-five years of experience in issues analysis and management gained in both the public and private sectors. Rutherford served for nine years (1991 - 2000) as Executive Director of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture where she developed a sound understanding of influence of Canadian policy and regulation on the economic performance and inter- dependence of various agri-food sub-sectors. In the period 2000 - 2004, Sally was seconded to Agriculture and Agri-food Canada as Director General of Integrated Policy Systems in the Strategic Policy Branch.

She then established her consulting practice in 2004 and provided policy advice to the Dairy Processors Association of Canada (2005 through 2015) and management and strategic planning services to several national associations (Bio-Products Canada (2004-2006)) and the Canadian

Political Science Association (2009 - 2013). Since 2011, Sally has managed the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies as its executive director.

Rutherford has collaborated on various projects with Monachus Consulting undertaking research, analysis and facilitation including projects that required extensive investigation of international developments in the industry and sector.

Rutherford is a graduate of McGill University (BA, 1977) and the University of Toronto (MA, 1978) and started her agri-food career as a researcher for the Standing Senate Committee on Agriculture in 1979.