Large Flock Operators Summer Tour

A full day on Amherst Island connecting producers with industry experts — a working sheep farm tour, presentations on farm management and financial literacy, and a feature talk on soil health and farmer wealth.

$50 per ticket. Lunch is available on-site from local food trucks at your own expense.

Hosted by the Ontario Large Flock Operators with support from the Ontario Soil Network at Footflats Farm, Amherst Island — Friday, August 7, 2026.

Event Details

Date: Friday, August 7, 2026
Time: 9:00 AM – 7:00 PM (program runs to 5:30 PM, open networking after)
Registration and presentations: Stella Fairgrounds Pavilion, 5437 Front Rd, Stella, ON K0H 2S0
Farm tour (4:30 PM): Footflats Farm, 570 Front Rd, Stella, ON K0H 2S0 — a 6-minute drive from the pavilion
Cost: $50 per ticket (lunch not included)
Lunch: BBQ available for purchase on-site — CASH ONLY

About the Day

An opportunity to connect with producers and industry experts to share knowledge and drive operational success. Join the Ontario Large Flock Operators with support from the Ontario Soil Network for a field tour and presentations featuring guest speaker Peter Byck of the Carbon Cowboys and Roots So Deep. This event will include presentations from Canadian Food Inspection Agency and WSPS. Located on Amherst Island, Footflats Farms operators Gayla Bonham-Carter and Scott Bade manage a flock of New Zealand Coopworth ewes using rotational grazing, electric fencing systems and a Prattley mobile handling system. This event will be a great opportunity to connect and network with other producers, share experience and knowledge and hear from specialists in the field. 

Featured Speaker — Peter Byck (sponsored by the Ontario Soil Network)

Peter Byck is currently helping to lead a $10 million research project comparing Adaptive Multi-Paddock (AMP) grazing with conventional grazing; collaborating with 20 scientists and 10 farm families, focused on soil health & soil carbon storage, GHG cycling, microbial/bug/bird biodiversity & water cycling. The research also includes a new, 4-part docuseries called Roots So Deep (you can see the devil down there), directed by Byck, which is all about the inventive farmers and maverick scientists building a path to solving climate change with hooves, heart and soil. View the trailer and CNN segment. 

Byck is a professor of practice at Arizona State University, in both the School of Sustainability and the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism, where he teaches students to make short documentary films about sustainability solutions. He is the director, producer and writer of carbon nation, a documentary film about climate change solutions. In 2020, Byck completed carbon cowboys, a 10-part documentary short film series, focused on regenerative grazing. 

Please Bring Cash for Lunch

A BBQ lunch will be available for purchase at the pavilion at 11:15 AM. It is not included in your $50 ticket, and the BBQ can only accept CASH — no debit, no credit, no tap. Bring cash if you plan to eat, or plan to pack your own lunch. Cash is only needed for the food.

Two Locations — Start at the Pavilion

The day starts at the Stella Fairgrounds Pavilion, 5437 Front Rd. Registration opens at 9:00 AM and every presentation happens there. At 4:15 PM the group travels to Footflats Farm at 570 Front Rd — about six minutes down the road — for the farm tour at 4:30 PM.

Agenda

9:00 AM — Registration at the Stella Fairgrounds Pavilion
10:00 AM — Opening remarks
10:30 AM — Traceability — Edward Harrison, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
11:15 AM — BBQ lunch, available for purchase (CASH ONLY)
12:45 PM — Workplace Safety — Ryan Dick, Workplace Safety & Prevention Services
1:45 PM — Producer Panel: Stewarding Sheep and Soil
3:00 PM — Break
3:15 PM — Peter Byck: Roots So Deep — Soil Health & Farmer Wealth, plus Q&A
4:15 PM — Wrap-up and travel to Footflats Farm (6-minute drive)
4:30 PM — Tour of Footflats Farm
5:30 PM — End, plus open networking

Registration

Space is limited to 150 attendees. Register to hold your spot: [REGISTRATION LINK]

Bring cash for the BBQ lunch.

Presented in partnership with the Ontario Large Flock Operators, the Ontario Soil Network, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, and WSPS.