Newly elected president of the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association, Eleanor Renaud. Courtesy Photo
By Barb Keith
AgriNews Contributor
JASPER, ON – Upon being elected president, Eleanor Renaud, stated she has a goal to double the membership of the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association in 2025.
Renaud is a former Ontario Federation of Agriculture director and current Township of Eliszabethtown-Kitley Counselor and isn’t a stranger to working with a board to help drive an organization forward. She is the 85th president; the 4th from Leeds County and the 3rd woman to hold that title in the history of the organization.
“I would like to encourage members when they’re heading out to an event to bring a friend with them, to share the knowledge of what they’re learning in an effort to increase membership and help farmers experience what OSCIA has to offer.” She also encourages members to read the Innovator newsletter and the Grassroots Matter emails regularly to remain up-to-date on provincial activities.
Communications was a theme of a number of 2025 resolutions so Eleanor wants members to reach out to their county association, Regional Communications Coordinator or the OSCIA office with suggestions of what can be done to improve communications between the organization and membership.
Eleanor, and her family, have a herd of sixty beef cows and crop 1000 acres, some of which was an original Land Grant to her family, dating back to the 1800s. They have just recently started tapping a maple bush on the property. Eleanor has been involved with the Leeds Soil and Crop Improvement Association for at least 10 years and became the director for the Ottawa-Rideau Region in 2018.
Eleanor is always looking for opportunities to improve soil and water health on her own farm. She has used cost-share programs like delayed haying, biosecurity and wetland creation to make sure the farm is even better to leave to her children.
