News & Resources

Official Launch of The New Farm Centre

December 2024

For almost twenty years, Gillian Flies and Brent Preston have owned and operated The New Farm, a regenerative organic vegetable operation near Creemore, Ontario. They have now transformed their farm business into The New Farm Centre, a charitable organization dedicated to developing, demonstrating and advocating for a regenerative farming system that mitigates climate change, fosters healthy ecosystems and communities, and improves farmer livelihoods.

Regenerative agriculture presents an opportunity to reduce on-farm climate emissions, increase farm resilience, and improve farmer livelihoods by reducing reliance on costly inputs.

The New Farm Centre will pursue agricultural at three scales: on the farm, in the community around Creemore, ON, and across Canada.

Farm: The centre is located on a working organic farm where vegetables are grown using the full suite of regenerative practices. We develop and test new practices to improve soil health, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and sequester carbon in our soils. Through our experiential education programming, farmers and non-farmers gather here to see regenerative agriculture in practice.

Community: We work with farmers and landowners in the community around Creemore, Ontario to support the adoption of regenerative farming practices for improved biodiversity, soil health, and farm prosperity. We promote more equitable access to healthy food by donating the majority of the vegetables grown on the farm to a network of good food organisations in southern Ontario.

Canada: The centre supports the development of policy proposals and advocacy campaigns to spread regenerative practices across the country. We work with Farmers for Climate Solutions and other farm organisations to ensure that governments see farmers as a vital part of the solution to climate change, and work across sectors to ensure that farmers have the support they need.