Nova Scotia ranchers snag environmental award at Canadian Beef Industry Conference

Holdanca Farms from Nova Scotia is this year’s recipient of The Environmental Stewardship Award (TESA), it was announced on at the banquet of the Canadian Beef Industry Conference this week.

Holdanca Farms is located near Wallace Bay, N.S., and is owned and operated by the father-daughter duo of John and Maria Duynisveld.

After winning the award at the banquet, John Duynisveld said he felt overwhelmed.

“It’s such an honor,” he said.

Duynisveld gave credit to the other TESA nominees, highlighting the important work they all do when it comes to the environment and agriculture.

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“All of us come from different parts of the country, different environments, and everyone has their own challenges in how they can have their operation work with the challenges that nature throws at them and how they’re able to cooperate with nature, rather than fight it and make things work for them in their own way. So, they’re all incredibly deserving farms and ranches.”

At Holdanca Farms, the Duynisvelds raise a herd of grass-fed cattle, as well as sheep and pastured pigs and poultry. They own 500 acres, 250 of which is a managed, biodiverse native woodlot, and the other half is in long-term pasture production.

A focus for the Duynisvelds is native and migratory birds that make their home on the North Shore of Nova Scotia. They ensure space in their barns and other outbuildings for barn swallows to safely enter and exit during breeding season. They avoid cutting forages at this time and put fences around the nests to prevent livestock from damaging them. On their farm, they have recorded over 100 wild bird species. Around 30 of those are endangered.

Holdanca Farms also directly markets their beef and are involved in agriculture education programs such as Ag in the Classroom and environmental education programs they host right on their farm.

“Holdanca Farms is a testament to how responsible farming practices can go hand in hand with success and their importance to protecting and preserving our land and wildlife,” Mike Duguid, one of the co-chairs of CCA’s environment committee, said in a press release.

Even when winning awards, the work doesn’t stop. Maria Duynisveld was back home in Nova Scotia while her father accepted the award, tending to their cattle.

“A really big thanks to our daughter Maria, who is home running the farm and dealing with all the problems that happen as soon as I go away and solving the problems very well,” Duynisveld said to laughter from the crowd.

Holdanca Farms won out of the six different operations that were nominated from across the country.