Welcome to the NFU-O’s Newest Council Members!

National Farmers Union – Ontario Newsletter
The Rural Voice | October 2024

Claire Perttula and Linda Laepple joined the National Farmers Union – Ontario Council in March. Let’s
get to know them!

Claire Perttula (Region 3 National Board Member)
Claire Perttula (she/her) started farming in 2017 on organic vegetable and meat farms in the Kawartha Lakes region. Working with cows, chickens, pigs, ducks, and horses, running market booths and helping with CSA drop-offs, Claire really discovered a love for farming. Currently, she manages a two-acre community farm in Scarborough, and coordinates a staff team who run agriculture training programs and food justice projects in the neighbourhood. Claire is also a PhD student at York University researching farmer-led policy and planning frameworks to address the farm succession crisis. Claire attended her first Local 345 events with her NFU-O employer in 2018. After that, she started following NFU-O, and officially became a member in 2021. She joined the BIPOC Caucus and attended the 2022 and 2023 National conventions. In 2023, she participated in the convention as a shadow chair. Claire wanted to get involved as an NFU-O board member because she likes to stay in-the-know about agricultural issues. Claire is inspired by the NFU community. As a council member, Claire is most interested in advancing farm succession planning and farmland preservation issues. She was involved in the Land Access Coalition before becoming a board member and is eager to see that work continue. Claire loves watching things
grow, and helping other people (specifically kids) watch things grow for the first time. She is a keen observer of changing weather and growing conditions. As Region 3 National Board Member, Claire is invested in the future of farming in Ontario and would love to hear thoughts that members have about challenges and potential paths forward!

Linda Laepple (Region 3 Women’s Advisor)
Linda Laepple has lived an international farming life. After growing up on a mixed farm in South Germany, Linda came to Canada as a farm worker at the age of 20, returned to Germany to marry, and came back to Ontario to start a family and her own mixed organic farm. Over her storied career, Linda has provided relief support for Germany’s farmer’s health insurance and spent over a decade on cash crop, dairy, and even a sport horse breeding farm. Laepple Organic Farm is still going strong after 26 years, where the multigenerational Laepple family raises grass fed beef, and grows potatoes, grains, and forage. Linda joined the NFU in support of its grassroots approach to policy making. She has always been a strong believer in community engagement and the cooperative movement, and was even a cofounder of a successful renewable energy cooperative and an organic food box CSA which still benefit growers and consumers. She has hosted a potato festival on her farm for 12 years and was a WWOOF host for 15 years, welcoming diverse folk from around the globe. Linda strongly believes in farming at a human scale and the need to professionalize farming as a skilled trade in Canada. In her new position as Region 3 Women’s Advisor, Linda looks forward to being the ear and voice for all women farmers!

A subscription to The Rural Voice is one of the benefits of being an NFU-O member