Armstrong defeats Wagner

Kevin Armstrong

Kevin Armstrong is the new director for district seven (Waterloo-Osford) for Grain Farmers of Ontario, narrowly defeating veteran incumbent Fred Wagner.

Armstrong and his father, Dave, run a 750-acre corn, soybeans and wheat cash-cropping business between Woodstock and Burgessville.

Armstrong said after one tie vote, then his election victory, that it’s “unfortunate” that he and Wagner can’t both be directors. He praised Wagner for many years of dedicated service.

Wagner, who farms abut 1,500 acres near Breslau, was first elected a director of the Ontario Corn Producers Association (OCPA) in 1996. He is an agricultural graduate from a German university.

Fred Wagner

He has been a director of the Waterloo Federation of Agriculture and the Ontario Federation of Agriculture where he served on the policy committee.

He served continuously on the Ontario Corn Producers Association, ending with a string of six consecutive years as treasurer and then was elevated to treasurer of the new Grain Farmers of Ontario organization after the corn, soybean and wheat groups merged two years ago.

He has also served as treasurer for ACC Farmers’ Financial, is current treasurer of the Agricultural Adaptation Council and a government-appointed member of the Ontario Grain Financial Protection Board. He has served on the Canadian Soybean Council and AgCare.