Dan began 2026 on the road, meeting co‑ops across Quebec and Ontario to gather insights that will guide CMC’s priorities for the year. These visits highlighted the depth, diversity, and momentum of Canada’s co‑operatives as we prepare for Congress 2026.
In mid-January, Dan was enjoying a quiet drive when he came across the Agricola Cooperative Farm, which is situated on a 160-acre property in Papineauville, Quebec, situated 10 minutes North of Montebello and just under an hour from Mont-Tremblant. Established in 2022 through a co-op conversion, the young farmers that established this worker co-op now grow organic vegetables and flowers for the Ottawa and the Outaouais areas and participate actively in various markets. Agricola is also part of the Farmhouse Food Cooperative Inc, along with 15 other farms, which delivers fresh local produce directly to the door of those who subscribe to the service.
Dan visited La coop d’habitation de la Vérendrye. Created in 1987, this co-op has two buildings and a total of 24 – 2-bedroom, cat friendly units. It is part of the Fédération intercoopérative en habitation de l’Outaouais (FIHAB), itself part of the Confédération Québécoise des coopératives d’habitation, a CMC member.
Marie-Eve Barrette, who is also a volunteer with the same organization, was the co-founder of the Coopérative Multisport TSA Outaouais in 2018. This co-operative offers a year-round sports environment suitable for children aged 5 to 16 with autism spectrum disorder and was established by parents who all happened to be teachers. Together, they created an entity that is committed to the social and physical development of young people through dance, basketball, soccer, hockey and soon, tennis. A recent pride point was being the recipient of the 2025 David Award in the recreation and sports category. Presented by the Regroupement des associations de personnes handicapées de l’Outaouais (RAPHO), it is an honorary distinction that celebrates outstanding initiatives in the field of inclusion and social participation.
The end of the month brought Dan and CMC Executive Director Michael Toye to Guelph and Toronto for work. On the way they stopped at Borelia Co-operative Homes, the sole co-operative in Port Perry Ontario, Micheal’s hometown.
This co-operative was established in 1984 and has seventy units that are either subsidized or market units, in the form of apartments and townhouses.
The record-breaking snowfall on Sunday, June 25 impacted the plan with two of the meetings on the next day, converting to virtual ones. The first was with one of CMC’s founding members, GROWMARK, Inc. This Illinois-based international co-operative supplies and serves agricultural co-operatives throughout the American Midwest and north-eastern states, as well as in the Ontario market. The Ontario headquarters currently supplies and serves 50 FS agricultural co-op locations plus FS PARTNERS, a division of GROWMARK, has another eighteen branches throughout central and south-western Ontario. The FS System in Ontario represents close to 30,000 members, 1,500 employees and close to 90,000 customers.
Michael and Dan then met with Co-operators, another founding member, for strategic discussions and feedback.
Co-operators was established in 1945 and is a leading Canadian financial services provider of insurance, investment products and services for Canadians and businesses. In addition to their active involvement across the movement and in numerous communities, Co-operators is ranked as a Corporate Knights’ Best 50 Corporate Citizen in Canada and has invested more than $7 billion in impact and climate transition investments. Those who opt-in to the Guelph tour that will take place after the CMC AGM on June 10, will have the opportunity to learn more about Co-operators and the award-winning state-of-the-art, zero carbon designed headquarters.
A virtual meeting then took place with AG Energy Co-operative (AEC), which started with Jennifer Ross of the Ontario Co-operative Association (middle), introducing Dan and Michael to Michelle Vieira and Steven Schmidt of AEC. This innovative co-operative was established in 1988 by flower and vegetable greenhouse growers who wanted to pool their purchasing power to buy natural gas. Now serving a larger array of agricultural producers and processors in Ontario, AG Energy offers a variety of natural gas and electricity programs, as well as energy assessments and management services.
Dan met up with CMC’s founding Executive Director, Denyse Guy, who lives in a community nearby. Denyse has been a tireless advocate, movement builder and co-op developer for more than 40 years, and as such is a great source of insight. Over the years, she has been involved in leadership positions in representative bodies in financial, local food and renewable energy co-operatives sectors.
The day wrapped up with a meeting with Jennifer Ross, Executive of the Ontario Co-operative Association. The OCA is a non-share capital and non-profit co-operative that was originally formed in 1989 as the Canadian Co-operative Association – Ontario Region. It was officially incorporated in 2002 as the Ontario Co-operative Association (OCA) to represent and serve English-speaking co-operatives and co-op member organizations in the province.
January 27 brought Mike and Dan to the Annual General meeting of Gay Lea Foods Co-operative Ltd, which was the original catalyst for the travel to the Greater Toronto Area. 2025 was a record year with 850 millions liters of milk processed and $ 1.377 Billion in sales, with members on 1,300 cow and goat milk dairy farms across Ontario and Manitoba. As a founding member of CMC, Gay Lea Foods Co-operative has played a leadership role in the movement for many years, and we look forward to helping attendees discover more about it as the anchor institution for the second co-op tour available on June 10.
A stop at York University validated questions and requirements for Congress 2026. Which will be three days of connection, collaboration, and co-op innovation from June 8 to 10. The first day will be a series of gatherings hosted by partners that will culminate with an evening reception to spark connections. June 9 will be the main Congress Day, where co-op leaders will have the opportunity to be learn through plenaries, workshops and other sessions through four different streams, under the Power the Economy mindset, before the day wraps up with the Awards Gala. For the latter, the nomination period is still open until 10 February.
The final meeting was held with Dr. John Simoulidis, President of the Canadian Association for Studies in Co-operation (CASC) and a member of CMC. The CASC conference will take place on June 7–8 at York University, offering a key opportunity for collaboration between researchers and practitioners.
Academics are invited to submit abstracts for the conference by February 20, and a short overview of their research projects by March 31 for enhanced visibility at the CMC Congress.
CASC and CMC also encourage applications for the CASC Scholarships (deadline: March 31, 2026) as well as the Ian MacPherson Legacy Fund, which accepts applications on an ongoing basis.
Michael’s recent travels to Guelph and the Greater Toronto Area earned him a rare distinction, awarded to only six people. He fulfilled all three criteria: driving over 1,000 km, staying one night in an affordable hotel, and participating in several cooperative meetings. After a busy schedule organized by his colleague, he received a “Dan en cavale” (Dan’s Adventures) t-shirt.
If you would like to invite Dan to stop in at your co-op, credit union, caisse or mutual during his travels, or if you would like to eventually join this exclusive group of currently 5 people, please contact him at dbrunette@canada.coop.