Maarten van Oord
Born in 1956, Maarten van Oord grew up in the Netherlands and studied agriculture and mechanical engineering before immigrating to Canada. Upon arriving in New Brunswick in 1979, he purchased a dairy farm in Springfield, north of Fredericton. Maarten and his wife Caroline raised their five children on the farm, growing it to 785 acres and a 60 cow milk herd.
After thirty years of operation, Maarten transitioned ownership of the dairy farm to his son Joas and wife Lisa in 2009. While no longer managing the day to day operations, Maarten continues to be involved, contributing to crop and mechanical work. His retirement from dairy production has allowed him the opportunity to develop his orchard enterprise. In 2015, Maarten applied his interest in permaculture principles to the orchard beside his home, growing apple, cherry, peach, and plum trees.
Maarten’s passion for agriculture has been well implemented off the farm as well, where he has been recognized as a provincial farm leader for decades. He made a lasting contribution to agriculture during his tenure as President of the New Brunswick Federation of Agriculture (NBFA) from 1996-1998. His most notable achievement was the establishment of the Agricultural Alliance of New Brunswick. Bringing together the anglophone and francophone agricultural associations as one united organization provides one strong voice for farmers. It adds credibility, respect, and a position of strength that is greater than farmers had with separate organizations.
As President of NBFA, Maarten was also instrumental in transitioning the Right to Farm legislation to the Farm Operations Practices Act, and chaired the subsequent review board. He provided leadership on a national level as an executive member of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture. At a time when the provincial government was considering the closure of the Department of Agriculture, the perseverance and commitment of Maarten and fellow industry leaders contributed to the continuance of the Department.
Maarten has been dedicated to environmental and agricultural stewardship both on his own farm and in the organizations under his leadership. In 1999, he was recognized by the New Brunswick Institute of Agrologists with an Environmental Stewardship Award. He was a key industry representative in the formation of the Environmental Farm Plan Program during his tenure as President of the NB Agricultural Advisory Committee on Environment. Maarten has provided extensive leadership to soil and crop stewardship, acting as president of the provincial and Fredericton region Soil and Crop Improvement Association. He has also been Chair of the Eastern Canada Soil and Water Conservation Centre, now the CCNB-INNOV Advisory Board.
As a community leader, Maarten has a strong interest in the socioeconomic aspects of farming. As Chair of Sunrise Partnership for Agriculture Development and Education (SPADE), he works to develop successful employment opportunities for newcomers and unemployed workers through training and support programs. Their goal is to use agricultural enterprises to reduce poverty in New Brunswick.
Now retired from full-time farm management, Maarten enjoys spending time with his wife Caroline and family, including children Joas and Lisa, Reynold and Corey, Mark and Amanda, Renata and Douglas, Lennard, and his nine grandchildren.
Nominated by the Agricultural Alliance of New Brunswick for his tireless dedication to strengthening agricultural organizations in the province, Maarten van Oord is a worthy inductee into the Atlantic Agricultural Hall of Fame.