Welcome to the WWOOF program in Canada - World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (formerly known as: Willing Workers on Organic Farms)

Sunflowers from a WWOOF Host's Garden
by Claude Monet

Vacationing and volunteering on Organic Farms is a wonderful way to broaden your education and practical experience. You'll learn about organic gardening and farming, meet people and it is also a great way to travel around Canada inexpensively. Almost 900 farm hosts (and a vast array of different places) from the East Coast to the West Coast, to the Yukon and Northwest Territories, will introduce you to the many interesting aspects of Canadian farms, rural and urban properties. WWOOFing / volunteering has also become a cultural exchange, besides being a helping exchange. You help 4-6 hours a day, 5 - 5 1/2 days per week and receive accommodations, meals and a very interesting experience.

WWOOFing with children is happening and possible - just find the right host !!

For those coming from overseas - Europe and Asia and from elsewhere - you must have a simple basic understanding of English. You will be expected to help, learn, share and participate with whatever outside farm & garden related chores that need doing. You are welcome to stay 1 week or longer; some hosts request a minimum of 2 weeks; some stay much longer depending on the needs of each host and compatibility; many volunteers stay 1-3 weeks, then move on to another host - thus gaining a variety of different experiences. You are free as to how long you decide to stay, depending on the host's requirements.

WWOOF Aims

• to get firsthand experience of organic farming & gardening and to lend a helping hand wherever needed
• to get into the countryside and experience Canada and Canadians.
• to help the organic movement, which is often labour intensive and does not rely on artificial fertilizers & pesticides.
• to make contact with other people in the organic movement.
• to have a wonderful enriching experience.
• to enable people from all over the world to have a cultural exchange with Canadians.

Best Time To WWOOF

The best time to WWOOF is of course between early spring ( April on the eastern side of Canada; February/March/April in British Columbia on the western side of Canada) to late autumn/fall. There are numerous hosts that accept volunteers all year round. This is often indicated in the hosts write-up. However even if it is not indicated, feel free to ask any host if they accept WWOOFers in the winter, if you desire to wwoof in the winter.