Canada's correctional agency has launched a public study into resurrecting two prison farms, a move that would offer a measure of vindication for a hardy band of farmers and activists who spent time in jail in their fight to preserve the Kingston-area farms from Conservative government cutbacks.

"Three times I went to jail for this, and I must say it's been well worth it," said Jeff Peters, a farmer and chairman of the Pen Farm Herd Co-op, formed amid the prison-farm closings six years ago to buy up penitentiary cattle heading to auction."I must say I'm pretty encouraged by this announcement."

The federal Liberals are characterizing the study as one of sundry minute policy changes that are shifting the federal prison service away from the punitive orientation adopted under the Harper Conservatives and toward a system geared more to one favouring rehabilitating inmates.

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"The main thing here is that this government simply looks at corrections differently than the previous government," said local Liberal MP Mark Gerretsen.

When the country's six prison farms were closed between 2009 and 2011, inmate advocates said it removed a program that offered both therapy in the form of work with animals as well as valuable skills training. For now, the correctional agency is only looking at reopening two of the six.

The Conservative government countered at the time that the farms were too expensive at an annual hit of around $4-million and didn't teach skills for a modern job market.

In August of 2010, demonstrators took their consternation to the Collins Bay Institution farm in Kingston, blockading trucks carrying cattle from prison to auction. Police arrested 24 protesters, including Mr. Peters. "I tell you that was sad day for democracy," he said.

Nine of the protesters refused to take a plea deal and were eventually found guilty of attempted mischief, according to Dianne Dowling, another organizer of efforts to save the prison farms.

The protests spawned a movement to buy up the cattle through the Pen Farm Herd Co-op. More than 180 members bought $300 shares, raising enough money to buy 23 head.

Originally, the intention was to hold the cows until the Conservatives were voted out of office in 2011. When that election ended instead in a Conservative majority, the membership held on. Today, the herd stands at 32 animals. Some of the newest members of the herd have been named after protesters. "When the government told me that inmates couldn't learn any meaningful skills on a farm, that was an insult that really stuck in my mind," said Mr. Peters. "Whenever you felt a tinge of giving up, you thought of that insult and [that] made you want to prove them wrong."

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Re-establishing the farms is far from a done deal, of course. An online consultation will last until Aug. 2 and CSC is planning a town hall in Kingston for the near future.

About 18 months ago, a group of local farmers formulated a business plan to relaunch the Collins Bay farm as a cheese-making facility with 50 head of cattle.

"I realize this isn't happening overnight, but we're really hoping the cows can go back to prison within the year," said Mr Peters.

Whatever the outcome, he expects the bond among local prison-farm protesters to last until death do them part. "The friendships you make when you fight for a prolonged period of time are so rewarding," he said. "Some of the people arrested have been married. It's quite a story to tell."