How a trade war could boost small-scale farming in southwestern Ontario

A southwestern Ontario farmer hopes the ongoing U.S.-Canada trade war encourages the country to look inward to keep itself fed, while making itself more resilient in the face of future crises.

It's a hope shared by some farmers with smaller operations, as they search for upsides in a situation that could have dire consequences for the Canadian economy — and agribusiness on a larger scale.

"I think it's really important that we know how to supply ourselves," said Chris DeVries, the owner of Common Ground Farm in St. Thomas, who believes "we could 100 per cent produce all the food we need."

The former engineer grows a wide range of vegetables year-round in a combination of fields, greenhouses and hoop houses, taking his harvest to farmers' markets in London and Kitchener. Common Ground also runs a delivery service in London and St. Thomas.

A number of industries across Canada have already started cutting back as tariff threats from U.S. President Donald Trump — and a resulting lack of certainty — loom.

Although the agricultural sector, which exported roughly $40 billion in products to the U.S. in 2023, isn't immune to those effects, it continues to push forward to keep people fed. U.S. tariffs are expected to give a devastating blow to southwestern Ontario's greenhouse growing industry along with farming.