That’s why food and farming matter – and why, as farmers, we work hard to get that message across to politicians of all parties, both federally and provincially.
I farm with my family near Binbrook in the City of Hamilton growing crops, raising horses and producing high quality milk and beef, and I’m also the president of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA).
It’s already been a busy year with the ongoing turmoil of tariffs and cross-border issues with the United States, but that’s exactly why it’s important to be engaged in this campaign.
This is a pivotal time for Canada and for agriculture, and that’s why the OFA is urging federal election candidates to take clear and decisive stances on critical issues affecting farm businesses, economic competitiveness and food security.
Here are the OFA’s priorities for the April 28 federal election:
Addressing trade issues: Tariffs and other trade barriers threaten Canada’s food system. The agriculture sector needs immediate support to weather this uncertainty, as well as long-term investments that will ensure we can continue to produce food, fuel, fibre and flowers right here at home.
Support for farm business competitiveness: Programs that help farmers manage business risks beyond their control, like tariffs, trade, inflation or weather, are critical. Farmers are asking for a permanent increase to the interest-free portion of the Advanced Payments Program to $350,000 per year and improvements to the AgriStability program that will make it easier for farmers to access support.
Permanently scrapping the carbon tax: There are currently no practical, cost-effective alternatives to the fuels used in agricultural production for essential activities like grain drying and barn heating. Although Canada’s carbon tax rate has been set to zero, farmers are asking the carbon tax to be permanently removed from fuels used in agricultural production.
Preventing railways from downloading costs onto farmers and landowners: Federally regulated rail companies are downloading infrastructure maintenance and safety upgrade costs that have always been their responsibility onto farmers and landowners in two major areas: drainage and private rail crossings. The federal government must prevent railways from downloading these cost-prohibitive expenses onto farmers and landowners.
Ensuring consistent access to labour: Lack of labour across the entire agriculture and food supply chain — including planting, production, quality control, processing, distribution and research — is a critical issue. Farmers need access to reliable, well-functioning labour programs that provide benefit to both employers and workers, and a long-term strategy is needed to address workforce shortages.
To help engage candidates locally and regionally on agricultural issues, we encourage our members to host an online call or forum, invite them on farm tours or organize all-candidate meetings focused specifically on farming and food-related topics.
For reach beyond rural areas, it’s important to demonstrate agriculture’s relevance to urban issues. Many of those 871,000 jobs our sector supports are actually in urban areas far from our farms, for example. Topics like food security, economic resilience, affordability and climate change matter to Ontarians regardless of where they live.
As the leading advocate and strongest voice for Ontario’s farmers, we’re proud of our sector and the work that farmers do producing food, fuel, fibre and flowers all across Ontario – and we will continue to work with all levels of government to help ensure Farms and Food Forever.
Source : OFA