OFA Commentary #4205
Ontario agriculture’s leaders will soon be meeting face-to-face with the McGuinty Government’s Rural Caucus. These are the politicians who represent most Ontario farmers, and many rural residents who work at jobs that depend on the farming industry.
If the agriculture industry is to remain a cornerstone of economic activity, key investments must be made. Farmers are concerned with their deepening economic decline, and are demanding that their organizations and political officials address short and long-term concerns.
That’s why the Ontario Federation of Agriculture, its commodity partners and other general farm organizations will have their leaders at Queen’s Park for the meeting with the Rural Caucus. The recent Speech from the Throne – the McGuinty Government’s road map to the future – offered hope in a number of areas for Ontario agriculture, and we want to make certain the seeds planted by that speech take root.
The speech listed three priorities for agriculture – innovation to support research and development, marketing Ontario food products, and improved levels of farm income based on new risk management and production insurance programs.
OFA and its commodity partners will be directing the Rural Caucus members’ attention to the Farmers Feed Cities campaign – an ongoing initiative aimed at making our government more aware of the importance of agriculture to the province’s economy.
The primary objective of this strategy is to get the government’s commitment to a permanent risk management program for 2006 and beyond as a means of stabilizing the economy of rural Ontario.
This commitment for the long term needs to be reinforced with a down payment to address the immediate needs of the 2005 crop year. In addition, we must rebuild the OMAFRA budget so that other long-term strategic investments can be made.
The Ontario agri-food industry creates in excess of 600,000 jobs. It is a key component of our province’s trade surplus and is a cornerstone of rural economic activity.
Rural Caucus members must become advocates to protect this industry. We want to help them understand the need to get a commitment from the McGuinty Government. The commitment we seek will be to work with farm organizations to settle on a plan to ensure Ontario farmers have the tools they need to meet their potential as economic partners in the province.
Without such a commitment, our farmers will continue to be sidelined by payments other governments make to their farmers, and Ontario agriculture will languish.
The Farmers Feed Cities campaign is a call for farmers to get involved in securing a future for themselves and their families. It is also a challenge for our government representatives – in this case the Rural Caucus – to step forward and give true representation to the people who have elected them to government.
We want the Rural Caucus members to understand that if agriculture is allowed to be successful in rural Ontario, other sectors of rural Ontario will prosper.
~Ron Bonnett~
President, Ontario Federation of Agriculture