Statement by the Premier on Ontario Agriculture Week

Today, the Honourable Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario, issued the following statement on Ontario Agriculture Week:

“During Ontario Agriculture Week we recognize and thank the hardworking farmers who produce a bounty of nutritious meat, eggs, dairy products, fruits and vegetables, and hundreds of other commodities. Ontario’s farmers are key to the success of the agriculture and agri-food sector, they contribute $39.5 billion to the provincial GDP, and the sector supports more than 822,000 jobs ─ or nearly one in eight jobs across the province.

I’ve heard from farmers and farm workers across the province who tell me how proud they are of what they do. This week marks an important opportunity for all of us to celebrate our pride in Ontario’s agriculture sector.

I encourage the people of Ontario to show your support this week, and all year long, by choosing locally sourced food or buying Ontario-grown products, by joining a celebration or visiting an agricultural centre in your community.

Ontario’s Government for the People wants to make life easier and more affordable for our farmers. Under the previous government this sector was routinely neglected, but we will reduce the unnecessary regulatory burdens and red tape unfairly forced on the sector.

We will continue to put more money in the pockets of farmers, families and small businesses, and grow more jobs throughout rural Ontario. We will also continue to stand up for the farm jobs and farm families that are at risk of being left behind in the new USMCA trade agreement. If farmers are being left abandoned because of concessions from the federal government, then it is up to the federal government to take immediate action to support the families and livelihoods that are now at risk.

Our government has already taken steps to reduce hydro costs, to scrap the cap and trade carbon tax, and to repeal the Green Energy Act. We also put forward legislation that will expand access to natural gas in rural communities. We will continue to work to improve rural infrastructure.

Our plan is to provide real relief for farmers, and to tell the world that Ontario is Open for Business.”