GUELPH, ONTARIO, CANADA — Grain Farmers of Ontario, a commodity organization, Ontario’s grain farmers, launched a campaign to raise awareness of the issues facing grain and oilseed farmers in Ontario from global trade disruptions.
“The negative impact on agriculture may be unintended, but it is real and it is growing,” said Barry Senft, chief executive officer (CEO), Grain Farmers of Ontario. “Grain farming alone helps create almost 75,000 jobs in Ontario and contributes $18 billion to the economy. The costs to farmers of trade disputes could jeopardize these much-needed economical benefits.”
The organization said Ontario’s agriculture commodities have been hit directly by trade restrictions and all grain and oilseed farmers, including soybean farmers, have had to endure the economic ripple effects of trade wars between other nations.
“We want the candidates in the federal election to be aware of the issues grain and oilseed farmers in Ontario are facing from the impact of escalating global trade volatility,” Senft said. “We believe this advertisement is the best way to reach out and tell a complicated story to the voters in Canada’s federal election.”
The organization asks the federal candidates to commit to:
- supporting farmers in non-supply managed sectors by establishing a trade war fund for Ontario farmers;
- diversifying and defending domestic and international markets for grain and oilseed farmers
- stabilizing trade relations with China and mitigating trade war impacts
Grain Farmers Of Ontario represents the provinces 28,000 barley, corn, oat, soybean and wheat farmers. The crops they grow cover 6 million acres of farmland across Ontario, which results in over C$18 billion in economic output and are responsible for over 75,000 jobs in the province.
