Agriculture and food in Ontario is a major economic driver contributing $47 billion annually to the provincial economy and employing nearly one million Ontarians.
The Home Grown Campaign is a public awareness initiative advocating for the importance of Ontario farms as a source of food, fuel and fibre.
This campaign displays the threat to rural lands while supporting smart urban planning policies that encourage development within existing urban areas.
According to the 2021 Census of Agriculture, Ontario is losing an average of 319 acres of productive farmland every day. This is equivalent to losing nine family farms every week.
Since 1995, Ontario has lost 1.5 million acres of productive farmland. This is roughly the size of Toronto, Peel Region, Halton Region, Waterloo Region, Hamilton and Niagara Region combined.
In terms of the feed we eat, 319 acres can produce more than 23.5 million apples, 1.2 million bottles of Ontario VQA wine or 37.1 million strawberries.
The Ontario Federation of Agriculture is the largest general farm organization in Ontario, based in Guelph.
It represents 38,000 farm families across the province and works to represent and champion the interests of Ontario farmers through government relations, farm policy recommendations, community representation and more.
The loss of thousands of acres of agricultural land can potentially jeopardize the domestic supply chain and local food production, impacting consumers today and for future generations.
The Ontario Federation of Agriculture thanks more than 50,000 people who have signed on to support the Home Grown campaign. Learn more and add your signature at https://homegrownofa.ca/