Ontario’s Local Food Week, celebrated from June 2 to 8, 2025, highlights the people and businesses that grow, make, and sell food across the province. This celebration showcases the importance of choosing local food to help protect Ontario’s economy and job market. At Small Farm Canada we love to celebrate local.
“Across the province, we have more than 48,000 farms and 5,200 food processors and food manufacturers working 365 days a year growing, harvesting and making delicious food right here at home,” said Trevor Jones, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness. “By choosing to purchase what is grown and made in Ontario, consumers are supporting our farmers and communities, strengthening the economy and protecting our local food supply chain.”
“Local means knowing where your food comes from. With Maple Syrup, it means seeing the maple trees where the sap is harvested and being assured the forest is managed sustainably,” says Lori Costello, maple syrup producer and owner of Bella Hill Maple Syrup in Nipissing, Ontario, in the local food report.
“The Foodland Ontario brand is widely recognized by customers. Marketing material like signage, recipe cards and social media posts reassure customers that our maple syrup products are local and of high quality.”
The newly launched buy local map helps consumers find more locally grown and made food in every community.
What began as a single acre of experimental cantaloupe in 1984 has blossomed into a 500-acre diversified farm operation. Over the past four decades, Rob Chesney and his family have transformed Thames River Melons into a thriving agribusiness rooted in innovation and sustainability.
Today, the farm produces a wide variety of fruits and vegetables throughout the growing season — from early rhubarb and asparagus in the spring, to summer strawberries and melons, and fall favourites like squash and pumpkins.
For the Chesneys, diversification is more than a business strategy — it’s a way to meet evolving market demands while maintaining environmentally responsible farming practices.
“To us, local is about not just the food, but also the people. Local means food that’s grown with care, in our backyards, by hardworking, caring and dedicated community members. Local means connecting with others across a farmers’ market table, in a pumpkin patch or next to a pile of Ontario-grown strawberries in a grocery store aisle. Local means bringing your favourite dish to your neighour’s backyard BBQ, featuring the freshest peak-season ingredients,” Alex Chesney, Thames River Melons.
Entrepreneurial agility has played a key role in the farm’s continued success. By embracing agritourism, Thames River Melons has also created new ways for consumers to engage directly with their food sources.
Visitors can enjoy pick-your-own produce patches, scenic walking trails, farm-to-table events, and a dedicated children’s play area. The Chesneys have also expanded into on-site food services with the Farm Kitchen, offering homemade baked goods and ready-to-eat meals, and most recently, the Farm Food Truck. Serving up fresh-cut fries, old-fashioned milkshakes, and smash burgers made with the farm’s own Black Angus beef, the food truck delivers a true farm-to-table dining experience.
Continues Chesney, “Foodland Ontario is a leader in promoting and marketing locally grown and produced food and we look forward to seeing and using their signage each season and hearing their radio ads promoting the latest fruit or vegetable that’s making its way onto shelves near you. Good Things Grow in Ontario is the catchiest slogan and a reminder we need now more than ever.
The province encourages everyone to look for the Foodland Ontario logo or shop directly from local farms and markets. Supporting local doesn’t just taste good—it also helps keep Ontario’s food system strong and jobs secure. buy