Ethan Wallace, Vice President, Ontario Federation of Agriculture
There has been a noticeable shift in recent months in how governments are talking about agriculture.
As we navigate trade uncertainty, tariffs, and a changing global economy, conversations about food security, domestic manufacturing, supply chain resilience, and economic growth have taken on new urgency.
More and more, agriculture is being recognized as an essential part of both Ontario’s and Canada’s future.
That’s encouraging to see. Those of us in the agriculture sector have long made the case that agriculture is far more than simply what happens on the farm. Ontario’s agriculture and agri-food sector is one of the province’s largest economic drivers, supporting businesses, creating jobs, and producing the food, fuel, fibre, and flowers people depend on every day.
I farm near Seaforth by Lake Huron and serve as the vice-president of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA), where I represent farmers in Huron and Perth counties. Even after a lifetime in agriculture, I can’t claim to know every commodity, every business, or every challenge across this province firsthand. Neither can the other directors around our board table.
That’s why OFA’s annual summer board tour is so valuable.
Each year, directors spend time in a different agricultural region, meeting the farmers, processors, manufacturers, and rural businesses that make Ontario agriculture so diverse.
It gives us a broader perspective when we return to the board table and helps ensure our discussions are informed not only by reports and presentations, but by conversations with the people living those realities every day.
This year’s tour took us to Perth County, where agriculture is the biggest pillar of the local economy and supports an impressive network of businesses and jobs that extends well beyond the farm.
Our first stop was Millbank Hardware, a locally owned rural business that has grown into a destination for customers across southwestern Ontario while continuing to serve the needs of farm families and rural communities.
At Mapleview Agri, we saw how a homegrown company has built a reputation for producing milk replacers for calves, sheep, and goats that are sold well beyond Ontario.
Nuhn Industries demonstrated how Ontario manufacturing and engineering expertise have created equipment used by livestock farmers here and around the world to manage manure efficiently and responsibly.
We also visited Kampkreek Dairies, where we saw the investment, innovation, and commitment that define today’s family farms, and Gray Ridge Eggs, where millions of Ontario eggs are graded, packaged, and distributed to consumers every year.
All our stops were very different businesses, and that’s precisely the point.
Together, they demonstrate the remarkable network of farms, manufacturers, processors, suppliers, and entrepreneurs that makes agriculture such an important economic engine. It’s a story that’s repeated in every corner of Ontario, even though the businesses themselves may look different.
Today, Ontario’s agri-food sector contributes more than $51 billion annually to the provincial economy and supports approximately 867,000 jobs – about one in every 10 jobs in the province. Those jobs span farming, food processing, manufacturing, transportation, retail, hospitality, research, and countless other sectors connected to getting Ontario food, fuel, fibre, and flowers from the farm to consumers here at home and around the world.
Strong farms support manufacturers, processors, transportation companies, veterinarians, mechanics, feed suppliers, and many other businesses. In turn, those businesses create jobs, invest in their communities, and give Ontario farmers the products, services, and expertise they need to compete.
That interconnected strength matters at a time when governments are looking for ways to build a stronger, more resilient economy.
Food security, domestic manufacturing, supply chain resilience, innovation, and economic growth are all priorities for Ontario and Canada – and agriculture contributes to every one of them.
Our annual board tour helps OFA directors better understand those contributions in different parts of the province. What we learn firsthand helps shape the policy positions we develop, the conversations we have with government, and the decisions we make on behalf of members across Ontario.
But the biggest lesson from Perth County reaches well beyond our own board table.
When we talk about supporting agriculture, we’re not only talking about farms. We’re talking about manufacturing, food processing, exports, innovation, small businesses, good-paying jobs, and the economic vitality of communities across this province.
That’s why agriculture belongs at the centre of every conversation about Ontario’s economic future.
