Ag in the Ontario NDP’s platform

Election Day in Ontario is June 2

By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com

The Ontario provincial election campaign is in full swing as political parties and candidates try to build enough support come June 2.

Leading up to election day, will provide coverage of party platforms along the way to give farmers and rural Ontarians a sense of what each party is promising should they form the next government.

The coverage will focus on parties represented at Queen’s Park with published platforms.

Andrea Horwath’s NDP, which formed the official opposition in the previous legislative session, is hoping to build on the 40 seats it won in the 2018 election.

Here are the NDP’s ag-related promises found in the party’s platform:

If elected, the NDP would create a Provincial Food Strategy to help bring down the cost of groceries.

The strategy “supports agriculture jobs in food processing, transportation, biofuels and retail, and helps young farm families and first-time farmers with mentorship, financial advice and loan guarantees,” the platform says.

An NDP government would also regulate the price of gas to reduce the cost of shipping food.

The party promises to engage in proper consultation before starting any building projects affecting farmland.

“Before a project takes place on agricultural land, it will be subject to a mandatory Agricultural Impact Assessment,” the NDP document says. “The terms and conditions of the process will be developed in partnership with the agricultural community, who know the true value of the land.”

Other ag promises include lifting the cap on risk management, supporting supply management and supporting the Grocery Code of Conduct.

Information on the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario’s plans for ag if re-elected can be found here.

Be sure to check Farms.com often for coverage of the Liberal and Green Party platforms.