Campaigning to protect seasonal worker program

Aug 17, 2018

Ontario growers worry that seasonal worker program changes could put their operations at risk

By Kaitlynn Anderson
Staff Writer
Farms.com

Ontario producers have started a movement to protect the future of their farms.

A team of horticultural industry groups launched a Fairness for Growers campaign in May to emphasize the importance of the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP) for Ontario’s fruit and vegetable growers.

Many members of the horticultural sector fear that the federal government may implement changes that could harm the integrity of the program, a release said on Tuesday. Some people worry that the feds may scrap the program altogether.

Under new regulations, farmers may struggle to access enough workers to operate their businesses. In turn, Canadians could see fewer local products on their dinner tables.

The changes could put Canadian jobs at risk, too.

Fairness for Growers aims to ensure farmers do not have to deal with these hurdles.

Within the first month of the campaign’s launch, 1,400 Canadians sent letters to their local Members of Parliament through the campaign, the release said.

The federal government created SAWP in 1966 to help farmers fill positions in their operations, as the country faced a “shortage of domestic agricultural workers,” the release said. This year, 1,450 farms in the province will utilize the program.

Farms.com has reached out to Foreign Agricultural Resource Management Services for further comment.

TreeofLife99/iStock/Getty Images Plus photo

Video: Sweetener Effects on Gut Health - Dr. Kwangwook Kim

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Kwangwook Kim, Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, discusses the use of non-nutritive sweeteners in nursery pig diets. He explains how sucralose and neotame influence feed intake, gut health, metabolism, and the frequency of diarrhea compared to antibiotics. The conversation highlights mechanisms beyond palatability, including hormone signaling and nutrient transport. Listen now on all major platforms!

“Receptors responsible for sweet taste are present not only in the mouth but also along the intestinal tract.”

Meet the guest: Dr. Kwangwook Kim / kwangwook-kim is an Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, specializing in swine nutrition and feed additives under disease challenge models. He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in Animal Sciences from the University of California, Davis, where he focused on intestinal health and metabolic responses in pigs. His research evaluates alternatives to antibiotics, targeting gut health and performance in nursery pigs.