By Brian Crews, Director, Ontario Federation of Agriculture
The strength and success of an organization is driven and defined by its leadership. The Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA), which represents about 88% of Ontario’s farmers through its membership, has always been proud of being farmer-led and farmer-driven.
Our organization is led by an 18-member board of directors – farmers who are democratically elected by their peers at the grass roots level to represent their interests at the provincial board table.
I’m one of those directors, having first joined the OFA board two years ago when I decided to let my name stand for a board position. I’m a dairy farmer just north of Trenton and represent farmers from Hastings, Lennox & Addington, Northumberland and Prince Edward counties on the OFA board.
The OFA has a rolling governance structure for zone director positions and every year in June, five of those positions come up for election. This means we are always looking to attract interested candidates to step forward and consider joining our board for a three-year term – whether from our local and regional federations or from our general membership.
Our bottom-up, grassroots structure means all OFA members can vote, either electronically or by mail, for the director that represents their zone. As well, voting delegates at our annual general meeting in November elect our three at-large director positions.
The nomination period is currently open, and OFA is actively recruiting new leaders and interested candidates from among our more than 38,000 members who are willing to let their name stand for our provincial board.
Being a provincial director is a great way to help shape the future of farming in Ontario. The board plays an important role in pushing for strong farm policies and better support for the agri-food sector through government and media relations, advocacy and public outreach.
The job means speaking up for farmers, working with government and industry leaders on key issues facing the sector, and connecting with local members to talk about what matters most in agriculture.
Directors also help guide OFA’s long-term planning and work with a passionate team of fellow board members and staff to credibly influence meaningful change for agriculture and rural communities.
I first joined the OFA board in 2023, after having spent several years being actively involved with my local federation board in Northumberland County. I really enjoyed working for and with fellow farmers, but I also started learning a lot about our very complex agriculture sector and how many of the factors that influence the growth and success of farm businesses are actually beyond the control of individual farmers.
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