Ontario Bean Producers’ Marketing Board
Ontario Canola Growers’ Association
Ontario Coloured Bean Growers’ Association
Ontario Corn Producers’ Association
Ontario Soybean Growers
Seed Corn Growers of Ontario
Ontario Wheat Producers’ Marketing Board

The McGuinty government delivers for Ontario’s 25,000 grain and oilseed farm families

GUELPH (August 22, 2007) – Ontario grain and oilseed producers applauded the McGuinty government yesterday for following through on its commitment of a pilot Risk Management Program (RMP). Announced back in June, the program will be operational this fall, with the government accepting applications this September.

“This is tremendous step forward. The McGuinty government has listened to farmers, and is now delivering a program that will help us find some stability in the next few years,” said Leo Guilbeault, chair of Ontario Grain and Oilseeds Safety Net Committee. “For years our producers asked for a flexible, regional-based support program. Today the Ontario government came through for farm families.”

Mr. Guilbeault was on hand for yesterday’s announcement made by Ontario’s Premier Dalton McGuinty, and the Minister of Agricultre, Leona Dombrowsy. The announcement was made at the farm of Lloyd Crowe, grain & oilseed farmer from the Picton area.

RMP is an insurance-style program with costs shared by farmers (through premiums) and the provincial and federal governments. It will kick in when a commodity’s average price falls below an agreed-upon floor price per bushel, delivering an income-support payment to participating farmers. In years where prices are sustainable, there will not even be a need for payouts.

The RMP is intended to give farm families the planning tools to carry on with their livelihood in the face of a depressed international market.

“The government could have done what it has in the past by making a huge announcement of ad-hoc aid dollars. We have been telling them for a long-time now that ad-hoc announcements may make good television, but they are rarely effective. We advocated for RMP because it can help ensure long-term stability for our producers. We thank Premier McGuinty, Minister Dombrowsky and the government’s rural caucus for listening to us. Now we need the federal government to do the same,” Guilbeault said.

RMP is designed so that producers will supply one-third of the total funding, while the federal and provincial governments will invest the remaining two-thirds based on the 60-40 funding formula.

“Our hope is that the federal government will come to see that a flexible, regional-based model works best for farm families. To date the Harper government in Ottawa has resisted producers, opting instead to put a new sheen on failed support programs like CAIS. This announcement should help convince the federal government that regional-based flexible programs can work.”

FARMERS FEED CITIES:

The Farmers Feed Cities! campaign is an initiative of Ontario Grains & Oilseeds -- a coalition that collectively represents more than 25,000 farm families who grow corn, soybeans, wheat, seed corn, canola, white and coloured beans.

Member organizations are actively involved in research & development, communications, and the marketing of our products. Often our crops become foods you find in your grocery store, like canned or dried beans, soyfoods, wheat flours, and canola oil. A portion of the corn and soybeans produced in Ontario are processed into food additives like sweeteners, or crushed to feed farm animals like cows, pigs, and chickens.

Farmers Feed Cities!