From the CEO’s desk – April/May 2025

Spring has sprung, and that means we are all anxious to get out in the fields and get to work. After a cold and snowy winter—more snow than we’ve seen in a long time, in many parts of Ontario—it’s time to put the snow blower away and get out the seeding equipment.

The spring planting season always brings optimism and hope for a great year ahead. This year, understandably, many people are feeling a bit anxious and unsure about what’s to come. The ongoing trade wars with the U.S. and China have upended global supply chains and hit the agricultural sector particularly hard, potentially impacting the price and availability of inputs and causing uncertainty in the markets. The situation changes daily, sometimes multiple times a day, and it’s hard to keep up with the pace of the news cycle. Farmers are used to uncertainty— the weather, commodity prices, and pests and diseases are all unpredictable—but the current geopolitical environment is ratcheting up all that unpredictability.

Throughout the late winter months, I was on the road, talking to farmers and industry leaders on both sides of the border. In early March, I travelled to Denver to the annual Commodity Classic with members of our Board of Directors. There, we met with industry partners, including the National Corn Growers Association and the American Soybean Association, the National Association of Wheat Growers as well as representatives from the Canadian Consulate. What I can tell you is that everyone we met with is eager to see the tariff and trade issues solved—the underlying sentiment is that fair and predictable trade rules benefit farmers, industry, and consumers, and this is the message we are relaying to our respective governments.

Here at home, we’re in an election year provincially and nationally. The February provincial election resulted in a Progressive Conservative win. Grain Farmers of Ontario has a number of priorities for the returning provincial government, including ongoing support for business risk management programming, reducing red tape and tax burdens on farmers, and investing in research and innovation. We will continue to advocate for you, the farmer-member, at Queen’s Park on the issues that matter.

Nationally, as I write this, Mark Carney has just been elected leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, succeeding Justin Trudeau. By the time you read this in April, we may or may not know the date of the upcoming election, but we know one is coming. In addition to trade issues and carbon tax relief, the Board has been discussing the election priorities federally, and we will be sharing information to help you make the voice of Ontario’s grain and oilseed farmers heard during the upcoming election.

Despite all the uncertainty, we have lots to celebrate. This year marks 15 years since Grain Farmers of Ontario was first established, and it has been amazing to look back at all we’ve accomplished. In February, the provincial government announced an additional $100 million per year investment in the Risk Management Program, something that has been a priority for the organization for some time. We also launched the Grain Farmers of Ontario-Corteva Farmer Leadership Program in March, which brought together delegates from across the province for four days of intensive leadership training. These are just a couple of the tallies in the ‘win’ column for Grain Farmers of Ontario this year to celebrate. •