Federal Election: Maintaining Free Trade Between U.S. and Canada, Business Risk Management and Taxation Are Top Concerns for Grain Farmers

Grain Farmers of Ontario unveils new federal policy priorities in advance of 2025 federal election

Guelph, ON – March 24, 2025 – Grain Farmers of Ontario, the province’s largest commodity organization, representing Ontario’s 28,000 barley, corn, oat, soybean and wheat farmers, today announces updated federal policy priorities for upcoming election with tariffs, taxation, and export market development topping the list.

Grain farming in Ontario is the foundation for more than 91,000 jobs in the province and provides revenue to the government of more than $2 billion. Additionally, Ontario grain farmers creates more than $27 billion in economic output for the country.

“Agriculture is consistently one of Canada’s top two industries and it’s time for government to acknowledge that by supporting the future of farming with forward-looking policy that keeps Canada a top 10 food exporter for the world. Farmers are innovative, passionate, and resilient and we want a government that not only acknowledges that, we want one that goes to work for farmers and works with us to ensure our food system is secure for all generations to come,” says Jeff Harrison, Chair, Grain Farmers of Ontario.

Grain Farmers of Ontario is asking 2025 federal candidates to commit to:

1. Maintaining the free trade between the U.S. and Canada that grains and oilseed farmers rely upon by:
   • Ensuring that critical products imported into Canada for planting grains and oilseeds crops remain tariff free
   • Ensuring that the exports of Ontario grain and oilseed commodities and products remain free of tariffs and non-tariff trade barriers
   • Providing Ontario farmers ad hoc funding equivalent to the funding the U.S. Administration provides U.S. farmers
   • Returning any tariff money collected from Ontario grain farmers directly back to Ontario grain farmers
   • Directing stimulus funding to protect domestic processing and creating new markets
2. Protecting and growing opportunities in China, the Asia Pacific Central and South America and the EU and UK as trade relationships change
3. Creating tax fairness for grain and oilseed farmers by:
   • Exempting grain farming from the carbon tax
   • Exempting grain farmers from the increased Capital Gains Inclusion Rate
   • Maintaining the pause on Bare & Blind Trust
   • Reinstating the Capital Cost Allowance and Accelerated Investment Incentive Program
4. Protecting grain farmers from escalating input prices and market volatility by providing 60 per cent funding for the RMP program for price stability during volatile times and stability during tariffs and make programming equivalent to the U.S. business risk management suite
5. Returning Ontario grain farmers to an even playing field with U.S. farmers by removing the fertilizer tariffs and sanctions on Russian fertilizer imports
6. Increasing investment to build markets for all renewable fuels particularly corn-based ethanol as both a market for Ontario grain and as a low-carbon fuel source
7. Establishing an equitable distribution of research funding to support innovation in the Eastern grain sector and restore funding in plant breeding
8. Raising Advance Payments Program funding from $250,000 to $350,000 permanently
9. Returning agriculture and agrifood funding to BRM programs where it is most important, including removing and halting efforts to introduce environmental cross compliance
10. Investing in Ontario’s food and beverage processing and export capacity to support new grain utilization opportunities

For more information, please visit: https://gfo.ca/government-relations/federal-priorities/.

Contact:

Victoria Berry, Director, Communications – 226 820-6641; vberry@gfo.ca