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Grain Farmers of Ontario is the province’s largest commodity organization,
representing Ontario’s 28,000 barley, corn, oat, soybean and wheat farmers.
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Ontario Grain Farmer Magazine

Grain Farmers of Ontario submits comments to Ontario government

GUELPH, ON (January 26, 2015) – Yesterday, Grain Farmers of Ontario submitted its response to the Ontario government’s discussion paper on the proposed regulations around neonicotinoid pesticides and pollinator health. The response can be viewed at gfo.ca/ProtectingPollinators.

“Grain Farmers of Ontario opposes the proposed regulation and has outlined in this response the numerous areas of concern we have heard from our farmer members,” says Henry Van Ankum, Chair of Grain Farmers of Ontario. “We are actively working with a stakeholder group to develop an alternate plan to the proposed regulation that is workable and sustainable for both grain farmers and beekeepers – this plan will be presented to government in February.”

As indicated in the response, Grain Farmers of Ontario is asking the government to conduct a thorough cost benefit analysis before proceeding with the approach outlined in the discussion paper, to return to the Pollinator Task Force and collaborate on real solutions to protect pollinators, and to abandon the goal to reduce neonicotinoids by 80% in Ontario.  

Grain Farmers of Ontario

Grain Farmers of Ontario is the province’s largest commodity organization, representing Ontario’s 28,000 corn, soybean and wheat farmers. The crops they grow cover 6 million acres of farm land across the province, generate over $2.5 billion in farm gate receipts, result in over $9 billion in economic output and are responsible for over 40,000 jobs in the province.

Contact:

Meghan Burke, Communications – 519 767-2773; mburke@gfo.ca

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Grain Farmers of Ontario
Grain Farmers of Ontario is the province’s largest commodity organization, representing Ontario’s 28,000 barley, corn, oat, soybean, and wheat farmers. The crops they grow cover over 6 million acres of farm land across the province, generate over $4.1 billion in production value, result in over $27 billion in economic output and are responsible for over 90,000 jobs in the province.