2 MPPs want to create foodbelt to protect farmland, tariff-proof Ontario's agricultural industry
CBC
Two MPPs say Ontario needs to create a foodbelt to protect farmland and help the province's agricultural industry survive any U.S. tariffs.
Guelph MPP and Green Party of Ontario Leader Mike Schreiner and MPP Bobbi Ann Brady, the independent MPP for Haldimand-Norfolk, have co-written a private member's bill that they presented at Queen's Park on Tuesday.
"Now, more than ever, is the time to protect our farmland, support farmers and grow more food right here in Ontario. Because food security is national security, and without farmland there are no farms, no food, no future," Schreiner said in a press conference.
Brady said the issue is "near and dear to my heart" and to the people she represents.
"Haldimand and Norfolk counties are home to numerous farm families who not only contribute significantly to the local economies, but the Canadian economy. This holds true for every agricultural region in this province," Brady said.
If passed, the bill would create a task force of farmers, agricultural experts and land-use planners to develop recommendations to create a foodbelt protection plan. The report would address issues like improving soil health and protecting farmland.
Schreiner said the province loses farmland to developments, mining and highway projects. He said legislation like Bill 5, the proposed Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, could encroach further onto farmers' fields.
Bill 5 would allow the province to create special economic zones and would allow the province to make changes to several laws including the Endangered Species Act, Electricity Act, Environmental Assessment Act, Environmental Protection Act, Mining Act, Ontario Heritage Act, and Species Conservation Act.
Critics have argued Bill 5 would give the government power to push through certain projects like a tunnel under Highway 401 or mineral mining in northern Ontario, with little resistance. Premier Doug Ford has said the new laws would help Ontario economically, in particular mentioning mining minerals.
"We can be the wealthiest, richest, most prosperous sub-sovereign nation anywhere in the world if we get those critical minerals out of the ground," Ford said on May 6.
CBC K-W reached out to Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness Minister Trevor Jones' office for comment on Schreiner and Brady's bill but did not receive a response.
Mark Reusser, vice-president of Waterloo Federation of Agriculture and a director with the Ontario Federation of Agriculture, said the proposed bill is something farmers across the province have been calling for over the years.
Specifically in southern Ontario, he noted it's a "very special place" with a climate that allows a large variety of items to be raised and grown.
"We can grow a longer list of fruits, vegetables, grains and livestock than anywhere else in North America, with the exception of California," he said. "Soils are a strategic resource that can't be made when you destroy it."
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