The Ontario Federation of Agriculture welcomes the provincial government’s action to strengthen large animal veterinary access across Northern Ontario and strongly supports the modernization of the Veterinary Assistance Program. This week’s announcement reflects a truly collaborative effort between farmers, government and regional advocates in the North — especially OFA’s Northern Caucus and the Northern Producer Animal Health Network (NPAHN), who have been true champions in advocating for this change. For livestock farmers and rural communities, this is a significant and long-awaited step forward.

“OFA is pleased to see the province take meaningful action to improve large animal veterinary access in Northern Ontario. The modernization of the Veterinary Assistance Program reflects strong collaboration between farmers, government and northern partners, and it represents real, tangible progress. For livestock producers and rural communities across the North, this is an important and long-overdue advancement that will help strengthen the future of agriculture in the region, and we’re pleased to see it become a reality with this announcement,” says Bill Groenheide, OFA’s Zone 15 Director representing northern Ontario members.

For many years, OFA has been advocating for improved veterinary capacity in Northern Ontario, where long distances, limited service availability and rising costs have placed added pressure on livestock producers. Through ongoing engagement with government and close collaboration with northern farm organizations, we have consistently highlighted the urgent need for practical solutions that support both veterinarians and farmers. The program updates — including expanded eligibility, improved compensation, streamlined applications and recognition of registered veterinary technicians — respond directly to the realities on the ground. While continued work is needed to build long-term capacity, today’s announcement marks meaningful progress toward a more resilient and competitive livestock sector in Northern Ontario.

The updates to the Veterinary Assistance Program will take effect April 1, and include:

• Expanding eligibility so all veterinary practices providing services in eligible areas can apply
• Streamlining the application process by allowing veterinary practices to submit applications directly to the Ministry of Northern Economic Development and Growth
• Recognizing registered veterinary technicians as eligible participants
• Adding honeybees and fish as eligible livestock
• Increasing the call compensation rate for isolated veterinarians by nine per cent and increasing the per kilometre compensation rate for non-isolated veterinarians by an additional 30 cents, while also making telemedicine an eligible expense
• Updating budget allocations to ensure available funding is fully utilized

More information is available at https://news.ontario.ca/en/release/1007090/ontario-protecting-northern-and-rural-livestock-producers