The Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA) welcomes this opportunity to provide comment on the review of the Farm Business Registration Program. Our comments are organized under three headings, Accreditation Process, Eligibility Criteria and the Farm Registration Process.

1. Accreditation Process

OFA believes that an arm’s-length, independent body should ensure that only general farm organizations that meet or can meet the prescribed criteria for accreditation are granted accreditation. Currently that independent body is the Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Appeal Tribunal (the Tribunal). The OFA assumes the Tribunal will remain this independent body named in the Farm Registration and Farm Organizations Funding Act (the Act). However, our suggestions below would be applicable to an alternative independent body in the event the Act is amended to replace the Tribunal with an alternate.