Food Day Canada encourages consumers across the country to shop local and celebrate the abundance of fresh and delicious Canadian food and beverages we enjoy every day. Let’s connect the food we eat with those who grow and prepare it.

Ontario farmers put a high priority on protecting data and proprietary information related to their farm businesses. The threat of disclosing that type of information poses a significant risk to the health, safety and security of farms, families and operations across the province.

There’s never been a better time to support our local communities by consciously choosing to purchase locally grown, manufactured and produced goods. Thanks to the new Ontario Made logo that was unveiled this week by the provincial government, it is now easier than ever before to identify products made within Ontario’s borders.

In recent months, farmers and county federations of agriculture have banded together to show their generosity, spread positivity and offer support to their local communities across the province. Despite the extensive pressures and challenges faced by Ontario’s agriculture and food industry throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, it did not deter the agriculture community from continuing to find ways to help those in need and support our rural communities.

Rebound, recover, rebuild. Communities across Ontario have developed regional economic recovery task forces and resiliency committees to identify ways to strengthen their economies and rebound from temporary closures and reduced economic activity.

Employers in the agriculture, food and beverage sector are looking for passionate, qualified candidates to fill diverse roles across the industry. While the COVID-19 pandemic negatively impacted a wide range of sectors with lost jobs and layoffs, the Ontario agri-food sector continued to employ over 837,000 people as an essential service to produce food for the province and beyond.

Essential foreign workers are valued members of Ontario’s farming community. Do you know them? These men and women are integrated into the fabric of our family farms, and in many cases, become an extension of our farm family.

Ontario farm families depend on the safety and security of their farms to raise livestock and grow and produce food to maintain a strong, reliable food supply for all Ontarians. Farms are not only our places of business, they’re our homes where we welcome family and friends and play with our children. The risk of unwanted visitors, trespassers and activists can have devastating impacts on the health and safety of our farms, families and their livestock.

Leadership development and director recruitment are critical to succession planning for the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA). As a grassroots, farmer-led organization, we aim to develop leaders within our local county and regional federations to recruit and encourage them to pursue a role at the provincial level.

Every year in early June, Ontario sets aside one full week, designated as Local Food Week, to celebrate and recognize the abundance of fresh, affordable local food we are privileged to have access to across the province. This year, the Local Food Week celebration runs June 1-7, 2020.