ONTARIO FEDERATION OF AGRICULTURE
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In response to the ongoing drought and strenuous growing conditions in parts of Ontario and western Canada, the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA) is donating $100,000 to emergency initiatives to support our farming community.
OFA’s Board of Directors is providing financial assistance to members and neighbouring farmers across the country by way of a $50,000 donation to the Northwestern Livestock Emergency Assistance Initiative, managed by Beef Farmers of Ontario (BFO), and $50,000 to the Hay West initiative delivered by the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA).
“We understand the severity of the situation for many farmers this year, and we’re proud to support initiatives that will offer relief to those in difficult situations,” said Peggy Brekveld, OFA President. “We sincerely appreciate the dedicated efforts of BFO and CFA, along with industry stakeholders, collaborating to support those in crisis by delivering much-needed resources to our farms and livestock. We truly are a tight-knit community and willing to lend a hand when needed.”
“We are truly grateful for this offer of support at a critical time as we ready the first loads of hay to send West. This just reinforces the strong sense of community and camaraderie we’ve seen among farmers across the country, with farmers across Eastern Canada coming to the aid of their Western counterparts in need. I just can’t thank OFA enough for making such a significant contribution and am overwhelmed with the level of support we’re seeing,” said Mary Robinson, CFA President.
“On behalf of beef farmers in Rainy River and Kenora who are in desperate need of feed to care for their livestock, we are so thankful for this generous offer from OFA to provide a helping hand to those in need,” shared Rob Lipsett, BFO President. “With this added financial support, we will be able to provide more resources to farmers through the Northwestern Livestock Emergency Assistance Initiative who are longing for relief from extreme heat and drought.”
The funds donated to these initiatives will go towards helping to transport and deliver shipments of hay to farmers in northwestern Ontario and the prairie provinces.
The Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA) is the largest general farm organization in Ontario, representing 38,000 farm families across the province. As a dynamic farmer-led organization based in Guelph, the OFA works to represent and champion the interests of Ontario farmers through government relations, farm policy recommendations, research, lobby efforts, community representation, media relations and more. OFA is the leading advocate for Ontario’s farmers and is Ontario’s voice of the farmer. For more information, click here.
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