Do you remember the year when the Farm Registration and Farm Organization Funding Act (Bill 42) for Ontario farmers was brought into place? It’s also known as stable funding. The year was 1993. Bob Rae was the Ontario premier. Elmer Buchanan was the minister of agriculture and food. Rita Burak was the deputy minister of agriculture. Stable funding was brought into place by the NDP government of Bob Rae in 1993. You probably didn’t know that.
Prior to 1993, farm organizations had their fieldman or fieldmen and district directors out on the roads signing up members. There had to be to a better way of funding farm organizations. On August 24, 1993 representatives of Ontario’s three farm organizations met with the Standing Committee on Resources Development (MPPs) to discuss stable funding. Bill 42 had passed the second reading and would soon change how farm organizations were to be funded. I have read the lengthy minutes of that meeting. The Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA) and the Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario (CFFO) were the two farm organizations who were accredited to receive funding. Membership in the CFFO more than tripled after 1993. The NFU wasn’t initially in support of stable funding but in 2002 the NFU Region 3 (Ontario) gained accreditation.
Now the three farm organizations are speaking with one voice and have asked for a fee increase of $30 over the next five years. There has not been a fee increase since 2010.
OFA President Keith Currie said the three accredited farm organizations went together to make a request to the Minister, so he hopes the issue of raising the fee will be straightforward. They are speaking with one voice.
Ontario Farmer magazine reports that, according to OMAFRA’s Media and Issues Officer, Charles-Antoine Dubois, there were 43,151 farming operations registered in Ontario as of July 31, 2017, with 37,552 supporting the OFA; 4,108 supporting the CFFO; and 1,491 supporting the NFU-Ontario.
OMAFRA is proposing an amendment to the Farm Registration and Farm Organizations Funding Act (O. Reg. 723/93) to introduce a stepped payment increase. In 2016, Ontario’s farm organizations, OFA, CFFO and NFU-O asked the ministry to increase the annual Farm Business Registration (FBR) payment amount. This proposal represents the first payment increase in over seven years, and the farm organizations have engaged and secured support from their membership for this increase.
These changes would provide the farm organizations with a predictable and stable income, helping them continue to support and represent farmers and advocate on behalf of the industry — all of which helps support the continued growth of Ontario’s agri-food sector.
OMAFRA is currently seeking comments from the farming community on this proposed increase.
All farm businesses in Ontario that gross $7,000 or more annually are required by law to register their farm business with Agricorp. There are a number of benefits to registering your farm business.
