The Ontario Federation of Agriculture believes the naming of Huron Bruce MPP Carol Mitchell as Ontario Agriculture Minister is a good move.
President Bette Jean Crews says Mitchell already has an agriculture background in her riding and having served as Parliamentary Assistant for former Ag minister Steve Peters.
Crews says Mitchell should have a grasp of the industry and it’s goals for the future.
Crews says the new minister will have some tough issues right off the bat in Business Risk Management Programs and AgriStability.
Crews says Mitchell has an opportunity here to change the mind-set of consumers who feel they’re already paying too much for food, produced locally or imported.
She says we’ve never had a famine here and we are assuming that the grocery shelves will always be full.
Some people believe if we don’t grow it here we can always import it.
She says she does not want to depend on another country that may suffer some global emergency and as a result cuts down food to Canadians.
She believes Mitchell can bring all sides to the table to recognize the agricultural industry for what it is and hope important it is to the Canadian economy.
Crews also said the Ontario Federation of Agriculture has asked for an epidemiological study on the health effects of wind turbines.
There has been no answer that she’s aware of at this point in time.