Agriculture Minister Heath MacDonald wrapped up a week-long tour of southern Ontario’s agriculture sector, announcing over $1 billion in new funding and meeting with farmers, processors and industry leaders.
MacDonald started his visit at Arva Flour Mills, where he announced the launch of Farm Credit Canada’s $1 billion Agri-food Project Finance Fund. The fund, part of the National Food Security Strategy, will finance mid-market agri-food infrastructure projects across Canada.
He also announced $150 million for Velocity Agri-Capital Partners through FCC Capital’s $2 billion investment commitment.
“During my visit to multiple cities across southern Ontario, I saw firsthand how Canada’s agriculture and agri-food sector is one of our country’s greatest economic opportunities,” MacDonald said.
The minister visited the London Food Bank to learn about its community impact and toured Nuhn Industries in Sebringville, a manufacturer working to expand its market share in North America, Latin America, Japan and Africa.
MacDonald spoke at the Grain Farmers of Ontario’s annual general meeting in Stratford and toured Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show. He met with producers at Martin’s Family Fruit Farm and Summit Station Dairy, and visited Collective Arts Brewing in Hamilton to see how the company uses modern technology to bring products to market.
At Mondelez International’s Hamilton plant, MacDonald discussed processing capacity and investments the company is making to its facilities. Processing capacity is identified as an important growth area in the National Food Security Strategy.
The minister participated in a roundtable discussion on advancing agri-food systems in Canada, hosted by John Stackhouse and RBC. The World Economic Forum led the discussion as part of the “First Movers Coalition for Food” initiative.
At Haven Greens in King City, MacDonald announced a $5 million repayable contribution to Kinghaven Farms through the AgriInnovate program. The funding will help the operation adopt automation and climate control technologies for a new greenhouse producing leafy greens.
MacDonald closed his tour at Canada Pork’s annual conference in Toronto, announcing a $3.8 million AgriMarketing contribution to help promote pork domestically and in the Indo-Pacific, South America and Europe.
