FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 23, 2025
QUEEN’S PARK – Ontario Liberals are calling on the Ford government to immediately accelerate the rollout of its Risk Management Program (RMP) funding so that farmers get the support they need today.
On January 28, 2025, just hours before Doug Ford dissolved the Legislature for his snap election, the PCs rushed out an announcement promising to increase annual RMP funding from $150 million to $250 million. But instead of delivering immediate relief, they chose a three-year phase-in: $30 million in 2025, $30 million in 2026, and $40 million in 2027.
Farmers can’t wait.
“The Risk Management Program is critical. An immediate step up to the full funding increase during this tumultuous time means more farmers will have the confidence to focus on investing, on innovation, on new opportunities and the jobs that come with them” said Ted Hsu, Ontario Liberal Agriculture critic and MPP for Kingston and the Islands.
Since Ford’s announcement, the challenges facing Ontario’s agri-food sector have only deepened:
- Corn futures are down nearly 25% due to a record U.S. crop.
- Fertilizer prices are up 5–15%.
- Global trade tensions are escalating with new tariff wars.
- Farm equipment investments have stalled.
Farmers are being squeezed from every side and phasing-in promised RMP funding only makes things worse.
Ontario Liberals have been calling for full and immediate funding since the 2024 Ontario Federation of Agriculture AGM. Accelerating the RMP funding won’t cost the government a cent more in the long run, it just means giving farmers the security they’ve already been promised, when they need it most.
Ontario’s farmers feed our province. The solution is simple: stop dragging out the rollout and deliver the full increase right away.