Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

The CFFO Commentary: Farmers Need to Enroll in Ontario Risk Management Program

By Nathan Stevens
July 8, 2011
 
Last week’s formal announcement of a Risk Management Program is arguably one of the most significant accomplishments for Ontario’s agricultural groups in a long time. From the perspective of agricultural leaders, this is a program that has been fought for over an extended time period that seeks to address needs for Ontario’s farmers in a global environment. The next step is to see whether the average farmer agrees with this assessment and chooses to support the new program by enrolling in it.
 
The purpose of the Risk Management Program is to provide price insurance for farmers. It differs from the national Agristability program in the type of issues it covers. Agristability provides support for commodities that fluctuate over the short-term. It is not designed to help with long-term decline or extended periods of low prices, even if crisis related. The Risk Management Program seeks to deal with both of those issues and more.
 
From the perspective of the leadership, this program is a great new tool for farmers to use in the management of their farms. There is still work to be done and some issues to be addressed. Resolving a fair registration and payment method to be enrolled in both Agristability and Risk Management is an issue. Securing federal support is an on-going issue. For the Christian Farmers, ensuring that there are reasonable caps on potential payments is essential to ensuring this is a risk mitigation tool, not a lever to expand an operation.
 
At the same time, this is an opportunity for farmers to vote with their feet on the new program. Strong enrollment in the program, even if prices are looking strong in the immediate future, is a strong endorsement of the value of having this program in place for a rainy day, especially when it isn’t raining today. On the other hand, if a majority of farmers choose not to enrol then that also sends a clear message to leadership and government about the value of Risk Management and other safety net programming.
 
The adoption of the Risk Management Program is a potentially tremendous step forward for Ontario’s farmers. It improves the protection farmers have from the vagaries of the marketplace, and is strongly supported by the farming leadership. The CFFO hopes and encourages everyday farmers to decide that the Risk Management Program makes sense for them as well.
 
Nathan Stevens is the Research and Policy Advisor for the Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario. The CFFO Commentary represents the opinions of the writer and does not necessarily represent CFFO policy. The CFFO Commentary is heard weekly on CFCO Chatham, CKNX Wingham, and UCB Canada radio stations in Chatham, Belleville, Bancroft, Brockville and Kingston. It is also archived on the CFFO website: www.christianfarmers.org. CFFO is supported by 4,200 family farmers across Ontario.

Views: 71

Comment

You need to be a member of Ontario Agriculture to add comments!

Join Ontario Agriculture

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

Hot, Dry Weather Pushes Harvest Ahead — But Moisture Reserves Take a Hit

Hot, dry weather across Alberta over the past week has sped up harvest and dried down crops quickly, giving producers a solid jump in progress — but at the cost of rapidly depleting soil moisture reserves. Provincial harvest of major crops is now 22% complete, a 14-point jump from the week prior. That’s slightly ahead of both the five-year average of 21% and the 10-year average of 17% for this time of year. Regional harvest progress of major crops: South: 33% complete (+13 from last week) Central: 16% (+13) North East: 18% (+14) North West: 24% (+18) Peace: 20% (+12) Peas and cereals led the charge. Dry pea harvest is 77% complete, spring barley is 29%, spring wheat is 26%, and oats are 17%. Canola, usually the last crop off, is just 3% harvested, though 28% of fields are already swathed. Moisture Ratings Sliding While the heat is ideal for harvest, it is taking a toll on soil reserves. Surface moisture: 45% rated good to excellent (down 12 points from last week). Sub-surface moi

All Wheat Stocks Fall to Lowest on Record

Canadian all wheat stocks as of July 31 were down from a year earlier and the lowest on record as 2024-25 exports ran hot. According to a Statistics Canada grain stocks report released Tuesday, total nationwide all wheat stocks as of July 31 – ending stocks for the 2024-25 crop year – amounted to 4.112 million tonnes. That is down more than 22% from 5.278 million a year earlier and just slightly below the previous July low of 4.169 million notched in 2022, in records dating back to 1980. July 31 durum stocks were reported at 496,000 tonnes, down almost 26% on the year and a new low as well. All wheat commercial stocks as of July 31 were down about 10% to 2.397 million tonnes, while on-farm stocks fell by more than one-third to 1.715 million. Deliveries of wheat rose 9.1% year over year to 35.2 million tonnes as of July 31, Statscan said. Total wheat exports rose 15.4% to a record 29.2 million tonnes on strong global demand, “possibly due to lower exports from other major wheat

Barley Stocks Edge Higher; Oats Fall by More than One-Quarter

Canadian barley stockpiles as of July 31 were a bit heavier compared to a year earlier, while oats stocks were markedly lighter. Tuesday’s Statistics Canada stocks report pegged July 31 barley stocks at 1.249 million tonnes, up 8.4% from the previous year’s stocks of 1.152 million and the highest for the date since 2017 at 2.122. Meanwhile, July 31 total oat stocks fell 24.3% from a year earlier to 507,000 tonnes, the lowest since July 2022 at 333,000. StatsCan attributed the rise in total July 31 barley stocks to heavier on-farm inventories, which were estimated at 994,000 tonnes, up 13.2% from a year earlier. Barley stocks in commercial hands declined, falling to 255,000 tonnes from 273,000 the previous year. Deliveries of barley off farm decreased 6% to 4.1 million tonnes as of July 31, while exports fell 7.2% year over year to 2.8 million tonnes, StatsCan said. Barley used largely for feed purposes fell 2.6% to 5.1 million tonnes. For oats, commercial stocks rose 3.4% to 24

Gearing up for Parliament’s return

Agriculture Minister Heath MacDonald is going to have to produce results, an ag policy analyst says

Research Projects and Companies Supported Through OAFRI

Canada and Ontario invest $4.77 million through OAFRI, supporting 48 projects and 20 companies to boost research, innovation, and resilience in the agri-food sector.

© 2025   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service