WHEREAS food insecurity in Ontario is at an all-time high
WHEREAS millions of Ontarians are relying on food banks to feed their families each month, and 1 in 4 food bank users are children;
WHEREAS the Ontario government has a duty to guard the farmland, jobs, food security and essential infrastructure that hold this province together;
WHEREAS the Ontario Food Terminal (OFT) is the beating heart of Ontario’s food system, moving two billion pounds of produce each year and keeping food on tables across Ontario and beyond;
WHEREAS the Terminal connects more than 400 farmers with over 5,000 buyers, and supports more than 100,000 jobs, including in the agricultural, independent and green grocer, mid-sized retail, restaurant, trucking, mobile produce and community market sectors;
WHEREAS the OFT is the backbone of neighbourhood food access, enabling culturally diverse, community-based and small-format retailers to offer fresh, affordable produce at a time of rising food insecurity;
WHEREAS the proposed rezoning of Employment Lands adjacent to the Terminal threatens its operations and puts Ontario’s essential food system infrastructure at risk;
THEREFORE WE, THE UNDERSIGNED, CALL ON THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO AS FOLLOWS:
To take immediate action to save the Ontario Food Terminal to protect our province’s food supply for consumers, food jobs for workers, and food security for all who depend on it.