Provincial Minister of Agriculture Says Some Information About Carbon Tax Being Spread on Social Media is Not Accurate
by Bob Montgomery
Provincial Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and MPP for Huron-Bruce, Lisa Thompson, was one of the guest speakers at last week's Huron County Federation of Agriculture annual MP/MPP/Local Politician Forum at the Clinton Legion.
Thompson says Huron-Bruce is blessed with fertile lands and forward-thinking, conscientious farmers that has led to Huron-Bruce's place as a leader in the agriculture and food industry. Thompson says over the years they've been able to navigate changes in Ontario's agricultural landscape with great success and she has no doubt that that will continue in the years ahead.
Thompson says one of her concerns is the information being spread on social media about the carbon tax and how it affects farmers. “There's rhetoric on social media that farmers are exempt from the carbon tax, when the reality is the coloured fuel, the fuel that they use for their tractor, is what's exempt. Farmers are still paying carbon tax on heating their barns, on drying their crops. We have to stand up to the Federal government and say ‘please stop’ because what this carbon tax is doing is driving up the cost of production on farming, and that ultimately hits the consumer in the grocery store.
Thompson says their government recognizes they can't afford to get complacent and that's why they continue to invest in innovation and research. Thompson says most recently they announced the 25-million dollar Agri-Tech Innovation initiative which provides financial support to farmers and processors so they can invest in equipment and implement best practices that increase efficiency and productivity.
