The Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers (OGVG) are pleased with the announcement to make groceries and essential goods more affordable for Canadians.
The group is reacting to the announcement by Prime Minister Mark Carney earlier this week to make food more affordable through the "Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit".
Through this announcement, starting in July, the quarterly GST payments will see an increase of 25 per cent over the next five years, and will also include a one-time top-up of 50 per cent this year.
OGVG says while they welcome this announcement, they are calling on the federal government to ensure these new measures are supported by a stable trade relationship with the U.S. as the greenhouse vegetable sector relies heavily on export markets and integrated cross-border supply chains.
They add that Ontario's greenhouse vegetable sector is one of the most trade-reliant segments of Canadian agriculture, where more than 85 per cent of production is exported to the United States.
Richard Lee, Executive Director of the OGVG, says they welcome this news, but have concerns over tariffs.
"This announcement impacts or addresses the recognition of greenhouse, but it doesn't recognize our dependency on shipping our product to the States. We feed both sides of the border... without that recognition and focusing on only domestic food sovereignty, I think is an oversight."
He says they were hit hard last March during the 72-hours where all incoming goods into the U.S. were tariffed.
"In those three days, our members paid $7-million in tariffs just to get our produce across the border, and because that tariff came in so quick, it was so quickly removed, we ended up being stuck with that bill."
Lee says they're willing trade partners.
"At the end of the day, domestic sovereignty is great, domestic food sovereignty is one of our priorities, but we can't forget our key trading partner... especially when we're dealing with a perishable product."
The OGVG are asking the federal government to reaffirm their agricultural trade relationship with the United States, and prevent new tariffs or trade barriers on greenhouse vegetables.
Through Carney's announcement, a family of four will receive up to $1,890 this year with the increases, compared to $1,100 a year. That same family would later see about $1,400 a year over the next four years. A single person would receive up to $950 this year compared to $540, and about $700 a year for the next four years.
-with files from AM800's The Shift with Patty Handysides