Earlier this month, I had the pleasure of visiting with agriculture producers in my riding. Farm families are the backbone of Ontario, and Stormont–Dundas–South Glengarry is no exception. I was able to visit a variety of agriculture producers in my riding. The few I was able to visit were Cornerstone Organics, the first organic aquaponics operation in Ontario, helping our local food security with their greenhouse greens—next up, I visited Critesdale Farms and their state-of-the-art dairy facility operated by Calvin and Adam Crites to see how much technology has changed the way we farm. I finished the tour over at the Ferguson family grain merchandising and cash crop farm at Glen Gordon Farms in South Glengarry—with a bit of help understanding the cash crop industry.

This past weekend, I was able to get out and start roto-tilling my garden, getting ready for planting season at my house.

With the May long weekend around the corner, many people will be heading out to local garden centres like Marlin Orchards or Fines Home Hardware to get their flowers, vegetables and other gardening essentials.

With the recent sunny weather after weeks of rain, our farming community is working day and night to get the crops in the ground. I encourage everyone to be vigilant and give farm equipment the space they need to manoeuvre safely on our local roads.