Dear Editor:
On behalf of the National Farmers Union of Ontario, and the farmers of Waterloo and Wellington County, we urge our local MPs and MPPs to work with our local public health officials to develop safety protocols which will allow farmers markets to open and function as markets.
Farmers markets have, rightly so, been deemed an essential service by the provincial government, yet our local public health officials, so far, will only allow them to run as online markets (e-commerce) with a pick-up site.
They say that the reason for this is that they have not received specific direction from Health Canada on this issue, yet many other regions in Ontario are working with farmers markets and helping them find ways to open safely.
Spring is already a very busy and stressful time for farmers. Forcing those who attend farmers markets to move their businesses online will add another full-time job to the workload of people who already work from dawn to dusk every day of the week.
It will also be difficult, or impossible, for many of our local farmers as they have poor rural internet and some do not have internet at all (ie. Mennonites). It would also be difficult for many diversified farms, which offer a large variety of different products (produce, etc.) that change weekly or monthly as the seasons progress.
Farmers markets provide important access to locally produced foods, which many people rely on for their weekly groceries (some towns, such as Elora, do not have grocery stores), and they play an integral role in both promoting and maintaining local food security.
Closing these markets may be devastating to both our local farmers and the people who rely on them.
How is it, that large grocery stores and big box stores are allowed to operate while following safety protocols, yet small outdoor farmers markets cannot?
We ask that our elected politicians work with local public health officials to develop the necessary protocols to allow farmers markets to open safely and quickly, as this is important for both the mental health and financial well-being of our local farmers, who are working every day to provide the highest quality foods for the people of Waterloo and Wellington County.
Thomas Radliffe,
NFU Local 340
Waterloo-Wellington,
Centre Wellington