The Federal and Provincial governments announced they’ll be investing up to $20 million to support farmers and agribusinesses on Tuesday, January 20, 2026.
The investment will be made through the new Market Diversification and Trade Resiliency Initiative and is intended to help farmers, food processors and agribusinesses sell more Ontario-grown products both domestically and internationally.
The initiative will help fund a variety of projects aimed at increasing competitiveness and expanding into new markets.
“Expanding markets for Ontario food products ensures farmers and food processors have more reliable export opportunities,” said Heath MacDonald, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. “We are building a stronger, more resilient future for agriculture by improving market access and leveraging our shared strengths.”
According to government officials, the initiative is part of the provincial government’s plan to protect Ontario’s agribusiness sector.
Part of the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, the investment is expected to support the province’s Grow Ontario Strategy, a plan focused around giving farmers and businesses the tools they need to strengthen the agri-food sector, fuel economic growth, ensure a reliable, and responsive food supply, create more jobs, and address ongoing agri-food sector vulnerabilities through new innovations.
“Our government is proud to support the farmers and businesses who drive our nearly $52 billion agri-food sector forward each and every day,” said Trevor Jones, Ontario Minister of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness.
The Market Diversification and Trade Resiliency Initiative will offer three different funding streams, with applications opening on Tuesday, February 17, 2026.
The first stream, market development and diversification implementation planning, is intended to support preparation and planning for market development and diversification in new or expanded markets.
The second stream, implement market development and diversification, supports the development of new products and broader marketing strategies.
The third and final stream, implementation of equipment and technology, is designed to help businesses invest in new production equipment to support diversified products that are tailored to meet the requirements to enter into a new market.
According to the new release, funding provided through the initiative will cover a portion of approved project costs. Cost-share percentages and the maximum eligible funding amounts per project will vary depending on the type of proposals that are submitted. The initiative will prioritize high levels of support for export development projects targeting markets outside of the United States, while still offering funding for projects in U.S. markets.
Chris Conway, CEO of Food and Beverage Ontario, said the creation of this new fund will ultimately help ensure that the province’s processing sector remains strong and sustainable.
“As the largest manufacturing sector by employment in Ontario, food and beverage processing comprises over 4,000 companies, 90 per cent of which are small businesses,” he said in a statement. “We appreciate the ongoing strong support of the sector from the provincial government. The creation of this fund highlights the need to increase competitiveness and encourage expansion into new markets. This will help ensure an ongoing viable processing sector in Ontario.”
Drew Spoelstra, President of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture, added that Ontario farmers appreciate the support.
“Ontario farmers produce some of the highest quality food and agricultural products in the world,” he said. “Creating and strengthening reliable markets for our products has never been more important both at the local level and globally. We appreciate the efforts of the province and the federal government as we work together to support a strong, vibrant, and growing agricultural sector.”
Information and guidelines about the Market Diversification and Trade Resiliency Initiative can be found on the ministry’s website, and applications will be received from Tuesday, February 17, 2026, until 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, March 17, 2026.
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
