By: Alison Robertson, ED

After a year-long process that put grower voices front and centre, the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ Association (OFVGA) has released its new strategic plan, outlining how the organization will advocate, collaborate, and deliver value for members through 2030.

The plan provides a clear roadmap for how OFVGA will respond to growing pressures on Ontario’s fruit and vegetable sector — from labour and regulatory challenges to climate risk, food security, global competition and more — while strengthening our role as the trusted voice of edible horticulture in our province.

The process

Just as important as the plan itself is how it was developed, so here’s a summary of how we got here.

Throughout 2025, OFVGA’s board and member organizations were actively engaged in shaping the strategy through a series of facilitated sessions led by external consultants. Growers, commodity leaders, and policy committee chairs were asked what was working, where the gaps were, and what OFVGA needed to prioritize to remain effective and relevant in a rapidly changing environment.

It’s been our goal to ensure that this is a member-driven plan, and we believe the priorities reflect what we heard from growers about what they need most from their provincial organization. 

At the core of the plan are four strategic priorities: advocacy; partnerships; governance and member engagement; and communications.

Advocacy

Advocacy remains OFVGA’s central focus. We will work to further strengthen our influence at municipal, provincial, and federal levels, ensuring fruit and vegetable growers are front and centre in policy decisions that affect competitiveness, sustainability, and food sovereignty. A key initiative under this pillar will be the development of an economic impact study to provide data-driven evidence of the sector’s contribution to Ontario’s economy, food system, and rural communities. That evidence will underpin future government relations and communications efforts.

Partnerships

Closely linked to advocacy is the priority on partnerships. The plan recognizes that the complexity of today’s policy and market environment requires coordinated action. OFVGA will work to clarify roles, reduce duplication, and strengthen collaboration with national organizations, allied agricultural groups, and government partners, while ensuring Ontario growers’ specific interests remain clearly represented.

Governance and member engagement

This priority reflects feedback from members who stressed the importance of strong leadership, transparency, and long-term continuity. The plan commits OFVGA to continuous governance improvement, leadership development, and succession planning for both board members and senior staff. It also emphasizes the need for better alignment of resources to ensure the organization is delivering tangible value back to growers and member associations.

Communications

This pillar is now a strategic priority for the organization rather than a supporting function. OFVGA plans to review and modernize how it communicates with growers, member associations, policymakers, media and the public. This includes building on existing strengths — such as its long-standing connection with growers through The Grower — while exploring new tools and approaches to reach a more diverse and evolving membership. A stronger, more proactive media strategy is also intended to ensure fair and accurate representation of the fruit and vegetable sector in public discourse.

The final product

Taken together, the strategic plan is designed to be both practical and flexible. While it sets clear priorities and actions, it also allows OFVGA to adapt as new issues emerge over the next five years – and we know they will, even if we don’t know what they’ll be.  

For members who participated in last year’s consultation sessions, the final document should feel familiar. Many of the themes raised during those discussions — from the need for stronger advocacy to better communication and leadership renewal — are embedded throughout the plan, and we appreciate everyone who took the time to be part of this process and make contributions to the betterment of our organization and our industry. 

OFVGA is encouraging members to review the strategy and stay engaged as implementation moves forward. After all, as the plan itself emphasizes, our strength comes from an active, committed grower community working together to shape the future of Ontario’s fruit and vegetable sector.