Thanks to the witnesses for being here today.
Ms. Brekveld, I'll start with a couple of questions for you. Welcome to the committee.
A number of years ago, in 2015, some colleagues that I know quite well produced a report called “Dollars & Sense”. It was funded by the McConnell and greenbelt and Metcalf foundations. Some really great research there showed that in 2015, southern Ontario had a $10-billion trade deficit. In other words, the economy in southern Ontario could actually produce $10 billion more food that didn't necessarily need to be imported from California, Mexico or wherever else. That's the concept of import substitution.
Since then, we've experienced quite a number of crises, from COVID-19 to the war in Ukraine to numerous extreme weather events, that I think have consistently exacerbated the challenges that farmers are already facing.
I'm wondering, especially with the droughts in California and this global integrated food system that we have, how Ontario is going to respond. We can grow more food for export, but there's also a lot to be said for growing more food at home for the people of Ontario.
What is the OFA doing on that front?