Ontario farmers argue carbon tax has cost them thousands [Video]

Ontario farming and small business advocates joined Premier Doug Ford in criticizing the federal carbon tax on Tuesday, arguing it has cost them thousands of dollars out of pocket.

Andrew Spoelstra, president of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture, owns a farm in the southeast corner of Hamilton. He said that last fall, drying about 2,500 tonnes of grain cost him $4,500 in carbon pricing.

Another greenhouse in Hamilton paid about $3,837 in taxes on a $13,614 natural gas bill, Spoelstra added.

“We support a clean environment, but farmers just don’t have any alternatives,” he told reporters in East Gwillimbury.

“We have to use fuel and energy to grow the food that we all eat three times a day.”