Want to Stop Cities Eating Up Farmland? We Need Urban Allies

Opinion

It’s estimated that an average of 350 acres of arable land per day are gobbled up in Ontario alone. While urban sprawl may have less of an acres-per-day impact in less populous provinces, the permanent loss of farmland is and should be a major concern not just for farmers, but for urbanites, too. When’s the last time you saw a development bulldozed and planted back to native grasses and shrubs? Or rows of vegetables, sweet corn or wheat? It simply doesn’t happen — once houses or buildings go up on farmland, that land is taken out of food production, full stop.…