Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced changes to his cabinet late Thursday, June 6, the final day of the spring session in the provincial legislature with MPPs headed home until October.
While many of the senior cabinet positions were left unchanged, there are some significant changes for agriculture.
Lisa Thompson, who has served as Minister of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs since 2021, will now serve as the Minister of Rural Affairs.
Rob Flack has been appointed as Minister of Farming, Agriculture and Agribusiness.
It’s not clear yet what the title change and splitting up of the Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs portfolio means for the structure of the department of OMAFRA.
Flack was first elected as MPP for Elgin-Middlesex-London in June 2022, and served as Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs. He most recently filled the role of Associate Minister of Housing, a post he’s held since last September.
Flack has a farming background and currently raises Hereford cattle. He worked for Masterfeeds, beginning in 1979 as a sales trainee, where he rose in the ranks all the way to become president and CEO of the company in 1993. He retired from his role with Masterfeeds in 2022.
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