Features Fruit Production
Environmental Commissioner questions tax break on farm fuel

Jan. 25, 2016, Ontario – Dianne Saxe, Environmental Commissioner of Ontario, says farmers are being subsidized by not having to pay taxes on diesel fuel designated for field-equipment use.

Dyed reddish-purple, the diesel is bought by farmers in bulk for use in farm machinery. It’s not allowed in farm trucks or other vehicles used mainly on roads.

But maybe that subsidy — gasoline tax breaks in Ontario amount to $190 million a year — should be replaced by something that supports agriculture, but doesn’t also encourage the use of climate-changing fossil fuels, Saxe said in an interview. | READ MORE