FedDev Ontario puts nearly $26 million into 31 GTA firms amid U.S. tariff pressure

Ottawa is steering fresh tariff-response cash into Greater Toronto manufacturers and services firms, with nearly $26 million earmarked for 31 organizations through FedDev Ontario’s Regional Tariff Response Initiative.

CBC News reported Friday that Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation Minister Evan Solomon, who also oversees FedDev Ontario, announced the package at Daybar Industries in Brampton, a steel doors and frames maker receiving $700,000 toward a project CBC pegged at about $12 million to modernize production and diversify markets. Solomon said Canada did not choose the tariff conditions with the United States but would “build together,” while Treasury Board President Shafqat Ali cast the money as support for local jobs. CBC lists the three largest FedDev contributions as SinaLite ($2,870,729), Oxygen8 Solutions Inc. ($2,532,000) and PakFactory Inc. ($1,603,125), and ties the round to a broader $7.5-billion federal support package unveiled in August.

A government-sourced recipient table carried by Mirage News matches those headline figures and puts Daybar’s total project cost at $12,475,650. The FedDev Ontario RTRI program page says southern Ontario businesses facing tariff pressures — generally with at least $1 million in annual revenue — can still apply for liquidity assistance and “pivot” productivity projects under national RTRI envelopes. Awards remain subject to program rules and contribution agreements.

Sources: CBC News; Mirage News / FedDev recipient table; FedDev Ontario — Regional Tariff Response Initiative.