# Forests Canada

> Formerly Forests Ontario; national charity funding tree planting on private land and forest recovery

Source: https://treerm.org/org/forests-canada · Updated 2026-11-07 · Data license: CC BY 4.0 (https://treerm.org/about#license)

## Facts

- Type: Nonprofit
- Scope: National
- Headquarters: Barrie, Ontario, Canada
- Founded: 1949
- Website: https://forestscanada.ca
- Volunteer sign-up: https://forestscanada.ca/en/page/volunteer
- Donate: https://forestscanada.ca/en/page/donate
- Events calendar: https://forestscanada.ca/en/events
- Countries where they plant: Canada
- Activity types: Reforestation (primary), Afforestation, Seed collection, Education & advocacy, Disaster & fire recovery
- Trees on record: 54,000,000 (larger of latest cumulative figure and sum of annual figures; trees planted or distributed)

## About

Forests Canada, known as Forests Ontario until it adopted its national name in November 2024, is a registered charity headquartered in Barrie, Ontario. It subsidizes large-scale tree planting on private and public land through its 50 Million Tree Program and related restoration programs, working with planting partners and landowners from British Columbia to Nova Scotia, and manages a seed bank and seed collection program. The organization traces its history to the Ontario Forestry Association, founded in 1949, and also runs education programs such as Forestry in the Classroom and the Ontario Envirothon.

## Programs

- **50 Million Tree Program** — Reforestation (2008–present): Subsidizes large-scale tree planting on private and public land through planting partners, originally funded by Ontario and since 2019 by federal, corporate, and donor funding.
- **Forest recovery after wildfire** — Disaster & fire recovery: Replanting of burned boreal forest and storm-damaged areas, including projects in Nova Scotia after Hurricane Fiona.
- **Seed collection and seed bank** — Seed collection: Annual collection of millions of tree seeds and management of a seed bank to supply future plantings, including the Tree Seed Diversity Program with the City of Toronto.
- **Forestry in the Classroom** — Education & advocacy: School education programs, alongside the Ontario Envirothon and Tree Bee.

## Metrics

| Metric | Year | Value | Cumulative | Program | Confidence | Source |
|---|---|---:|---|---|---|---|
| Hectares restored | 2025 | 1,800 | no (that year) | organization-wide | Self-reported | [source](https://downloads.ctfassets.net/e09p19lzfrfe/1ksKNUCw9UeERroGjIxzeH/e507da256c96c1f05c1c2ac399431bbb/FC24-25_IMPACT-REPORT_RGB_SPREADS_FA.pdf) 2024-2025 Impact Report: '1,800 hectares of new forest created' |
| Trees planted | 2025 | 3,600,000 | no (that year) | organization-wide | Self-reported | [source](https://downloads.ctfassets.net/e09p19lzfrfe/1ksKNUCw9UeERroGjIxzeH/e507da256c96c1f05c1c2ac399431bbb/FC24-25_IMPACT-REPORT_RGB_SPREADS_FA.pdf) 2024-2025 Impact Report (Oct 1 2024 - Sep 30 2025): '3.6M trees planted', 591 landowners, 620 projects, 6 provinces |
| Trees planted | 2025 | 50,000,000 | yes (to date) | organization-wide | Self-reported | [source](https://downloads.ctfassets.net/e09p19lzfrfe/1ksKNUCw9UeERroGjIxzeH/e507da256c96c1f05c1c2ac399431bbb/FC24-25_IMPACT-REPORT_RGB_SPREADS_FA.pdf) 2024-2025 Impact Report: '50M+ trees planted since 2004' |
| Trees planted | 2026 | 54,000,000 | yes (to date) | organization-wide | Self-reported | [source](https://forestscanada.ca/en/) Homepage: 'Supported the planting of over 54 million trees since 2004' (accessed Nov 2026) |

Confidence: self-reported is the organization's own published figure; independently verified means a third party confirmed it; estimated means TreeRM derived it and the note says how.

## Upcoming events

- 2026-11-25 — Forest Recovery Summit (Community meeting), Toronto — register: https://forestscanada.jotform.com/260485546289066 — https://treerm.org/events/forests-canada/forest-recovery-summit-2026-11-25.md

## Links

- x: https://x.com/forestscanada
- instagram: https://www.instagram.com/forestscanada/
- facebook: https://www.facebook.com/forestscanada
- linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/forests-canada/
- youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@forestscanada

JSON: https://treerm.org/api/v1/organizations/forests-canada