(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Outside panel named for farm risk management review

Reading Time: 2 minutes A panel of 11 “external” experts from across the country has been picked to offer guidance and feedback on a federal/provincial review of farm business risk management (BRM) programming. The panel’s appointment follows an agreement by federal, provincial and territorial agriculture ministers back in July to launch a review of BRM programs, assessing those programs’ […] Read more

Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay and his Saskatchewan counterpart Lyle Stewart signed onto a general agreement for a five-year federal/provincial funding framework on July 21. (Saskatchewan.ca)

Ministers agree on new ag funding framework

Reading Time: 3 minutes Canada’s federal, provincial and territorial ministers for agriculture have agreed on the bones of a new five-year policy funding framework, committing them to a review of its business risk management (BRM) programming. The ministers came out of three days of meetings Friday in St. John’s with the “key elements” of a five-year, $3 billion framework, […] Read more


Farm participation keeps dropping, and more farmers like Dennis Thiessen of Grain Farmers of Canada say AgriStability can no longer claim to eliminate the need for emergency federal programs when prices fall.

Deciding on AgriStability

AgriStability has never been popular with farmers, and there’s a burgeoning lobby to get it improved. But keeping your farm enrolled still looks like the right move

Reading Time: 9 minutes If you ask farmers what they think of AgriStability, chances are you’ll hear grumbling, some of it pretty loud. But as farm groups gear up to negotiate with the federal government over the next round of Growing Forward programs, it’s time to examine what’s actually working, what’s not, and what’s misunderstood about the program. What’s […] Read more

(VealFarm.com)

Quebec to halt ASRA for veal sector

Reading Time: 2 minutes Quebec’s farm finance and funding agency plans to remove the veal sector from the province’s ASRA income stabilization program starting next year. La Financiere agricole du Quebec (FADQ) announced Friday that its board had agreed to end ASRA (Assurance stabilisation des revenus agricoles) coverage for Quebec’s milk-fed veal calf operations, effective Jan. 1, 2016. Affected producers, after that […] Read more


farm at dusk

Farm failures

Big bankruptcies make big headlines, but smaller farms are under pressure too

Reading Time: 5 minutes Their names are widely known, including Wigmore Farms, Broadacre Agriculture, Big Sky Farms, BioExx Specialty Proteins, and others. They’re among the high-profile farms and agri-businesses that have shipwrecked in recent years and applied for creditor protection. Each has a story that’s unique, but their stories seem to share a lot of similarities too. The explanations […] Read more