Jill Verwey, president of Keystone Agricultural Producer in Manitoba, is the new first vice-president of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture.

Stephanie Levasseur, an apple grower from southern Quebec and a vice-president of the Union des Producteurs Agricole, is now second vice-president.

Pierre Lampron, who is also a past-president of Dairy Farmers of Canada, did not seek re-election. Todd Lewis, who had been first vice-president until recently, is now a senator.

Keith Currie from Ontario remains president.

All positions were filled by acclamation.

The delegates are discussing resolutions Feb. 26, including changes to AgriStability and other risk management topics and Canada’s response to potential American tariffs.

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The amount had been set to drop back to $100,000 at the end of this month after sitting at $350,000 for 2023.

Federal agriculture minister Lawrence MacAulay announced the change March 25.

“In the face of so many challenges, our hardworking producers continue to show their resilience and produce top-quality products for Canadians and the world,” he said in a statement.

“Increasing the interest-free portion of the Advance Payments Program means improved cash flow and savings for farmers as we head into the 2024 planting season.”

Producers had asked for the amount to be raised after learning in late February it would change.

The Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan said it was happy with the decision.

“It’s what we had asked for, so we’re happy,” said president Ian Boxall.

He said program data supported $250,000 as the right number.

The APP offers $1 million to producers of 500 crop and livestock products who can borrow against expected production or produce in storage. The advances are based on up to 50 per cent of anticipated market value of those products.

In 2022, the government raised the interest-free portion to $250,000 and then again to $350,000 last year to deal with high interest rates and volatility.

The federal government said farm operating costs remain uncertain, and raising the interest-free portion would save 11,950 producers an extra $4,916 in interest costs, on average.

The total savings for producers is estimated at $58.7 million.

Support at the beginning of the production cycle allows farmers to buy inputs for the growing season. It also provides some marketing flexibility as producers can sell when it’s best rather than because they need cash.

At the Canadian Federation of Agriculture annual meeting earlier this year, MacAulay had told producers he couldn’t grant their wish for a higher limit but the finance minister might be able to.

The Canadian Cattle Association had asked for the limit to remain at $350,000 but said $250,000 was a good step.

President Nathan Phinney said the APP is a useful tool, and a higher interest-free portion is a relief.

“This sustained increase comes at a time when producers need all economic levers at their disposal to increase food security and economic competitiveness,” he said.

CCA had said the lower limit was “untenable as it does not account for farmers’ current realities.”

“By maintaining the increase to interest-free portion of loans under APP, the federal government can demonstrate it recognizes the needs of producers — across commodities and across the country — who have been facing escalating input costs,” the association said in February.

Grain Growers of Canada also applauded the decision. Chair Andre Harpe said it would support thousands of grain farmers across the country.

“With the rising cost of inputs and low grain prices at harvest, a higher interest free portion of the APP is needed,” he said.

The GGC said announcing this decision early provides farmers with predictability and stability so they can plan their year ahead.

—Karen Briere writes for the Western Producer

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A former president of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture is taking the helm of Canada’s largest general farmers’ organization.

Keith Currie of Collingwood, Ont. was acclaimed as the new president of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture this week during the CFA’s annual general meeting in Ottawa.

As CFA president, Currie replaces Mary Robinson of Albany, P.E.I., who had led the organization since 2019 and decided to step down from the post this year, the OFA said in a release Tuesday.

Currie, who served as OFA president from 2016 to 2020 and as CFA first vice-president since 2019, said he “look(s) forward to working with our members and stakeholders to advance the interests of Canada’s agriculture sector.”

The OFA on Tuesday hailed Currie, a hay and sweet corn producer, as a long-time advocate for the agriculture industry at both the provincial and federal levels.

“Keith has a wealth of knowledge, experience and insight when it comes to Canadian agricultural production and will be a valuable leader for our industry, OFA president Peggy Brekveld said Tuesday. “We are privileged to have an Ontario representative in this role and I have no doubt that he will continue to be a strong voice for farmers across the country.”

Currie is expected to lead the CFA in “advocating for policies and programs that support Canadian farmers and promote sustainable and profitable agriculture” and work to strengthen the CFA’s relationships with government officials and other stakeholders, OFA said.

Currie is joined on the CFA’s new executive roster by Todd Lewis as first vice-president and Pierre Lampron as second vice-president.

Lewis, who farms at Gray, Sask., just south of Regina, previously served from 2016 to 2022 as president of the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS).

Lampron, a dairy farmer in Quebec’s Mauricie region, has been president of Dairy Farmers of Canada since 2017 and replaces Lewis as CFA’s second VP. — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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John Stackhouse is a senior vice-president of Royal Bank of Canada and author of the Farmer 4.0 report that delves into the transformation of agriculture.

Stackhouse was a participant in a panel discussion on innovation and resilience in agriculture at the Canadian Federation of Agriculture annual meeting in Ottawa on March 7.

He sat down with Glacier FarmMedia journalists Karen Briere and Gord Gilmour to discuss Canada’s strengths and weaknesses and the best road to progress.

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For the first time since at least 1980, according to a long-time member of the Parliamentary Press Gallery, a sitting Prime Minister has spoken to the annual meeting of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA).

Liberal leader and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was a last minute addition to the agenda, joining Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre, New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh, Green Party leader Elizabeth May and the Bloc Québécois’ Yves-Francois Blanchet.

Incoming CFA President Keith Currie said the turnout was exciting and showed that agriculture is taken seriously in Canada.

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Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Jan. 25 launched pre-budget consultations and since then, her schedule has involved several meetings with stakeholders.

“We want to hear ideas from Canadians, from all walks of life, on how to restore strong growth, forge a more resilient middle class, and build back better. This is your budget; tell us what matters most to you,” she said at the time.

A hard date hasn’t yet been set for the next budget, but Freeland’s consultation period is scheduled to close on Feb. 19. An online questionnaire for the public is available until that date.

In August, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture released its wish list for the 2021 budget. In these budget consultations, the organization plans to continue to refer back to that document, which offers three broad recommendations, each highlighted by specific measures that can be taken.

To kickstart the economic recovery, the CFA recommends the government restore the AgriStability program’s payment trigger to 85 per cent and eliminate the cap to reference margins.

Ottawa is prepared to remove the reference margin limit and boost the program’s compensation rate, but releasing extra dollars to farmers qualifying for payments is being held up by Prairie provinces reluctant to sign onto the deal. The provinces are responsible for covering 40 per cent of the government tab on AgriStability payouts.

CFA is also putting a particular focus is put on the processing sector. Citing a $77 million investment from the federal government to help food processors combat COVID-19, the organization says additional support is needed.

“To secure these critical food infrastructure links in advance of a second wave and the peak harvest season for many Canadian commodities, CFA recommends the next federal budget increase financial support to the food processing sector,” the document says.

“In addition to this support for existing food processors, CFA also recommends that the next federal budget invest in programming to support the development of more food processing facilities across Canada.”

CFA is also asking Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) “to reallocate underutilized AgriMarketing program dollars to implement a Buy Canadian campaign for Canadian retail channels, and engage exporters to identify and address key export opportunities.”

The 2020-21 spending estimates from the federal government show $20.3 million was transferred to partners through AgriMarketing programs, while talk of an Ottawa-led “Buy Canadian” campaign has floated around since at least 2019.

That year, the Liberals committed $25 million over five years to “develop a national approach to better connect Canadians with and instill pride in Canada’s food system and its agriculture, food and seafood products.”

In January 2020, AAFC put out a tender seeking a marketing firm to launch a “social marketing campaign to better connect Canadians with, and instil pride in, Canada’s food system and its agriculture, food and seafood products.”

The tender said an annual media buy budget between an estimated $1.5 million and $4 million would be available.

By June, Bibeau was saying the promotional campaign would “have to wait a bit longer” before being launched. At the time, concerns were being raised within her department over the timing of that program, and on which commodities it would focus.

On Jan. 15, the federal government awarded a $113,000 contract to Markham, Ont.-based digital ad agency Feast Interactive for the Buy Canadian campaign, but a timeline for its launch remains unclear.

CFA’s budget wish list also includes a call for better leveraging of agriculture’s environmental contributions. It asks the government to create programs allowing “producers to generate credits for agricultural activities under both the federal Greenhouse Gas Offset System and Clean Fuel Standard.”

Building resilience into Canada’s food system through a $3 million investment is another ask of CFA. They propose the dollars be used to reduce job vacancies “through career promotion, improve skills training opportunities for workers, support human resource management training/certification, and support commercialization of labour-saving technologies.”

The CFA is also requesting the federal government reinforce a $50 million fund targeted at reducing food waste.

— D.C. Fraser reports for Glacier FarmMedia from Ottawa.

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Ottawa should take additional steps to reduce the financial burden on farmers by providing additional financial assistance, ensuring a more stable trade environment and developing a comprehensive, long-term, national agri-food strategy, the report says.

The document, entitled Canada’s Food Security during the COVID-19 Pandemic, suggests that challenges caused by COVID-19 have exposed weaknesses in the Canadian food supply chain.

Together, those weaknesses have resulted in reduced farm incomes and have placed unprecedented economic stress on many producers.

“Labour shortages, major shifts in consumer demand, and the slowdowns (or) closures at processing plants have already exacerbated food insecurity among Canadians and increased financial pressure on primary producers,” says the report’s author Kerri Holland, an ag industry consultant and policy analyst at the Simpson Centre for Agricultural and Food Innovation and Public Education.

“Canada’s recovery from this pandemic will rely heavily on a stable agricultural sector, but without swift government action, Canada’s food security is far from assured.”

Although Ottawa has made a number of announcements aimed at supporting agriculture and addressing food security concerns, the Liberal government has failed to address fundamental economic issues facing the country’s farmers, said Holland.

In an interview, she described Ottawa’s support for the Canadian agriculture industry — both pre- and post-COVID — as largely ineffective.

Despite initial concerns over panic buying at supermarkets, empty grocery store shelves, regional shortages of some food products and closures at meat processing plants, the Canadian food supply chain has demonstrated its resiliency, she said.

But when Canadian food security is viewed in wider context, a larger looming problem is the financial stability of famers themselves, she said.

“I think that for the time being, consumers can be very confident that (food) supplies will remain stable,” Holland said.

“Where the real impact and the real hurt of some of these supply chain disruptions has been is on the primary industry,” she continued.

“Especially in the livestock and produce sectors, the impact of those supply chain disruptions has been a huge financial loss for our primary producers.

“In the pork and beef industries alone, those farmers have lost well over $1 billion dollars so far, so I think (Ottawa) needs to step up and definitely take some additional steps….”

Holland was critical of some federal announcements presented as COVID relief measures for the ag sector.

An announcement in March to expand FCC’s lending capacity by $5 billion, for example, was part of the Liberal government’s 2019 election platform.

Extending more credit to a Canadian farm industry that’s already carrying a record debt load of roughly $115 billion does nothing to relieve the immediate financial hardships being endured by individual producers, she argued.

More recently, a $252 million funding package announced in May included $125 million that is typically budgeted for the federal-provincial AgriRecovery program.

“A lot of the announcements that they’ve made are just announcing old money,” Holland said.

The pandemic-related financial aid that American farmers have received is huge compared to what growers in Canada have been offered, she added.

In the United States, “they’re building on their already $19 billion announcement for American farmers, and going forward, that really puts us at a competitive disadvantage as well.”

In addition to more short-term financial aid, Holland’s report also suggested other government measures.

Specifically, Ottawa needs to act more assertively on the trade front by helping to develop new export markets and ensuring existing markets are not disrupted.

A national agri-food strategy that promotes key priorities of the agriculture industry — including a larger value-added processing sector — would also be helpful, she said.

“I think that Canadian farmers need to be helped through this pandemic, but we also need to have a long-term vision of how we can better support our primary producers and I think one of the key ways we could do that is by looking at how our business risk management (BRM) programs right now are working, but especially how they’re not working for most of our farmers,” she added.

By some estimates, only 30 per cent of Canadian farmers are enrolled in AgriStability.

“For years the Canadian Federation of Agriculture and its provincial affiliates have been calling for some reform to those risk management programs, so I think it’s time that we started listening to what’s coming up from those various sectors about how we can better support our producers when crises do hit and when volatile markets are experienced.”

Holland’s comments about the need for BRM program reforms have been echoed by Grain Farmers of Ontario in its campaign for greater funding for corn and soybean farmers.

This article was originally published at The Western Producer.

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Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) officials put in the ask to the federal government on Thursday.

According to second vice-president Chris van den Heuvel, federal officials asked the CFA “to go and put hard numbers around the ask” for the industry.

That prompted the CFA to consult its members and commodity groups to arrive at the $2.6 billion figure, which would cover costs and losses related to COVID-19 so far.

To date, CFA estimates $1.6 billion in losses due to the shutdown of the foodservice sector, while processing capacity and supply chain disruptions have resulted in $900 million in losses. Increased labour costs, including the purchase of personal protective equipment, have cost the sector $50 million.

“We’ve been asking for about a month now for support for the industry, and it’s been falling on deaf ears as far as the government is concerned,” said van den Heuvel.

Prior to the call for $2.6 billion, the CFA had requested the federal government improve returns through business risk management (BRM) programs, particularly AgriInvest and AgriStability.

Those requests remain in place, despite continued complaints from CFA officials that the government has so far refused to respond.

Van den Heuvel and others within the industry have suggested in recent weeks their frustration is not with Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau, but her colleagues in the federal cabinet.

Sources suggest there is a reluctance among some federal officials to offer emergency relief to producers because existing BRM programs are already in place to support the industry.

“I think the issues were coming from higher up,” van den Heuvel said, who later added the $2.6 billion in relief funding will rely on how much Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Finance Minister Bill Morneau value agriculture and food security.

“That’s what this this issue all boils down to, is whether or not our politicians see food security as a priority for this nation. And to date, we don’t feel that they have been,” said van den Heuvel. “If farmers start to go out of business because they can’t get through this growing season, this is going to have significant impacts down the road as far as food security is concerned.”

The $2.6 billion ask is being considered “Phase one” funding by the CFA, but van den Heuvel was unable to provide an estimate of what future funding requests may be.

“That’s a very, very difficult question to answer,” he said, noting accurate forecasting is difficult, given the situation around COVID-19. “Definitely the longer that this goes into the growing season, this number is going to be amplified greatly.”

Van den Heuvel said that if the money comes through, he would expect it to be administered through a partnership involving the federal government, the CFA and different commodity groups to ensure producers who need the money would receive it.

“That’s always a concern when you’re dealing with public dollars, that it goes to where it’s actually needed,” he said. “That’s why we’ve taken the steps of not making broad-based assumptions but going out to each of our commodity groups and asking specifically what the hurt is.”

He highlighted horticulture, beef, pork, poultry and dairy as commodities struck particularly hard by the pandemic – but said the majority of commodities have been affected in some way.

Bibeau indicated in a statement the government is exploring additional support measures.

“We understand that agriculture groups have specific needs and asks right now, and I want to assure producers that we are actively exploring additional measures to support them,” she said. “We care deeply about the well being of our farmers and farm families, and understand how stressful this period is for many of them.”

— D.C. Fraser reports for Glacier FarmMedia from Ottawa.

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“We are finding that there are a lot of increased costs this year with COVID-19 and bringing in the employees, so having the extra money will help offset some of those costs,” CHC national labour chair Beth Connery said.

The government is offering $1,500 for each temporary foreign worker coming to Canada to help farmers, fish harvesters, producers and processors cover costs related to containing COVID-19.

The funds can be used to modify housing or pay for accommodations — such as at hotels or in student residences — where employees will take part in a mandatory 14-day isolation period before they can begin working.

Connery, who grows vegetable and fruits near Portage la Prairie, Man., said that on top of the additional costs of paying to accommodate employees during isolation, there are other impacts on farm finances, such as an increased cost in flights and picking up or delivering food to isolated workers.

“It’s not going to be free money. We’ll spend far more than that in additional costs this year,” she said.

“This is a stopgap that will help us get moving. But the reality is we’re going to need more of a financial backstop just because we’re planning on a normal year, but if you get into your season and your workforce disappears on you, and you’ve got a crop out in the field, what do you do?”

Connery said there needs to be further discussions and dialogue with the government “to ensure people grow all the food that we need.”

Currently she has seven Jamaican workers isolating on her farm. She is hoping roughly 50 more seasonal workers will be coming from Mexico.

“We just have no idea when or how many of them we will get,” she said, referencing bureaucratic and logistical challenges in bringing those workers to Canada.

If workers don’t arrive, Connery said they will look to mitigate risks, potentially by trying to find other sources of labour.

“Certainly, even if we do get Canadian labour now, all of our harvest seasons go through to September and October so student labour may not be the answer for us. It may be, it may not,” she said, noting the physically demanding work is not sought after by Canadians.

Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) president Mary Robinson called the funding a “pretty excellent first step.”

“This was really the first kind of meaningful announcement we’ve had in true financial support for agriculture,” she said, adding previous measures were about creating “more favourable credit opportunities” for producers.

Robinson and the CFA continue their calls for increased funding for the AgrInvest program, pointing out the $50 million being made available to the agriculture sector currently is a small fraction of the $250 billion in spending the federal government has planned as part of its financial response to the pandemic.

The program will be available for as long as the Quarantine Act — federal legislation putting in place extraordinary measures to combat the pandemic — remains in force.

Funding is available for anyone with workers who have entered Canada since March 25, when the Act came into force.

However, details of how the funds will be distributed are not yet available.

“We still have to find the best mechanism, the idea is really to provide the money to the employer,” Agriculture Minister Marie Claude Bibeau said, adding the process may be done by federal officials or filtered to provincial associations.

Employers are responsible for paying workers for the two-week quarantine period, and many will also have to provide transportation and accommodations in addition to food and basic supplies.

As well, the support is conditional on employers not being found in violation of the mandatory 14-day isolation protocols being put in place.

“There will be different ways to do the oversight and make sure that the employers and the workers are complying with the isolation protocol and with the quarantine laws,” said Bibeau, adding we can trust that employers care for their employees and want to keep them healthy.

“If we have some people who are not respecting (rules), then they can face severe sanctions and fines as well as not being able to have foreign workers in coming years.”

Immigration officials will be doing targeted inspections in partnership with provincial health authorities and local police forces, according to Bibeau.

In 2018, 56,765 workers were brought to Canada to work in agriculture. The federal funding of $50 million will cover the cost of roughly 33,330 workers.

Bibeau said the funding is based on expected arrivals of temporary foreign workers in April, May and June.

“This is based on the best estimate we have on temporary foreign workers arriving these three months; if we have to increase the amount, this is something we will do,” she said.

In February there were 7,055 temporary foreign workers in Canada – a number that has since risen to around 15,000.

“We expect to have less foreign workers,” Bibeau said, adding different recommendations to incentivize Canadians to work in the sector are being considered and reviewed.

“We definitely want to encourage Canadians to apply and to work in the food supply chain.”

— D.C. Fraser reports for Glacier FarmMedia from Ottawa.

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Only minor changes were made to AgriStability, the main priority item on the agenda for the Ottawa meeting held Tuesday.

Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and her provincial counterparts announced a full review of federal/provincial business risk management (BRM) programming will be completed in April, and the findings discussed when federal, provincial and territorial ag ministers meet again in July.

Producers have long complained AgriStability is unresponsive and inadequate, with many calling for reference price margins to be returned to pre-2013 levels of 85 per cent rather than the current 70 per cent.

“To say again that they’re going back to review (AgriStability)… they probably won’t come to a conclusion until the summer meeting, so clearly we’re going to lose 2020. That’s my fear,” Nielsen said.

When ag ministers met last summer, he said, his interpretation was that there would be some solutions brought forward before they gathered again.

“It’s frustrating when we haven’t come up with anything new. This has been asked for some time,” he said.

Bibeau didn’t entirely reject the idea of changing reference price margins under AgriStability, but argued changing the limit would impact federal and provincial budgets.

“We thought that it would be more appropriate to start by doing a review of the programs and making sure that when we’re ready to put more money on the table, we would do it towards the right program,” she said.

The Canadian Federation of Agriculture, in a separate statement Wednesday, said a “continued lack of progress towards any significant program reforms leaves farmers without much-needed relief at this critical time, nor any certainty that assistance is on the way.”

A review of BRM programs has been underway for “nearly three years,” the CFA said.

“The fact that ministers were unable to commit to truly meaningful program reforms, while pushing this issue further down the road through further program reviews, suggests a lack of urgency and a continued disconnect between FPT governments and the realities facing farmers,” CFA president Mary Robinson said.

“Farmers continue to see increased trade and policy-related risks exacerbate already challenging weather conditions, threatening the viability of many farms and undermining the primary agriculture sector’s capacity for economic growth.”

Farmers across all regions, she said, “have clearly identified that a return to AgriStability coverage at 85 per cent without a reference margin limit presents a simple, interim solution that can be implemented immediately while longer-term programming changes are considered.

“Additional review and consultations only further delay this much needed response, leaving farmers with the sense that their governments are not grasping the critical issues at hand.”

Currently about $1.5 billion is dedicated to BRM programs each year, with AgriStability and AgriInvest the core programs available to producers needing help covering losses due to revenue declines or falling prices.

In each of the past two federal budgets, $39.2 million was allocated for AgriStability, which is paid for jointly by Ottawa and the provinces at a 60:40 ratio.

The cost of increasing the limit back to 85 per cent would cost an estimated $300 million, according to Bibeau.

It is unclear how willing the provinces are to increase the limits, given it would likely result in them paying more as well.

“I’m actually quite disappointed with some provinces,” Nielsen said, stopping short of naming names. “There seems to be a lack of support from provinces.”

Saskatchewan was able to get its main proposal accepted by the federal government and other provinces. The minor tweak producers can expect is a change in how private insurance is treated by AgriStability.

Private insurance will be able to complement AgriStability, being used as a “top-up” according to Bibeau, if producers choose to use it.

The federal government will also pilot a project that will use tax return information for those applying to AgriStability in hopes it will make it easier to apply to the program, which has long described as complicated by producers.

“It was one of the things we put on the table, so it makes me very happy to hear that the revenue generated from private insurance won’t go against the producers on their eligibility claim,” Saskatchewan Agriculture Minister Dave Marit said.

Nielsen said it’s unlikely he or other farmers will jump to private insurance as a means to better accessing AgriStability, and questioned the new measure’s effectiveness in the face of consecutive bad harvests and accompanying increasing premiums.

The GGC, he said, will be trying to reach out to Bibeau early in 2020 to discuss the group’s concerns.

“I think we’re going to have to engage with other sectors of government to really stress the point that we need solutions,” he said.

— D.C. Fraser reports for Glacier FarmMedia from Ottawa.

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