CFA welcomes new AgriRecovery package to support prairie farmers

OTTAWA--The Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) welcomes yesterday's announcement of $450 million in support to prairie farmers dealing with devastating flood conditions. The governments of Canada, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta, made the announcement following the annual conference of federal and provincial agriculture ministers.

"We commend these governments for acknowledging the needs of prairie farmers and responding quickly with this much-needed support during one of the most difficult growing seasons on record," said Ron Bonnett, CFA President.

Through the Governments' new program, to be delivered under AgriRecovery, producers will receive $30 per acre in assistance to adopt measures to protect, rehabilitate and manage affected cropland.

The critical situation facing prairie farmers was raised by CFA leaders during the Tripartite Roundtable with federal and provincial agriculture ministers, held earlier this week.

Federal/Provincial Agriculture Ministers' Conference

The CFA was pleased to note that following their annual conference, the ministers' acknowledged producers' concerns with the current suite of business risk management (BRM) programs. The CFA urges governments to make the necessary improvements as quickly as possible and not wait until the next generation of programs are introduced in 2013.

The ministers' focus on the need for long-term strategic investments in innovation is of much interest to farmers and the CFA looks forward to receiving further details on exactly what this entails.

With regard to the ministers' plans to expand interprovincial trade of meat, the CFA stresses that the proposed roadmap and pilot projects should not result in a lessening of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency's federal food safety and quality standards, which are key to maintaining consumer confidence in the safety of Canada's food supply.

The CFA was disappointed that the ministers' communiqué made no mention of the Advance Payment Program and the requests made by farmers for a stay of payment to help adjust with difficult economic conditions. The payments under this program are scheduled to begin this September.

About the Canadian Federation of Agriculture
Founded in 1935 to provide Canada's farmers with a single voice in Ottawa, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture is the country's largest farmers' organization. Its members include provincial general farm organizations, national and inter-provincial commodity organizations, and cooperatives from every province. Through its members, CFA represents over 200,000 Canadian farmers and farm families.