Supply-managed processors in Canada welcomed the launch of a $292.5 million fund to help them deal with the effects of international trade agreements.
Federal agriculture minister Marie-Claude Bibeau last week announced the Supply Management Processing Investment Fund promised in the 2021 budget, saying it would help processors increase competitiveness and resilience.
The announcement of the fund signals that all compensation pledged to farmers and processors for the impacts of trade agreements with Europe and the Trans-Pacific region has been launched, the government said.
Dairy Processors Association of Canada chair Michael Barrett said the fund will help the sector “transition to new market realities” and be sustainable in the long term.
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“We are pleased to see the government fulfill its commitment to support additional investments in poultry and egg processing plants as a means to mitigate the impact of market access concessions made in CPTPP,” said Ian McFall, chair of the Canadian Poultry and Egg Processors Council. “The fund will leverage private investments in processing plants to boost productivity, respond to changing customer expectations and improve our industry’s efficiency, viability and competitiveness.”
To access the fund, processors will submit a project summary form to determine its eligibility. Those that are successful will then be asked to submit a full application.
Investments in new automated equipment and technology that will lower costs, ease labour shortages and enhance product quality are included. Eligible activities include automating an existing process or improving an existing automated or robotic process, buying a new production line or improving integrated management software. Additional benefits, such as improving environmental sustainability or responding to consumer demand regarding food safety and animal welfare, could also be funded.
Small and medium-sized enterprises are prioritized under the cost-shared program, although larger businesses are eligible.
Agriculture Canada will pay up to 50 percent of the project cost for the successful small- and medium-sized applicants, and 25 percent for those with 500 employees or more.
The program runs from April 1, 2022, to March 31, 2028, or until the funds have been fully allocated. Processors can receive a maximum of $5 million.
Dairy processors, poultry processors, hatcheries, egg graders and egg processors are eligible.
Meanwhile, work continues on addressing the impacts of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement on both farmers and processors. The government has said that should happen within the year.
So far, almost $2.7 billion has been made available to farmers and $100 million to dairy processors.
In 2020, supply-managed sectors generated nearly $12 billion in farmgate sales, while dairy and poultry processing alone contributed $24 billion to the country’s manufacturing shipments.
