Prairie farmers and ranchers hurt by flooding and extreme wet conditions are eligible for $448 million in provincial-federal AgriRecovery aid.
As much as 13 to 14 million acres have not been seeded or were flooded after planting. There are also summer and winter livestock feed shortages for those affected in the flood regions, said federal agriculture minister Gerry Ritz.
“As things stand now pastures and cropland damaged by the floods over the past 12 months will need some time and in fact in some cases, years to rejuvenate,” said Ritz in an Aug. 4 announcement in southeast Saskatchewan.
In addition to an earlier tax deferral for those forced to sell off breeding stock the aid packages include $30 per eligible acre for crop land that could not be seeded as of June 20, 2011, and crop land that was seeded but then flooded out on or before July 31, 2011. Other assistance is also available through crop insurance programs.
For the first time help is offered to feedlot operations that lost clay bases and manure storage. The Saskatchewan Feedlot program will permit improvements to the clay base of up to $250,000. Manitoba made an earlier announcement providing $8 million for feedlots suffering serious water damage.
Livestock producers can also apply for financial assistance to help with the costs of feeding their breeding herd and transporting feed or livestock. The provinces will provide specific program details later.
