The Alberta minister of agriculture has promised to keep talking with provincial beef organizations to resolve the debate over service charges on cattle sales.
“Alberta is well-positioned to be the leader in the beef industry. As minister, I intend to continue the conversation on how the service charge matter can be changed to support this success,” Oneil Carlier said in a letter read at the Alberta Beef Producers annual meeting held in Calgary Dec. 5-7.
The ABP approved a resolution to make the $2 checkoff non-refundable. The checkoff was non-refundable until 2009, when the province changed the legislation to make all commodity group service charges refundable.
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In total, $3 is charged every time an animal is sold. It is split in two parts with $1 going to the Canadian beef check-off agency, which distributes the money for national research, beef promotion and marketing. The remaining money goes to ABP, the legal entity charged with dispersing money for research and marketing in the province.
The national portion is non-refundable.
Currently, more than 30 percent, or $2.3 million, of the money is refunded. That leaves the beef producers with an annual budget of $4.9 million for the 2016-17 fiscal year, and the organization struggles to meet its financial commitments.
“We are not able to make the major investments in marketing and research activities that we did in the past so we see that as a very challenging area for us as an industry,” said Rich Smith, executive director of the ABP.
The group has been talking with the province and Alberta Cattle Feeders Association about a new framework to manage the checkoff, but little progress had been made. The feedlot sector receives the largest share of the rebate among those that request it.
In addition, the national checkoff is poised to increase from $1 to $2.50.
Nova Scotia will implement the increased national checkoff starting in January, while other provinces are considering April 2017, said Melinda German, manager of the Canadian Beef Checkoff Agency, the legal entity that oversees the national checkoff.
Funding shortfalls place research projects in jeopardy.
“One of the biggest issues we have right now is around national checkoff. Revenues are declining because of reduced marketings and because of inflation,” said Andrea Brocklebank, executive director of the Beef Cattle Re-search Council.
The council is Canada’s largest not-for-profit industry-funding agency for cattle, forage and beef research.
Next summer, the research council must submit a proposal to the federal government to ensure it receives money from the science cluster.
The next five-year research strategy runs from 2018-23 and the $2.50 levy must be in place or the industry will not be eligible for the $20 million available.
“Government will not invest in our industry if we are not prepared to invest in our industry and I think that is rational,” she said.
There are other smaller funders across the country and each contributes to projects. Those funds trigger other grants.
Another loss to the research community is the restructuring of the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency and Alberta BioInnovates.
ALMA has been absorbed into Alberta Agriculture.
Government and universities won’t maintain positions if there is no industry funding. Agriculture Canada provides infrastructure, people, livestock and funding for projects but the government could cut those back if research capacity has been lost, Brocklebank said.
