Everyone will be a winner – farmers, food traders, merchandisers and consumers – once the agricultural policy framework expected to be launched this week is implemented, Parliament was told last week by Agriculture Canada.
The unspoken message to MPs who have had e-mail systems closed down by hundreds of farmer protests was: forget the farmer carping and provincial resistance to the APF. This is good.
Parliament was given the good news version of the APF March 29, when Agriculture Canada tabled its report on plans and priorities for the fiscal year beginning April 1.
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“The sector is positioned for greater business stability and long-term profitability, while Canadian consumers living in urban and rural areas can enjoy greater assurance about the safety and quality of their food as well as the environmentally responsible methods used to produce this food,” said the report.
The departmental blueprint acknowledged that farmers face growing pressures from weather-related catastrophes like drought, foreign competition and increasing consumer questions about what they are eating.
In this environment “success depends on a responsive and comprehensive approach that manages the risks of the agriculture and agri-food business,” said the presentation.
And backstopped by a $5.2 billion six-year commitment of federal funds, to be supplemented by provincial spending, Ottawa is preparing to provide that certainty and management, MPs were told.
“The new direction will provide such an approach, helping our farmers in rural communities and other members of the sector meet and beat the competition today and giving them the edge to continue to thrive in the future,” said the Agriculture Canada promo to Parliament.
“The federal government is leading a dedicated and sustained effort to place Canada first as the global leader in agriculture and agri-food products.”
It said that during the next three years, a new and better system will evolve, supported by Ottawa and the provincial and territorial governments. At time of writing, some key provinces including Quebec and Ontario have refused to endorse the federal plan.
The department said Ottawa is working with farmers to create new safety nets affecting business risk management. In reality, this has been the government’s toughest sell as farmers insist Ottawa is not getting it right and should not proceed until it does.
There was no mention of this disagreement.
However, the APF was touted as a strategy to ensure steady supply of safe, high quality food with the advantage of being produced in environmentally sustainable ways.
The government goal is “to secure the recognition our world leadership in food production deserves and ensure our sector has the international market access it needs to take maximum advantage of its leadership position.”
The Agriculture Canada outlook document to Parliament was part of the background on future plans and priorities provided by all departments before MPs vote on spending requests for the next fiscal year.
