Newfoundland’s decision to become the first province to join Ottawa’s agricultural policy framework on May 12 was not an endorsement of the controversial safety net proposals that have been opposed by many farm groups and provinces, says Newfoundland’s agriculture minister.
Rick Woodford said his province joined the framework because as the province’s smallest agricultural province, the APF’s environmental, food safety and research investment components were important potential boosters.
“We are a developing agricultural province,” he said from St. John’s. “We’re looking at five or six years of funding for things like food safety and environmental plans. As far as I’m concerned, we have a good deal for farmers here, perhaps the best we have ever seen. It will help us grow and get established.”
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He said the safety net component was not a major factor for Newfoundland.
“I understand some of the concerns outlined by farmers and other provinces about business risk management,” Woodford said.
“They are not really our concerns so much because the BRM just isn’t as important to us. My concerns are different from a province like Prince Edward Island where there is much more volatility.”
Fur farmer Marvin Wiseman, president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Agriculture, said he agreed with the minister’s position, even though he also supports the Canadian Federation of Agriculture’s national campaign against the APF design details.
“I think this offers a strategic approach, more stability and less ad hoc,” he said.
“But I agree with the CFA that more details are needed and changes should be made for those provinces that really need it. I can’t say it (the safety net plan) is a good deal or a bad deal. No one really knows how it will work.”
Although some provinces and farm leaders have complained that Ottawa has used “bully tactics” to get the program design it wants, Woodford said that was not his experience.
“I know some have said that, but I didn’t find it at all,” he said. “Overall, we were given every opportunity we needed to make our points. I thought we had a good working relationship with Ottawa.”
