EDMONTON – Federal farm aid money should be used to keep Alberta agriculture in tune with consumer demands and the global marketplace, not to provide short-term benefits to farmers, say officials from the Alberta Grain Commission.
“We need to make sure the farmers of tomorrow are equipped with the abilities and skills to be able to produce and compete in tomorrow’s agriculture industry,” said Ken Moholitny, chair of the commission.
Alberta agriculture minister Ed Stelmach estimates the province will receive $60 to $70 million in the first year of the federal aid package. Since Alberta already has its Farm Income Disaster Program, which closely resembles the federal model, producers won’t get paid assistance money twice.
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At a March 8 meeting of the provincial legislature’s agriculture committee in Edmonton, grain commission officials were asked to propose ways of spending the federal cash.
Their suggestions included education training, agricultural promotion, funding for industry development and risk management initiatives.
Extra agriculture dollars should go to far-reaching solutions, rather than quick-fix remedies, said Moholitny in an interview.
“We need to improve the image of agriculture to attract that new farmer. We need to look to the long term rather than putting money into a farmer’s pocket today that will keep them going for another year.”
The commission’s suggestions resemble Stelmach’s priorities.
“The money has to benefit the whole agriculture and food industry,” said Stelmach in an interview earlier this month.
Research, human resource training, transportation and industry development are key areas that need more provincial funding, said Stelmach, citing upgrades at the Leduc food processing centre as an example of how industry development funds could help.
He hopes to form a committee to make recommendations on how to spend incoming cash. Industry leaders, who would make up the proposed committee, would have to ensure proposals don’t infringe on trade laws and don’t require ongoing funding, said Stelmach, adding some of the money may be spent in the next few months.
Over the past three years the Alberta government has paid out about $180 million to producers through its FIDP program. The payout for the 1998 tax year is estimated at $100 million and about $2 million has been given out so far.
