Soil health, water conservation, retailer conduct and tariff protection are some of the top agricultural policy concerns for the New Democrats this election cycle, says NDP MP Alistair MacGregor.
MacGregor represents the riding of Cowichan-Malahat-Langford, B.C. and has been on the federal agriculture committee since 2018. He has also sponsored several bills pushing forward soil conservation and a motion recognizing the impacts of climate change on farmers.
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While his Vancouver Island riding may not be an agricultural powerhouse like southwestern Ontario or the Prairies, MacGregor still spoke of the “long, storied history” of farming in the Cowichan Valley and the importance of recognizing differences in Canada’s agricultural landscape.
“Agriculture is a shared jurisdiction between the provinces and the federal government,” he said. “So, when you are talking about a national strategy, it has to be nimble enough to recognize the variances that exist across the country and also … nimble enough to respect those differences.”
He said he also owns a small hobby farm where he raises animals and grows fruit and vegetables for his family.
According to MacGregor, one of the NDP’s main focuses in the 2025 federal election will be continuing to develop a strategy for soil health across Canada.
“Many farmers have told me at the committee and out on the farms … that’s the building block to everything,” he said.
“With the adverse weather events that we are getting, which are becoming much more severe and much more frequent, being driven by climate change, I think that we have to start treating soil as an incredibly important and strategic asset in maintaining our ability to grow food.”
MacGregor has previously taken on the issue of soil health in his own political work, sponsoring Bill c-290, “An Act respecting soil conservation and soil health.” He also said he has spoken with Senator Rob Black, who has taken on a similar initiative in the report “Critical Ground.”
Extreme weather and droughts in B.C. have led to water conservation and retention becoming major issues for farmers. MacGregor said he has looked to Australia’s growers for inspiration on solutions.
“They are so used to periods without rain during their calendar year that almost every farm that you see in states like Tasmania, where it’s a pretty temperate climate, water storage is just the status quo.”
“I think we are going to have to start adapting in that way, and it’s going to need partnership with the senior-most levels of government.”
MacGregor said the NDP is aware of the toll U.S. tariffs have taken on Canadian farmers, though it can be difficult to determine correct approaches when the situation is still developing.
“For agriculture, I think, like other sectors, they expect and they need a federal government that is … prepared to fight back, to make Americans understand that pain can be felt on both sides of the border,” he said.
“We’re not going to do this proactively, but we will respond in kind to any tariffs that are levied on us. But we also need a federal government that’s willing to support industries to make sure that there are financial measures in place to provide those important backstops.”
“We have to respond accordingly,” he continued. “And I wish I could give you something more firm than that, but I think because of the mercurial nature of the (U.S.) President, and we’re not entirely sure which way the White House is going to land … there’s just so much uncertainty that I think policy-making and responses have to be nimble.”
Another stance MacGregor said the NDP would take to support producers is creating a grocery code of conduct to regulate pricing practices.
“Our producers and also our consumers have been having a pretty rough go of it over the last few years,” he said. “I know that many farmers have been suffering from really high input costs, and I know that when it comes to getting their goods to market, there’s a terrific power imbalance for them compared to the to what grocery retail holds.
“When you’ve got five companies controlling 80 per cent of the grocery retail market, there’s a really big power imbalance there, and that’s why you have seen those calls for a grocery code of conduct to really make the relationship between those two a lot fairer.”
Similarly, he pointed to the struggle for farmers to afford gas and the high profit margins of oil and gas companies as an area where his party “can put a little bit more fairness back into the system to benefit both primary producers and consumers.”
As for his own role within the party, McGregor could end up shouldering more of the party’s agriculture file as fellow former NDP agriculture critic Richard Cannings has opted not to seek re-election.
“I’d welcome it. I absolutely have loved my time on the Agriculture Committee,” MacGregor said. “In the time that I’ve been there, I’ve demonstrated an ability to form some really great relationships with farmers and farm organizations from right across the country.
“I’ll serve where asked, but absolutely, agriculture will always have a very special place in my heart, and I would consider a very real honour to be asked to continue serving in that role.”
