Details continue to be finalized on the federal and provincial BSE compensation program, says the head of Alberta Agriculture’s rural services division.
John Knapp said the compensation program for animals slaughtered since the closure of the border have been broken down into smaller categories.
In cattle, payments are made for several groups including steers and heifers, D1 and D2 cows, boners and cutter animals also known as D3 and D4, two groups of veal calves – the milk-fed veal mostly in Ontario and Quebec, grain-fed veal and bulls.
Read Also
Alberta researcher helps unlock the economics of farming
Lethbridge Polytechnic researcher helping agriculture producers with decision-making tools in economic feasibility
Farmed elk, deer and reindeer payments will be based 100 percent on steer and heifer prices of cattle, even if the elk are older.
The bison program will be a mirror image of the cattle program. Compensation payments for a young bison will be based on steer and heifer prices. Older bison cows will be paid the same as older beef cows.
In sheep, there will be four classes of payments – lambs, heavy lambs, mutton and milk-fed lambs from Quebec. The federal government is finalizing plans for compensation for caribou and musk ox.
Knapp said the federal government has set up all classes of compensation programs and it’s now up to provincial officials to implement the programs.
By July 25, the Alberta government had paid $10-$15 million for 200 applications, representing about 20,000 animals. So far 800 applications for cattle had been received but none for other animals yet.
For the first time, payments were made for cows as well. Before, payments were made only for steers and heifers. Most of the cow slaughter was through XL Beef in Calgary, he said.
