The prairie political demand that cheaper post-subsidy grain prices should attract more chicken production to the region appears to be bearing fruit.
Chicken Farmers of Canada statistics published last week show that during the first 10 weeks of the year, prairie production increased more than 15 percent from last year.
For months, there has been a campaign by agriculture ministers in Manitoba and Saskatchewan to convince supply management agencies that more production should be moved to the Prairies, where grain is cheaper.
Last year, the CFC developed a new system of quota allocation, which favors the Prairies for the next few years.
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Last week, it said national production increased 7.8 percent during the first 10 weeks of the year.
The increases were greater on the Prairies – 12.8 percent in Alberta, 18.1 percent in Saskatchewan and 15.9 percent in Manitoba.
David Fuller, newly elected president of Chicken Farmers of Canada, said in an interview the new national quota allocation has flexibility, which has favored lower-cost western provinces.
“That is what has happened,” he said. “I cannot say what will happen next year. But there is flexibility.”
CFC figures indicate that by mid-March, the three prairie provinces had produced 25 million kilograms of chicken. With British Columbia included, the West produced almost 50 million kg – 30 percent of the national total.
Despite Saskatchewan’s 18 percent increase, it remains Canada’s third smallest producer, ahead of only Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland.
