When Garry Tolton set out to diversify his farm in 1976, he faced a serious hurdle.
He wanted to build a new swine feeder barn, but his section of land near Newdale, Man., was heavily mortgaged. His search for a lender took him to the Manitoba Agricultural Credit Corporation, where he got a loan with an interest rate below seven percent.
That loan allowed him to establish a 30-sow, farrow-to-finish operation, something he doubts would have happened without MACC.
“It gave us the security of being in grain and livestock at the same time,” said Tolton, who continues to farm at Newdale. “Usually, when one was up the other one was down.”
Read Also
Russian wheat exports start to pick up the pace
Russia has had a slow start for its 2025-26 wheat export program, but the pace is starting to pick up and that is a bearish factor for prices.
Testimonials like Tolton’s are not uncommon in Manitoba. The history of the provincial farm lending agency dates back to November 1958, when the Agricultural Credit Act was given royal assent, establishing MACC.
The agency celebrated its 40th anniversary last week with a banquet in Brandon, Man.
Despite the passing of four decades, its role remains largely unchanged: to help young farmers get started in agriculture and to support farmers’ efforts to diversify and expand.
Demand for that support has climbed sharply in recent years, said Adrian Strutinksy, a policy adviser with MACC. The demise of the Crow Benefit rail freight subsidy on grain and low commodity prices are heightening farmers’ efforts to diversify. Low interest rates also offer farmers an incentive to consolidate their debts.
“We have never been as vibrant and busy as we are now,” Strutinsky said. “We’ve had quite an increase in our business.”
In its last fiscal year, MACC loaned almost $67 million to more than 1,000 farmers. Loan guarantees topped $50 million.
Strutinksy believes MACC programs underwent more change in the past five years than in the previous 35 years. He cited some of the changes made to keep abreast of a rapidly evolving farm industry.
- Three years ago, MACC launched its diversification loan guarantee program. Strutinksy said nearly $30 million is already guaranteed through the program, aimed at encouraging private sector lending for farm diversification.
- A lending package tailored to bison production was created by MACC in 1996. That package includes financing for farmers wanting to buy female breeding stock.
And bison are now included in the stocker program, which offers loans to farmers buying cattle or bison to put on feed.
- Last year, the agency took full responsibility for the Manitoba Cattle Feeders Loan Guarantees program. The program can provide loan guarantees on behalf of feeder associations wanting to buy more cattle.
The Delta Plains Cattle Feeders Co-op is among those benefiting from the program. Based out of MacGregor, Man., the feeders co-operative has 32 members with 3,500 head of cattle on feed.
“We wouldn’t be able to do this without MACC’s involvement,” said Rob Smith, manager of the co-operative. “They’re very much a part of it.”
