There won’t likely be a sudden boom in livestock barn construction in Manitoba.
However, the Progressive Conservative government’s crusade against “red tape” will make it easier for farmers to go forward with plans obstructed or stymied by the former New Democratic Party government.
“All the regulations still stand,” Andrew Dickson, general manager of the Manitoba Pork Council, said about legislation that will remove the effective moratorium on hog barns that has caused the industry to stagnate and shrink since 2007.
“We’ll get some (barns built), but you still have to meet all the standards and you still have to make a business case for why you want to build a barn.”
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Keystone Agricultural Producers president Dan Mazier also doesn’t expect to see an instantaneous rush of farmers to build new barns but said the red tape reduction legislation and changes to the building code are a giant relief for livestock producers.
Poultry farmers were especially vexed by former rules that forced barns to be built as if they were industrial or commercial structures used by and for humans. That could have forced inappropriate building materials to be used and designs that didn’t make sense for livestock production.
Some producers will probably consider building new barns and replacing old structures now that farm buildings can generally follow the national farm building code, Mazier said.
The PC government’s red tape reduction legislation touches many areas of Manitoba’s economy, but agriculture is one of the most affected. The legislation changes laws on noxious weeds and veterinary services boards as well as hog barns.Â
Mazier said he thinks taking some of these areas out of legislation and governing them through regulations, which can more easily be amended, makes sense for fluid and developing industries.
