By the time Parliament rises for the summer late this week, legislation expanding and enriching the farmer cash advance program should be the law of the land.
Last week, amendments to the Agricultural Marketing Programs Act passed second reading and committee study in the Senate. It could receive final approval as early as June 20.
The legislation combines spring and fall cash advance programs, doubles the interest-free portion to $100,000 and the total borrowing limit to $400,000, and extends the payback period to 18 months. For the first time, livestock and some horticultural products will be eligible to be used as collateral to borrow against in the cash advance program.
Read Also
Final crop reports show strong yields, quality
Crops yielded above average across the Prairies this year, and quality is generally average to above-average.
CWB vote debated
The House of Commons was scheduled to debate this week a demand from the Liberal party that a change in the Canadian Wheat Board mandate should be made only after a vote by the board’s permit book holders.
Conservative MPs were expected to oppose the proposal.
Wheat board chair Ken Ritter, a Saskatchewan farmer, said he once believed the board monopoly should end. Since then, sales data that he cannot make public have convinced him the board monopoly makes money for farmers.
David Anderson, Saskatchewan Conservative MP and parliamentary secretary to the agriculture minister responsible for wheat board issues, offered a different view.
He said western grain farmers voted in the January election for the Conservatives, which had a platform promise of marketing choice. Anderson would not commit to a farmer vote on wheat board mandate change.
Trade tension erupts
Tensions between competing agricultural visions about a world trade deal came out last week during a Parliament Hill hearing.
Liberal agriculture critic Wayne Easter accused the pro-free trade group Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance of giving comfort to the “enemies” of Canada’s balanced trade position when it insists Canada is isolated in trade talks because of its inflexible support of supply management.
“I am absolutely surprised that CAFTA would allow itself to be led down a path to jeopardize Canada’s position by listening to the enemy who want to get that information out there,” said Easter.
CAFTA vice-president Alanna Koch responded that Canada indeed is isolated and is jeopardizing a successful WTO outcome by its inflexibility.
She said Canada’s balanced position, which is supposed to represent both exporters and import-sensitive sectors, is not balanced. Defence of supply management has taken precedence.
Meanwhile, supply management leaders at the same House of Commons agriculture committee meeting said the balance has been toward the exporters because they are being promised an end to export subsidies, sharply lower trade-distorting subsidies and lower tariffs in all but sensitive product areas.
