The federal government is betraying a promise to Ontario’s fruit and vegetable growers that it would help fund a risk management program, an industry leader told MPs last week.
Len Troup, chair of the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ Association, made a pitch to the House of Commons agriculture committee on Oct. 17 that Ottawa has an obligation to co-fund a popular and self-directed risk management program the industry has used for a decade.
The federal government has quit funding its 60 percent share of the program, leaving thousands of producers with little protection. Troup estimated the federal cost at $7 million annually.
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For the past decade, the program allowed thousands of fruit and vegetable farmers to set aside up to four percent of gross revenue, to be matched by federal and provincial contributions in individual farm accounts that resemble the now-defunct Net Income Stabilization Account program.
Crop insurance programs tailored to each crop are not available because of the number of horticultural crops.
The Ontario government has agreed to fund its 40 percent contribution for the next two years.
“We need the federal government to do the same, to extend its share of funding for … 2006 and 2007,” Troup told MPs on the Commons agriculture committee.
Ottawa is refusing to pay its share for 2006 and 2007. Officials argue that the self-directed plan is not a production insurance program because it has no premium or predictable formula for payments.
Instead, farmers have access to the pool of money and can use it when they feel it is best for their operation.
