In a meeting with Saskatchewan’s agricultural minister, the President of Western Canada’s largest publicly traded agricultural co-operative expressed disappointment with the federal and provincial governments’ inability to reach agreement on farm safety net programs.
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Saskatchewan Wheat Pool (SWP) president, Marvin Wiens commented: “Both Ottawa and the leaders in this province made a commitment last summer to address shortcomings to safety net programs such as crop insurance. While the province has been diligent in seeking a response from Ottawa, we are now on the verge of spring seeding and farmers are still waiting to see what risk management tools will be available.”
Wiens and other SWP representatives tabled their concerns with Clay Serby at a meeting this week. “The minister provided assurances that farmers will be given adequate time to make decisions around crop insurance when details of this year’s program are announced. The Pool remains committed to working with the province in seeking federal support for safety net improvements in time for this spring’s seeding.”
Wiens says any plan must not pit one sector of the agricultural industry against another. “While we support agricultural diversification, it cannot come at the expense of the long-term viability of the grains and oilseeds sector. Farmers need the backing of governments to counter other countries’ subsidies and retain meaningful risk management tools.”
Wiens notes that the Pool has recently implemented a wide variety of programs that provide flexible risk management options to farmers, including access to financing with competitive interest rates and extended payment periods to 31 January, well after harvest. “Our 73,000 Pool and AgPro members and customers need government to make the same commitment to develop innovative and flexible risk management tools that deliver an adequate level of support to all farmers, regardless of what they produce.”
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