Alberta updates farm safety legislation

Nov 27, 2019

The Farm Freedom and Safety Act ensures basic safety standards on all farms

By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com

Alberta’s provincial government has published its revamped version of farm safety legislation.

Agriculture and Forestry Minister Devin Dreeshen introduced Bill 26, known as the Farm Freedom and Safety Act, on Nov. 20.

The ag ministry held 25 consultations between July and August to give farmers a chance to weigh in on the bill.

“We promised Albertans we would consult first and legislate second – and that’s exactly what we did,” Dreeshen said in a statement. “We’ve taken this feedback and built common-sense farm workplace legislation that works for people, not against them.”

The bill outlines multiple changes designed to give farmers more flexibility with respect to insurance and reduce red tape.

Farms and ranches with more than five waged non-family employees, for example, must have workplace insurance but can choose between purchasing the insurance from the Workers Compensation Board (WCB) of Alberta or from a private provider.

For comparison, Bill 6 mandated that all insurance for paid ag workers came from the WCB.

Industry organizations are optimistic the bill accounts for the nuances of a family farm operation.

“We appreciate the government’s recognition that operating a farm business is unique, and with that comes its own unique needs,” Hannah Konschuh, co-chair of the Alberta Wheat Commission, said in a statement on Nov. 21. “The new legislation will allow for more flexibility while maintaining safety standards.”

If passed, the bill would fulfill one of Premier Jason Kenney’s campaign promises of repealing Bill 6, which Rachel Notley’s NDP government passed in 2015.

Farms.com has reached out to Minister Dreeshen, industry groups and Lorne Dach, the NDP’s agriculture critic, for comment.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.