He’s married to former federal ag minister Marie-Claude Bibeau
Bernard Sévigny, a former TVA journalist and the former mayor of Sherbrooke is Quebec’s new minister of agriculture, fisheries and food.
Premier Paul St-Pierre Plamondon revealed Sévigny, the MNA for Richmond, and the rest of his Parti Québécois cabinet during an Oct. 21 swearing-in ceremony.
“The person who will represent agricultural producers in the cabinet has a perfect profile to bridge the gap between farmers, the government and cities,” Plamondon said prior to introducing Sévigny.
Sévigny, the husband of former federal ag minister and current mayor of Sherbrooke Marie-Claude Bibeau, served as the city’s mayor from 2009 to 2017.
Some initiatives for the city during his tenure highlighted local agriculture and food.
This work included:
- Continuing to support the Marché de la Gare de Sherbrooke’s development as a market for local food producers.
- Endorsing a food policy for municipal sports facilities to provide access to healthier food options.
- Supported a 2014 land-use and development plan that included protecting farmland.
In addition to the ag portfolio, Sévigny will serve as the minister responsible for l’Estrie, a region covering Quebec’s Eastern Townships.
This area, according to provincial data, had 4,034 farms covering more than 2.1 million acres. The region also accounts for about 13 per cent of the province’s maple syrup production.
During the election campaign, St-Pierre Plamondon highlighted his party’s vision for agriculture.
These commitments include increasing the ag budget from 0.9 to 1.5 per cent over 10 years, removing Quebec from the Alto rail project, and eliminating tax barriers for land transfers.
He also told voters the minister of agriculture would be a key figure in his cabinet.
He echoed that sentiment during the swearing-in ceremony.
“Under our government, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food will be a ministry that is a matter of public safety and the economy,” Plamondon said. “Farmers are entrepreneurs. Let’s be proud of their work and the local food that ends up on our plates.”
Quebec ag organizations welcomed Sévigny into cabinet and laid out their expectations for the new minister.
Farmers expect an “unwavering commitment to protecting the land and agricultural activities. Our arable land represents a limited, non-renewable resource that is essential to Quebec society. This concern extends to private forests and maple groves on public lands,” L’Union des producteurs agricoles said in a statement.