Ministers agree to part of BRM proposal

Mar 26, 2021

Canadian provincial and territorial ag ministers agreed to remove reference margin limits from AgriStability, however, did not reach a consensus on increased compensation rates

By Jackie Clark
Staff Writer
Farms.com

Yesterday the federal, provincial and territorial (FPT) ministers of agriculture from across Canada met virtually and agreed to remove the AgriStability reference margin limit, according to a March 25 release from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

“The removal of the reference margin limit will be made retroactive to the 2020 program year. In addition, the deadline for producers to enroll in the 2021 program year will be extended to June 30, 2021,” said the release.

In November, the federal government tabled a proposal to improve AgriStability by removing the reference margin limits, as well as increase the compensation rate from 70 to 80 per cent. Until the most recent FPT meeting, Prairie provinces hadn’t reached a decision on the proposal, though most other provinces had given positive responses.

Canadian agriculture groups had mixed reactions to the news.

“While Canadian Federation of Agriculture is pleased to see the removal of the reference margin limit, which has unduly and inequitably limited support for many producers since its introduction, CFA is disappointed that it appears some provinces were unwilling to adopt enhancements to the compensation rate for farmers,” said a March 25 statement from the CFA.

The organization “calls on the federal government to offer the increased compensation rate to those provinces which have indicated their support for this aspect of the federal proposal.”

The agriculture sector is in a good position to drive Canada’s economic recovery from COVID-19, Mary Robinson, president of the CFA, said in the statement.

“An enhancement to the compensation rate would ensure all producers have access to increased support when they trigger payments,” she added.

The Canadian Pork Council (CPC) also emphasized the importance of compensation rate increases.

The CPC acknowledged federal AAFC minister Marie-Claude Bibeau’s efforts to find agreement on AgriStability improvements “but are extremely disappointed that the (FPT) ministers could not reach consensus on Minister Bibeau’s proposal to improve payment rates,” said a March 25 statement.

“We know AgriStability negotiations are not easy, but removing the reference margin limit does very little for pork producers,” said Rick Bergmann, CPC, in the statement. “We expected that, in these difficult times, the prairie provincial ministers would have considered the challenges faced by pork producers.”

Bibeau called the removal of reference margin limits “a big win for farmers across Canada, resulting in about $95 million per year,” in the release from AAFC.

SusanHSmith\E+ photo

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.