Anti-separatist movement targets rural Alberta

Sep 12, 2025

As former Progressive Conservative deputy premier Thomas Lukaszuk embarks on his Alberta Forever Canada citizen petition campaign, something has gnawed at the back of his mind — where is the voice of agriculture in all of this?

Lukaszuk is several weeks into a campaign to counteract the Alberta Next Panel overtures and an Alberta separation referendum question that is currently tied up in the courts over its constitutionality.

“This government has been almost singularly focusing only on oil and gas, where agriculture is rarely ever mentioned. I’ve been in this government in Alberta for almost 15 years, and held value at various portfolios, and agriculture and oil were always equals to us as the two leading industries, followed shortly thereafter by tourism,” said Lukaszuk.

“Our agricultural economy in this province is based on export. Very little food do we actually upgrade and refine in this province. Things either go to the States or they go to other countries. We have phenomenal markets and a great reputation, but a lot of this is tied to the fact that it is Canadian, and all those trade agreements are signed by Canada, and all the inspections and everything are done by Canada. Now you form this new entity, you’re starting from scratch. I am really miffed when everybody only talks about pipelines, and that is important. But what about all the other products, the agricultural products?”

Lukaszuk said there has been little discussion about what Alberta separation would mean to the agricultural sector.

How would Alberta farmers export their goods to foreign countries without access to ports?

Would a sovereign but landlocked Alberta’s international bargaining capacity be compromised if it no longer had the clout that Canada brings? What of mobility of agricultural labour and other trades with internationally recognized certification?

“This is a country of 40 million people, and we are a G7 country. They take us seriously and we to a certain extent get to dictate some of the terms,” Lukaszuk said.

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