Risk management can help navigate tariff uncertainty

Mar 25, 2025

The escalating trade war between Canada and the United States, along with China’s targeted levies on Canadian canola oil and meal, is causing uncertainty for Alberta’s agribusinesses and farmers and ranchers.

With tariffs and retaliatory measures threatening to disrupt supply chains, lower commodity prices and increase input costs, it’s crucial for producers to adopt strategies to protect their businesses.

“As primary producers, Alberta’s farmers and ranchers can’t do much to prevent a trade war,” said Darryl Kay, Agriculture Financial Services (AFSC) chief executive officer. “However, they can take steps to mitigate the impacts of tariffs as much as possible.

“AFSC’s risk management programs are designed to support producers when they face challenges and help them grow their businesses.”

With crop insurance, income stabilization, Livestock Price Insurance and Lending options, AFSC offers risk management tools that help Alberta’s producers handle various situations, from production loss due to weather conditions to margin decline caused by market conditions beyond their control.

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Video: LALEXPERT: Sclerotinia cycle and prophylactic methods

White rot, also known as sclerotinia, is a common agricultural fungal disease caused by various virulent species of Sclerotinia. It initially affects the root system (mycelium) before spreading to the aerial parts through the dissemination of spores.

Sclerotinia is undoubtedly a disease of major economic importance, and very damaging in the event of a heavy attack.

All these attacks come from the primary inoculum stored in the soil: sclerotia. These forms of resistance can survive in the soil for over 10 years, maintaining constant contamination of susceptible host crops, causing symptoms on the crop and replenishing the soil inoculum with new sclerotia.