Farm fuel exemption not enough, says APAS

Oct 24, 2018

The ag group says the federal carbon tax program will increase farmers’ production costs

By Kate Ayers
Staff Writer
Farms.com

The Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) says the feds’ new rebate and exemption system for the carbon tax program ignores the reality of Saskatchewan ag.

Although such farm fuels as diesel and gasoline will be exempt from the carbon tax, the government will tax other farm inputs including natural gas, propane, and fuel for road transport and rail transport, an APAS release said yesterday.

These fuels are critical for heating greenhouses, barns and grain dryers.

“Every producer will feel the impacts of the federal carbon tax through increased business costs,” Todd Lewis, APAS president, said in the release.

“We have no alternatives for these forms of energy use.

“We have to transport our crops and livestock to our customers around the world. And in difficult years like 2018, we have to use energy to dry grain, or it will rot,” he said.

“We have to heat livestock buildings, or animals will freeze. We have no choice.”

Farmers already seek ways to reduce energy usage and expenses, Lewis added.

“This policy will only add costs to our bottom line, without addressing the issue of reducing carbon emissions,” Lewis said.

Ottawa’s national climate policy will be set at $20 per tonne. This price will come into effect in April and will increase by $10 per tonne per year until 2022.

Once the program is in place, the tax will cost the average Saskatchewan household $403, Ralph Goodale, the minister of public safety, said in an announcement in Regina yesterday.

BirdofPrey/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.