The Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) says Tuesday's announcement of $252 million falls short in addressing needs of agri-food's mounting losses.
The group notes while it welcomed the announcement from the federal government, the amount is not enough on its own to avert negative impacts to Canadian food supply in the coming months.
The Prime Minister did note that more assistance will be made available as needed.
CFA has been increasingly vocal over the past two weeks as the impacts of COVID-19 on Canadian agriculture continue to intensify. Farmers have been hit hard with rising operational costs, reduced processing plant capacity and closures, significant labour shortages and impacts from major reductions in the food service industry.
"Farmers are making decisions today on how confident they should be investing in further food production this year. They are making decisions right now that will have a direct impact on the variety and cost of domestic food availability for everyday Canadians," said CFA President Mary Robinson. "With such huge uncertainty in our sector and lack of a firm financial backstop, in essence we are asking our farmers to put themselves and their farms at risk to grow food for Canada. Many farmers are facing the reality that these risks are too great, and are having to modify their food production plans."
CFA worries that the government's position on using existing Business Risk Management programs, such as AgriStability, before rolling out additional funds will result in support arriving too late to make a substantial and positive impact on domestic food security.
"We understand that we aren't the only ones asking for help right now. Many sectors and industries are in desperate need of support. However, after healthcare, there is nothing more important for Canada during this pandemic than domestic food security," added Robinson.
Last week on behalf of the agri-food sector, CFA outlined an Agri-Food Emergency Fund to maintain food security for Canada. The $2.6 billion ask was submitted to government to address critical, acute challenges facing a wide range of agricultural commodities from across the country.
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