Canadian farmers will start benefiting almost immediately from changes included in Bill C-18, the Agricultural Growth Act. The Act received royal assent on February 25th and was officially announced today in Winnipeg by the Honourable Gerry Ritz, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. The bill amends nine pieces of agriculture-related legislation, including those affecting seeds, fertilizers, feeds, and cash advances.
“We thank the government for supporting the advancements in agriculture that will be realized from this important bill,” says Brett Halstead, President of Canadian Canola Growers Association (CCGA).
Bill C-18 includes amendments to the Agricultural Marketing Programs Act that affect how the Advance Payments Program will be delivered to farmers. “With the Agricultural Growth Act, the government has made an important program even more valuable for farmers,” says Rick White, CEO of CCGA. “As an official administrator, CCGA has already begun implementing changes that will make cash advances more accessible and more convenient for Western Canadian farmers.”
Those changes include streamlining administration of the program, expanding the cash advance offering to include all major field crops and livestock types (45 commodities in total), and making repaying advances easier.
“We’re very excited that this Act was passed in time to implement changes for our 2015-16 program pre-application launch, which begins very soon,” says White. “Western Canadian farmers will now have more flexibility in choosing the cash advance service that best meets their needs.”
Bill C-18 also innovates Canada’s Plant Breeders’ Rights Act and brings Canada into compliance with UPOV 91. This legislation could bring more access to innovative seed varieties and ensure new crop input tools are developed to address on-farm production challenges.
“Investment in new plant varieties is needed to keep Canada competitive in the oilseed market,” says Halstead. “We need sustainable farms that adapt to new pests, changing climates, evolving consumer demands, and shifting market dynamics.”
CCGA represents more than 43,000 canola farmers on national and international issues, policies and programs that impact farm profitability. CCGA is an administrator of the Advanced Payments Program in Western Canada.
Source: Canadian Canola Growers Association