Pre-Applications For 2018-19 Cash Advance Payment Program Now Being Accepted

 

Farmers and Ranchers who may need a little extra financial help can access funds through the federal government’s 2018-2019 Cash Advance Payments Program.

 

The Cash Advance program is administered through the Canadian Canola Growers Association (CCGA).

 

CEO Rick White says they’re taking pre-applications right now while farmers have the time to do the paperwork.

 

"Through CCGA, we now offer advances on about 45 different commodities including all field crops and a lot of the livestock communities as well," he said. "It's kind of a one-stop shop where farmers can take advance out of probably just about anything they may have on the farm. That gives them a lot of flexibility in terms of the amounts that their eligible for and the way that they can pay the advances back."

 

Farmers interested in applying can send in their pre-application now, so they have the money in early April.

 

White says under the program, farmers are eligible for a cash advance, of up to $400,000, with $100,000 of that being interest-free.

 

"Typically we usually issue about 10,000 advances under the program in any given year, and that was the case for this past year," he said. "The total value of the program on any giving year, we run from 1.3 to 1.6 billion dollars a year and this year was just under 1.4 billion so it was right kind of the average mark for us."

 

Video: Finding a Balance of Innovation and Regulation - Dr. Peter Facchini

Regulations help markets and industry exist on level playing fields, keeping consumers safe and innovation from going too far. However, incredibly strict regulations can stunt innovation and cause entire industries to wither away. Dr. Peter James Facchini brings his perspective on how existing regulations have slowed the advancement of medical developments within Canada. Given the international concern of opium poppy’s illicit potential, Health Canada must abide by this global policy. But with modern technology pushing the development of many pharmaceuticals to being grown via fermentation, is it time to reconsider the rules?

Dr. Peter James Facchini leads research into the metabolic biochemistry in opium poppy at the University of Calgary. For more than 30 years, his work has contributed to the increased availability of benzylisoquinoline alkaloid biosynthetic genes to assist in the creation of morphine for pharmaceutical use. Dr. Facchini completed his B.Sc. and Ph.D. in Biological Sciences at the University of Toronto before completing Postdoctoral Fellowships in Biochemistry at the University of Kentucky in 1992 & Université de Montréal in 1995.