Farmers want change to BRM programs, Minister Greg Morrow said
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
Nova Scotia Agriculture Minister Greg Morrow’s approach to the FPT ag ministers’ meeting in Whitehorse in July included echoing the voices of farmers from his province.
“My big focus was what I was hearing from farmers in Nova Scotia, and that was changes to our business risk management programs,” he told Farms.com. “These programs need to work for farmers and the general feeling we get across the board is that they just aren’t right now.”
Hurricanes, flooding and wildfires in recent years necessitate changes BRM programming, the minister added.
In a joint communiqué following the meeting, federal, provincial and territorial ag ministers committed to working to ensure programs like AgriRecovery or AgriStability are timely, responsive and predictable for farmers.
The next step for Minister Morrow is to meet with industry stakeholders and identify areas for improvement.
Greg Morrow
“I hang my hat on my relationship with industry, talking with them to figure out what their needs are and bring those ideas to the proper channels,” he said. “We want to be proactive to come up with ways to make immediate changes.”
An announcement to come out of the FPT meetings was Canada’s major grocery retailers signing onto the Grocery Sector Code of Conduct, and a $1.2 million investment to establish an adjudication office.
People across Canada can be confident about what the code of conduct will ensure, Morrow said.
“This isn’t going to lower prices at the grocery store but there will be certain safeguards in place for when doing business with large retailers,” he said. “And I can tell you when I speak with farmers about this, they are very encouraged by this as well.”
Farms.com will continue to connect with provincial ag ministers following the FPT meeting wrap up.
Pam Alexis, B.C.’s minister of agriculture, told Farms.com all ministers were united in the need to improve BRM programs. And that she specifically highlighted mental health for producers, especially when facing tough disease, pest, or weather challenges.
The next FPT ag ministers’ meeting is scheduled for July 2025 in Winnipeg, Man.