Farm group says federal support doesn’t go far enough

While the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) was pleased to see the federal government respond to tariffs on agricultural products more still needs to be done.

Ottawa offered a variety of supports for canola producers and APAS President Bill Prybylski said it is a step in the right direction; however, he is unsure whether the measures go far enough to fully compensate what producers are going to lose.

Prime Minister Mark Carney introduced an increase in the interest-free portion of the Advance Payments Program (APP) to $500,000. Prybylski said it will help producers with cash flow, should they need it.

“They have the option to lock the doors on the bins and hopefully wait and hope that the canola prices improve. But producers don’t necessarily need more debt,” he said. “It will help with flexibility to market their grain or wait to market their grain until things improve.”

The Agri-Marketing Program was expanded to include a $370 million biofuel incentive. Prybylski said the effects of these announcements aren’t going to be felt for quite some time.

“These are things that are going to have some long-term effects on canola pricing. But right now, producers are worried about this year’s crop and how canola prices have declined and we’re looking for some relief in the short term. So, these programs, while they certainly are welcome, aren’t going to help us in the short term,” he said.

Canola has been garnering a lot of attention in the media because it is a significant crop in Saskatchewan in particular. Prybylski pointed out that support for pea producers was not included.