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Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives Minister Rosann Wowchuk will address a range of key agricultural issues Tuesday at a meeting of federal, provincial and territorial agriculture ministers in Calgary.

 

“Canada’s agriculture ministers are committed to taking meaningful action on the sector’s most pressing challenges,” Wowchuk said.  “We have a shared commitment to work together to build a strong future for Canadian agriculture.”

 

Ministers will tackle a broad agenda including the next generation of agriculture and agri-food policy, business risk management, traceability, feed ban regulations and Canada’s avian influenza preparedness.

 

Wowchuk said a number of issues must be included in any new agreement on the next generation of agriculture policy including:

·         profitability as an overarching theme,

·         value-chain development that encourages opportunities for commercialization, and

·         an infrastructure fund focused on areas such as water supply, waste-water treatment, high-speed internet access to support farm-business activities, and transportation infrastructure to support value-added processing.

 

The minister said she will discuss Manitoba’s concern over the federal government’s aggressive action toward dismantling the Canadian Wheat Board’s single desk with her counterparts from across the country.  She noted the issue has potential consequences not only for the pocketbooks of Manitoba farmers, but for Canada’s agricultural sector as a whole.

 

Wowchuk said she will also advocate for changes to the Canadian Agriculture Income Stabilization program to ensure CAIS is reformed to become more responsive to producers’ needs.

 

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