Farmers are one of the groups Canadians respect the most, well ahead of governments, unions and large companies, according to a recent public opinion poll by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB). Despite this, Canadian ag producers face significant competitive challenges. The Federal-Provincial-Territorial (FPT) agriculture ministers must begin to address these issues at their meeting in Ottawa on Tuesday to fuel optimism in the agriculture sector in the year ahead.
“Farmers make significant economic contributions to Canada and produce some of the safest and highest quality food in the world. It is not a surprise then that 96 per cent of everyday Canadians give top marks to farmers in terms of the groups they respect the most,” said Marilyn Braun-Pollon, CFIB’s vice-president of Western Canada and Agri-business. “The priorities and concerns of farmers should be given careful consideration by policy makers meeting this week.”
CFIB’s latest Monthly Agriculture Business Barometer showed optimism in the agriculture sector has been weighed down by recent trade disputes, difficult harvest conditions in many parts of the country and costly carbon taxes. In fact, CFIB’s Agriculture Index finished the month of November at 51.1 or five points below the national average.
“The reality is farmers have faced a lot of uncertainty this year with ongoing trade disputes and a challenging harvest which has really muted their outlook for the year ahead,” explained Braun-Pollon. “We hope the ag ministers will be discussing policies this week that will help improve the bottom line of our producers.”
CFIB recently sent a letter to the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau congratulating Bibeau on her re-appointment as Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. The CFIB also outlined the policies needed to ensure Canadian agri-businesses will succeed.
“Business succession is an urgent issue across the country. We are calling on the federal government to make it easier for all small businesses, including farmers, to sell their business to their children or other family members. There also must be a concerted effort by all levels of government to create the conditions for farmers to grow and expand,” concluded Braun-Pollon.
