Agriculture and Agri-Food  Madam Speaker, gouging fees by grocery giants could put farmers and processors out of business in the middle of a pandemic, putting Canadians' jobs and their food security at risk. The government should tell Canadians that it will take action now: not tomorrow and not next week, but now.

Agriculture and Agri-Food  Madam Speaker, Loblaws, Metro and Walmart are increasing fees to suppliers for the privilege of selling to their grocery stores. On Wednesday, the CEO of Sobeys announced that his grocery chain would not increase fees to farmers and processors. He said, “I don't think it's healthy …some of these behaviours are just plain bad for Canada.”

Agriculture and Agri-Food  Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister needs to understand that the last thing that Canadians need during these trying times is an unfair hit on their grocery bills. Walmart is not alone. Sobeys, Metro and others have jumped on this bandwagon. Clearly, we have a competition problem for Canadians.

COVID-19 Emergency Response  And friends in the big grocery business. Mr. Speaker, the mandatory isolation program is about to expire on October 31, which is this Saturday. While the isolation protocols are still in place for seasonal workers, Canadian farmers are already stretched to the max with COVID-19 mitigation, with market losses and loss of sales, and with AgriStability not working as it should.

Agriculture and Agri-Food  Mr. Speaker, big grocery corporations have decided that they need to make more money off the backs of Canadians in the middle of the pandemic. Walmart started it this summer when it announced that it would be charging their suppliers increased fees to pay for store upgrades. That means more expensive food and it also puts Canadian jobs at risk.

International Trade  Mr. Speaker, Canadians are getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving, yet Canada's poultry, egg and turkey farmers are still waiting for support measures that they have been promised by the Liberal government as a result of trade concessions. The government is not acting thankful to these farmers who have been working hard and giving to ensure Canadians are fed.

International Trade  Mr. Speaker, it has been reported that the U.S. trade representative is contemplating putting protectionist measures on Canadian blueberries. The B.C. Blueberry Council has been forced to hire a legal team because of the Liberal government's routine trade relations blunders. The worst part about this is that farmers from the west coast, in the Fraser Valley, and the east coast, in Oxford, Nova Scotia, have never been a priority for the Prime Minister.

Agriculture in Alberta  Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleagues from Bow River and Lakeland in Alberta for taking me on a tour to meet with dozens of producers and farmers last week. There is so much to be proud of when it comes to Alberta's contribution to Canada's agriculture sector, but the devastation that I witnessed in Lakeland and the feeling of the government's abandonment is more intense than anything I have ever seen.

Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply  Madam Speaker, I would like to point out that most of the new money put out by the government was reallocated from other programs already budgeted for under every year's budget. As for the carbon tax, I have had the opportunity to meet with farmers already from across the country and will continue meeting with farmers.

Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply  Madam Speaker, this is just another example of how the government keeps telling farmers it is going to do something and we have not seen any actions. Dairy farmers have been promised compensation under some of the trade agreements, such as CPTPP and CETA, and have yet to see any action.

Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply  Madam Speaker, I look forward to continuing to work with the member on the agriculture committee, and hopefully we will be able to have those meetings. As you mentioned, we also had some emergency meetings planned prior to prorogation to hear from our friends in the supply management sector on chicken, turkey and eggs.

Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply  Madam Speaker, likewise, I am hopeful that the government will recognize the urgent need to sit down with beef and pork producers and processors to find actionable solutions to solve the processing capacity bottleneck, especially in Ontario. Aside from the immediate reduction in food output, many farmers are worried that they will be pushed out of business if obstacles are not immediately removed.

Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply  Madam Speaker, I am proud to be the voice for my constituents of Lambton—Kent—Middlesex and, now, the new shadow minister of agriculture and agri-food on behalf of farmers and agricultural producers. It is a tremendous honour and responsibility that I do not take lightly. Over the past several months, we have seen our country go through a lockdown, when Canadians were asked to stay at home and keep safe, except for those who worked on the front lines.

Agriculture  Mr. Speaker, farmers take pride in being stewards of their land, ensuring it is sustainable for generations to come while lowering carbon emissions. While their campaign speech yesterday recognized these efforts, the Liberals' words still do not match their actions. To date, grain farmers have two options for drying their grain: natural gas or propane.

Agriculture  Mr. Speaker, the agriculture industry has been through a lot, even before the pandemic. The pandemic has made existing problems worse and added new ones. Whether it is competitiveness, market access, processing capacity or reduced production, farmers have needed an action plan for some time.