Evidence of meeting #45 for Agriculture and Agri-Food in the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was farmers.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Vice-President, Ontario-Quebec Grain Farmers’ Coalition
The United States subsidizes the basis of agriculture, that is, grains. Because they keep grain prices down, animal production costs are not as high.
Bloc
Roger Gaudet Bloc Montcalm, QC
Could Canada do the same or not?
I'm asking you the question because you are agricultural producers.
Vice-President, Ontario-Quebec Grain Farmers’ Coalition
We are asking for a program that takes this issue into account.
We're asking for a supplementary program that could solve this problem.
Bloc
Roger Gaudet Bloc Montcalm, QC
If I have understood correctly, money is provided but the long-term problem remains. Short-term solutions have been found but in one year you'll have to start all over again.
I would like to hear from the others. I'm worried to see agriculture working so well in the United States but not here.
Past-President, Canadian Seed Growers Association
Yes, I'd like to comment on that. To me the difference is the American system is proactive: they plan how they're going to support their farmers years in advance. The Canadian program has been reactive: we hope we don't have to support our farmers. Over the past number of years, it's always been that we've had to, so farmers don't know here. In the U.S., farmers know and they willingly plan to spend billions of dollars every year for the next five years, as long as their farm bill goes out. We budget year by year and we hope we don't have to spend anything next year on agricultural injury--that's the difference.
President, Grain Growers of Canada
I want to give everybody here a big credit for what you've done as a government. You've moved us into the biofuels industry. That is a significant change in Canadian agriculture. We see it today. Prices are rising over what they were just last fall. We're now buying into it. You put programs in place to let us participate; that is a very large change in Canadian agriculture. It has lifted up prices like this.
Some of the things we're talking about are going to fall by the wayside in the next two years. We have to have that type of initiative that catches up. We're still catching up with the world. Europe did it, the States did it through subsidy. It might be the only good subsidy the Americans ever had was getting the biofuels, the ethanol going, and we're going to ride that wave.
So I think you should all.... I thank you for it. You've all got together and agreed to it and done it. In two years I hope I come back here and we'll be having a totally different conversation.
Second Vice-Chair, Ontario Soybean Growers
Yes, I agree with the last statement. Also, you have to remember, farmers have been trying to work with the government for a number of years. Previous governments have been trying to fix WTO for our industry for the last 15 years, and they're still working at that. Meanwhile, the U.S. and the EU still subsidize their farmers heavily.
Now we have the new APF pillars and the bioeconomy, both of which the soybean industry agrees are excellent initiatives, but we need that transition. We need to keep our farmers viable from now till these things come to fruition. Bioeconomy is only maybe a short-term fix, maybe a long-term fix. The other initiatives, the innovation, etc., under the APF will take a number of years to get to. There's nothing that will help us today that you can bring to your announcement. We need flexible programs to keep us viable till something works for our industry.
Conservative
Conservative
Larry Miller Conservative Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Thanks, gentlemen, for coming today.
Mr. Ravelli, I'd like to go back to a couple of comments you made.
For years in the farming community, I know in my area and I think across the country in general, and certainly by governments, the comments have been made and a lot of work has been done in trying to save the family farm to a degree. It's a good way of life, and that kind of thing, and a good place to raise our children. But some of your comments that I heard basically fly totally in the wind to that. You basically made the statement--I can't remember the exact words--that you just represent large farmers and basically that's the way it should go. Do you not have any small farmers who you represent? Maybe you could clarify those remarks a bit.
President, Grain Growers of Canada
Yes, thank you. I didn't mean to give that impression.
I was using the word “commercial” and I shouldn't use the word “commercial”. I should say “business”, because there are small farms that are very good business people that do very well on a small scale. That's really what I'm trying to say, that it doesn't matter how big or small you are, if you're a business looking at agriculture for your livelihood, it's different from somebody who is there for just the other values, rural values.
No, we have quite a few small farmers involved in our organization, so I didn't mean to give that impression. Certainly they're a vibrant part of Canada and that's who farmers are. I live in rural British Columbia.
I just think that it's the weighting. We have to understand in a lot of government policies we may use that “save every farm”, that older attitude, and not look to where the industry has moved. And that's really what I want, just the refocusing. I think there's a role for everybody in the business model, but I think policies have been too directed at saving everything and everybody and I think that's been to the detriment of everybody.
Conservative
Larry Miller Conservative Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON
Okay, point taken.
And you made the comment about people out there who are just there for the way of life. In Ontario we call them “hobby farmers”, and they're not really farmers. And I'm in no way....
Conservative
Larry Miller Conservative Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON
It's great to have them living there, but they're not farmers. Farmers are businessmen today. I think you agree with that.
It may have been you or maybe Mr. Phillips who talked about the way some of the provinces choose to fund agriculture. Quebec and Alberta are well known for doing that, to their credit. The bad part about that.... And I don't mean bad in a factitious way, but it creates problems on a national level, because I farm in Ontario and it's traditionally been one of the worst of all the provinces for sticking up for agriculture.
Are you really suggesting that when it comes to Alberta and Quebec, the federal government should treat the farmers in those provinces differently if those provinces fund them? Was there anybody here who...? I forget exactly who it was who spoke to that.
President, Grain Growers of Canada
The point was that the national government should set a foundation for everybody and it should be equitable across the province, producers.... It's right in my text. And we say that the provinces should be able to do whatever they like in the flexibility for companion programs within their province.
But that's the provinces deciding to do that on their own, not the federal government stepping in and adding on top of that foundation, to add to the provinces. Do you know what I mean--the 60-40 split? Adding that to another level I don't think is fair.
Conservative
Larry Miller Conservative Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON
I'll use Alberta and the beef sector as an example. The province funds the beef farmers and what have you in Alberta, and when the rest of the country is being looked after through the federal government, should they bypass Alberta farmers when it comes to the beef market there?
Conservative
Larry Miller Conservative Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON
Well, you can't have it both ways. I guess I'm--
President, Grain Growers of Canada
The provinces have always got the option to do whatever they want, and I'm good with that. Go ahead and do--
Conservative
Larry Miller Conservative Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON
But that distorts the market then, and it doesn't matter what sector it's in.
President, Grain Growers of Canada
If it distorts the market, you have to look at that, yes--
Conservative
