Sure, you bet.
I was saying that it's a $15 billion program so it has a $15 billion impact on the economy. With the right tools we've been able to start basically from scratch in the 1970s with canola. As with any crop, canola is grown in rotation....
Our organization deals with canola, but we definitely need to be working with other groups out there. Other groups don't have the background and the financial strength that we have.
The paperwork for DIAP and the Growing Forward program is sometimes very cumbersome. We would encourage the committee to look into more expedient methods to lessen some of the paper requirements so that some of the more fragile or less secure organizations could participate and have the type of success SaskCanola has had over the years.
We also encourage, right alongside DIAP, shorter programs that would help some of the researchers find their way. Sometimes a five-year program ends up taking a lot of resources, and some of the researchers find themselves on the outside looking in. It would be good to have alongside it maybe some shorter-term, same term, and long-term types of funding projects.
We can see at times that tightened budgets are happening, and it seems as if this comes from the top down. We would like to know what kinds of cuts we are looking at and, accordingly, maybe could help you figure out what projects are the most valuable to our industry. Being more at the ground level, we can assess some of the more valuable projects, the ones that have a bigger bang for the buck and that should keep going. If we are in an era of tighter budgets, we definitely need to be consulted.
One big thing is that we need to be able to collaborate with other crops in the sector so that problems can be dealt with better. Sometimes there are common interests, such as regarding an insect that's going to be a problem in canola and might be a problem for other crops. It would be good to have the funding to encourage work across parts of the agriculture industry.
To sum it up, we appreciate the Growing Forward program, and we definitely want to continue. We are very appreciative of the fact that we can participate in this consultation. To us, it means that you guys are connected and want to make sure that you're providing the right programs.
We have several recommendations. First, reduce the administrative burden where possible. Second, manage payments to organizations in a timely manner, which sometimes can be a little bit of a struggle. Third, develop programs for emerging issues that are not restricted to a five-year timeline. Fourth, allow the industry to determine priorities and the allocation of funds to those priorities. Finally, provide a method of funding collaborative projects within the agriculture crop sector to encourage crop groups to work together.
With that, thanks again. If there are any questions, we're right here. I can answer some questions in French, if my French is not too rusty.