Thank you, Minister, for coming today. I also want to thank you.... I don't know if we've seen you in committee since you came up to Dawson Creek and talked to the farmers in the B.C. Peace and the Alberta Peace regions. They sure appreciated your being there and your frank words about the situations, and that you're concerned about them. I think that's what they noticed in the meeting.
As you know, our government brought in marketing freedom for western Canadian farmers. It was a few years back. It has been a proud moment ever since. That was something we can backstop against.
Where are we now and in the future in terms of economic development for farmers? What are we doing now? That's still ongoing. We had record crops last year, and they were struggling to make them to market, but that's a good problem, I would suggest.
What are we doing in terms of tangible economic benefits for western Canadian farmers specifically?