The United States did it in late August or early September, rapidly injecting $1 billion through the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. They quickly realized that businesses needed cash. The message we got from our businesses after the holidays was that they needed cash too.
The government created the Canada emergency business account, but the repayment window has been extended to the end of 2023. We'd like to see the program continue to provide access to cash.
You heard what was said earlier about interest rates going up over 4%. The farming sector is $129 billion in debt. If 100% of the payments on that debt resume, that amounts to $5.5 billion, while the net income in the sector is $6 billion. Surely you can understand that our flexibility is being taken away immediately before we've been able to accomplish anything.
Also, it's projected that it may be as high as 50%, in terms of repayment or renewal of loans. In any event, it's going to have a huge impact over the next two years. That's why cash needs to be available.
We're also meeting environmental expectations. As members of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri‑Food, you often hear about climate change, greenhouse gases and various indicators and targets. It takes cash to be able to support the farming sector, knowing just how much the sector has invested or borrowed in the past few years.