Agriculture Committee on Feb. 10th, 2026

[The Chair, Liberal, Michael Coteau]

Thank you.

Next, we'll go to Mr. Lemire for two and a half minutes.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I think there's something refreshing about the positions of the various members of the committee. There is a political problem with this, which has administrative consequences. However, I think that this is first and foremost a political decision on the part of the Liberal government.

Mr. Hanson, you indicate in the budget that you will be terminating programs that include agricultural climate solutions—living labs. I asked you what will happen to the farms, much of whose work depends on the research centre. I'll ask you the question in realer terms: Does this jeopardize the agreements signed with agricultural producers who are currently part of the living labs?

[Lawrence Hanson]

The member is quite right that the living labs program will be wound down, as announced in the budget. However, I will note a couple of things. The existing 14 projects under the living labs program are going to continue to the end of their natural and predetermined span. We will have all the data, information and value from those. It's really more that a second wave of the program won't continue. It was very much meant—and that's why there's a limited number of them and not at scale—to try to learn some initial lessons on various kinds of science questions. I think it fulfilled that purpose. We're allowing the projects to go to their end so that we're not leaving anyone in the lurch on those projects.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

According to Public Accounts of Canada 2025, you were going to invest $900 million in science and innovation in the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food.

What guarantees are there that the $900 million you were going to invest in science, research and innovation will be maintained? Are you going to reduce the amount?

[Lawrence Hanson]

The reality is that there will be some key decisions made in the future about the next agriculture policy framework. Like every department, we have programs that sunset. Some are renewed. Some are renewed at a larger amount. Some are not. I can't speculate about the future.

Again, this has been very clear. This was a specific-point-in-time exercise about reductions to meet a target. We have done that, and now we're moving forward.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

In a note, the Parliamentary Budget Officer indicated that he had requested the planned savings from the comprehensive expenditure review, a breakdown of the planned savings by program, as well as information on staff reductions and details on the potential impact on the level of service for 2026 to 2030.

Can you confirm that the information has been provided and send a copy to the committee, please?

[The Chair, Liberal, Michael Coteau]

Give a very short answer.

[Lawrence Hanson]

Thank you, Chair.

We provided the Parliamentary Budget Officer with answers to all the questions he submitted to us. I assumed this was provided to the committee as a matter of course, but we can obviously work with the committee to ensure you have it.

[The Chair, Liberal, Michael Coteau]

Mr. Barlow, you have five minutes.

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Thanks, Mr. Chair. I'm going to share my time with my colleague Mr. Gourde.

I just have a couple of very quick questions.

Mr. Hanson, I want to confirm that you said that the AAFC budget for research was about $300 million. Is that correct?

[Lawrence Hanson]

Yes, that's roughly the number—$300 million.

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Thank you.

My colleague was nice enough to talk about the importance of the climate action program and the on-farm climate action fund. An additional $300 million was announced to bring it now to $700 million. You could more than double the budget for research if you actually attributed those funds to something that works.

I want to talk about OFCAF for a second, and the climate action program. The Liberals talked about the importance of the on-farm climate action fund. The former agriculture minister announced an additional $300 million for that program, bringing it up to $700 million. You would be able to double the research budget to keep these research centres open so they could do the good work they're doing.

The Auditor General audited this program last year. Here are a couple of the comments that came from that audit: no strategy to meet the expected contributions of the program, poor results management, “unreliable and incomplete results”, and performance targets were exaggerated.

You are throwing more good money after bad in a program that clearly doesn't work. Last year, we talked to every single stakeholder. We asked them which programs they wanted to get rid of, and every single one—almost to a person—said that OFCAF is one program that could be eliminated to ensure those resources go to programs that actually work, like the research being done on the ground.

Why are you choosing programs that clearly don't work or that have no metrics to measure their success, and sacrificing the good research being done on the ground?

[Lawrence Hanson]

Thank you for the question.

In terms of OFCAF, it is important to note, first of all, that these are resources being provided directly to producers to undertake beneficial management practices on their own farms.

I would certainly never contest what the member heard from stakeholders. I will say that I did—on my own or with the minister—visit a number of producers. I've heard their appreciation for the support from OFCAF, including for things that are very useful for BMPs.

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lévis—Lotbinière, QC]

I'll take the rest of my colleague's time. I have another question.

Thank you, Deputy Minister.

On Canada's Agriculture Day, I want to thank all farmers for putting food on our tables.

I find what we're studying today unfortunate. In my province, in Saint‑Augustin‑de‑Desmaures, the Quebec Research and Development Centre is a leader in cultivar and forage crop genetics. That means hay, the foundation of our agriculture and, unfortunately, cuts are being made to that. Later on, we'll wonder why there's a lack of hay, why there's a lack of milk in the fridge and why there's a lack of steak on our tables.

Governing means making choices. I would ask the deputy minister where the order came from to make cuts to the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food's research centres. Who gave you that order?

[Lawrence Hanson]

When the CER was announced last summer, the department immediately began looking for savings across all of its activities—

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lévis—Lotbinière, QC]

Where does the order come from? Does it come from the government? Does it come from the Privy Council? Does it come from the Clerk of the Privy Council? Someone asked you to make cuts. Who was it? You can give a name or the name of an organization. Who was it?

[Lawrence Hanson]

It's not a question of a name or an organization. We provided advice to the minister based on our best understanding of where reductions could take place and have the most limited negative consequences.

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lévis—Lotbinière, QC]

Deputy Minister, did the government ask you to make cuts at the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food?

[Lawrence Hanson]

Yes. That was the whole CER exercise. All departments were asked to find operational savings.

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lévis—Lotbinière, QC]

Thank you. You've answered my question.

Governing means making choices. There are billions of dollars to buy F‑35s.

[Lawrence Hanson]

Chair, I'm sorry. I would like to say—

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lévis—Lotbinière, QC]

I'm not asking you a question. I will finish my remarks.

The government chose to invest billions of dollars in artificial intelligence and the purchase of F‑35s. There are cost overruns for artificial intelligence, but the government refuses to save a few crumbs for agriculture.

[The Chair, Liberal, Michael Coteau]

Okay. We're going to have to stop there. Thank you.

Mr. Connors, you have five minutes.

[Paul Connors, Liberal, Avalon, NL]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

[Lawrence Hanson]

I will just say that the department was asked to make reductions, but the advice—