Evidence of meeting #136 for Environment and Sustainable Development in the 42nd 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.
4:50 p.m.
Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Canola Growers Association
The world is a very hungry place, and it's getting bigger on the food side, so we're very much focused on food and fuel. We're there to feed the world, and the world is getting larger and hungrier.
4:50 p.m.
Mr. John Aldag (Cloverdale—Langley City, Lib.)
Thanks.
Now we'll go back to Mr. Warawa.
4:50 p.m.
Langley—Aldergrove, CPC
Mr. Innes, our time was cut short.
I have a question on the research and cutting-edge science that goes from the lab to the farmer. Would you suggest that Canada is the world leader, or one of the world leaders, in farming and canola?
4:50 p.m.
Vice-President, Public Affairs, Canola Council of Canada
When it comes to canola, we are a world leader. We produce roughly 70% of all canola traded in the world. We're a big exporter of it. As Rick outlined, our farmers are some of the most efficient in the world, and some of the most environmentally friendly, certainly when compared to farmers in other regions, whether they are in South America or Europe, as an example.
We believe we're a leading sector. We're not content to rest on our laurels. We recognize that our customers in Europe, the U.S. and Asia are demanding that we improve. We want to keep improving, but we believe we have a good record.
4:50 p.m.
Langley—Aldergrove, CPC
You said that 70% of global canola comes from Canada and 90% of what we produce is export. There are other countries that could grow canola using our technology, but right now we're a world leader and a world producer. Is that correct?
4:50 p.m.
Langley—Aldergrove, CPC
You're talking about other countries, or companies relocating to a country where they do not have the cost.... Mr. White highlighted that the carbon tax is a concern. It is a stick, so to speak, instead of a carrot.
I'm from British Columbia. We have a carbon tax. It's going up $5 a year. It's $35 a tonne. Next year on April 1, it will go up to $40 a tonne. Do you have any idea of what that is as a tax? Is it 5%, 10%, 15%? Do you have any idea?
4:50 p.m.
Vice-President, Public Affairs, Canola Council of Canada
Do you want to take this, Rick?
4:50 p.m.
Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Canola Growers Association
I don't really know.
4:50 p.m.
Langley—Aldergrove, CPC
I know the answer. I was just wondering. Most people don't know.
It's 112%, and on April 1, it will go to a little over 155%. It's a horrendous tax, one of the highest in the world, yet we're one of the cleanest in the world. That doesn't seem to make sense.
I think policies and taxes, when used appropriately.... There are industries that the government exempts in order to help them. Would you suggest that your industry could be considered to be exempt from a carbon tax?
4:50 p.m.
Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Canola Growers Association
Yes. We think that on fuel in particular, farmers should be exempt. There may be other ways to exempt farmers, but those get very difficult to find. It's embodied in machinery. It's embodied everywhere.
What we're really asking is, if a carbon tax comes in, that farmers be rewarded for credit, for the good work they've done and the good work they will continue to do. Hopefully, that would help to mitigate it, but again, it all depends on the design. We want to be in the room when, or if, this gets down to detailing.
4:50 p.m.
Conservative
Joël Godin Conservative Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
My comments are for you, Mr. White. In your statement, you mentioned that Canadian farmers have become world leaders in environmental performance, to our credit.
You also mentioned another point that I would like you to explain further. You said that, unfortunately, around the world today, some of the voices that are the loudest in support of climate change policies are also the loudest in opposing the plant and agronomic science that is helping farmers produce more with less.
Could you explain that to me? Is this a misunderstanding? I would like to understand this resistance. I'm not sure what people are really saying here.
4:50 p.m.
Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Canola Growers Association
I put it down to differences in philosophy. There are some groups that are against corporate entities, multinationals. They are against big business. They are against many things, and it's usually philosophical, right? Those are the ones who would be demanding policies and changes in the climate, etc. I think we could all say we're all concerned about it. But when we have solutions like biotechnology and chemistry and other inventions, whether they are from big business or not, they tend to dismiss them as well.
To me, it's just a difference in philosophy. They are not looking at the results, in my view.
4:55 p.m.
President, Canadian Federation of Agriculture
If you wouldn't mind, I'll just comment on that.
I think it all boils down to public trust. One of the challenges we have now with social media is that misinformation can get spread very quickly. I'm co-chairing—
4:55 p.m.
Conservative
Joël Godin Conservative Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC
I apologize for interrupting you, Mr. Bonnett.
My question is for both of you. Is this ignorance of the situation and the benefits? It's ignorance. If I interpret your reactions correctly, it's a lack of knowledge on the part of those people, isn't it?
4:55 p.m.
President, Canadian Federation of Agriculture
Yes. It is a misunderstanding. As I say, particularly with social media, I think it is so easy for somebody to post something and have everyone say, “Yeah, that's right”, and just keep hitting the resend button without stopping and taking a look.
We're doing quite a bit of work now looking at education in the classroom, training for teachers, looking at universities and making sure they have a broader discussion on these issues rather than just going with that 15-word sentence that says this is all wrong. It's about raising awareness.
4:55 p.m.
Conservative
Joël Godin Conservative Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC
Would it be better to invest in awareness programs instead of implementing a carbon tax?
4:55 p.m.
Mr. John Aldag (Cloverdale—Langley City, Lib.)
I will have to jump in here. We're at the end of the time.
We had published that this part of the meeting would only go until five o'clock, so I'm going to give the last approximately three minutes to Ms. Dzerowicz. I will give you the one-minute signal. Then Mr. Stetski's not going to get his last questions. We will go in camera.
4:55 p.m.
Davenport, Lib.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you for your excellent presentation. I'm sorry I only have three minutes and not six minutes, since I do have a lot of questions. I have a whole bunch of questions, but I'm going to follow on from Mr. Warawa's comments.
There are 181 countries that have signed on to the Paris Agreement. I would be very surprised if none of them actually end up having some sort of carbon pricing or a price on pollution that is going to be impacting the farmers. You're saying that, to your knowledge, there's none of that in place right now.
That question is for you, Mr. White, or you, Mr. Bonnett.
4:55 p.m.
President, Canadian Federation of Agriculture
I believe Australia is working on something. It's a type of credit program.
The reason our staff person is not here today is that he's in Poland at the climate conference. The World Farmers' Organisation has engaged a number of producer groups from around the world to take a look at how carbon is dealt with. They are not only looking at getting credit for carbon sequestration activities, but more importantly in some countries, it's how they mitigate some of the impacts that they are already feeling on climate change.
There is some communication taking place between farm groups now at the international level on taking a look at what could be done.
Another country I know that's really looking at the issue is New Zealand.
So there are some examples of different approaches to deal with the climate change issue.
4:55 p.m.
Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Canola Growers Association
My comments were specific to canola and our competitors, which is soybeans, globally. When we look at that, we don't see any carbon taxes from South American or the U.S. soybeans, which are huge competitors for canola, so that's where my comments were focused. That's what makes us competitive or not against those competitors in the global market.
4:55 p.m.
Davenport, Lib.
My only other comment is that I know, for the price on pollution we have put on in those provinces that don't have their own system in place, there is a special category for rural Canada. My understanding is that it will accommodate the fuel costs, which is one of the key things you had mentioned.
I do want to say that is part of the current game plan. I think we're still working out the details. I'm fairly certain our department will be in touch with rural Canada to make sure it gets input on how we can be helpful.
4:55 p.m.
President, Canadian Federation of Agriculture
On the exemptions that were granted, Rick mentioned farm fuels. Natural gas for greenhouses was exempted. We do have a concern that some of the fuels for heating livestock buildings, such as propane and natural gas, weren't. We want to have a discussion to make sure that a tax like that doesn't put us in a non-competitive position. We're pleased to see the exemptions that were granted. However, they didn't quite cover all of agriculture.
