It goes without saying that the AgriRecovery funds announced by the federal and provincial governments won’t sit easy with local crop producers and cattle farmers.
Last week, Under the AgriRecovery response, it was announced that eligible crop producers would receive the equivalent of $30 per eligible acre for cropland that could not be seeded as of June 20, 2011, and cropland that was seeded but then flooded out on or before July 31, 2011.
In talks with local politicians and crop producers, it is clear that $30 is nowhere near enough to cover the losses accrued from the flooding damage. Farming is an expensive livelihood, and every year, local producers are gambling on the weather working in their favour.
MLA Ken Kowalski said the funds are in place for those affected in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. The entire cost of the proposed payments to all eligible Alberta crop producers is $16.5 million, with $9.9 million borne by the federal government and $6.6 million by the province.
Our local producers are getting a small piece of the pie, and that much is certain. It would be difficult to pinpoint exactly how many people were affected by adverse weather conditions across the Prairie Provinces, but the number is large. It has to be remembered that our local producers aren’t the only people who were affected by these weather conditions.
It also goes without saying that farmers deserve a great deal of recognition for doing what they do. Every year is different, and there is a lot of risk involved with being a farmer.
They could all use much more than $30 per eligible acre, but it doesn’t look like they’ll be getting it.
Cattle farmer Leonard Schmidt told The Leader that he wasn’t exactly 100 per cent sure of all the details in the funding announcement, but was more than sure that $30 per acre isn’t enough.
County council several weeks ago initiated an agricultural emergency for the entire county. Since then, there has been a great deal of media coverage on what has taken shape here in Barrhead. It will likely be made more obvious when local producers voice their displeasure at what is actually available to them through AgriRecovery funds.
For those who have been affected, Kowalski said producers in his constituency need to apply through the Agriculture Financial Services Corporation (AFSC) to ascertain their eligibility by calling 1-877-899-2372.
County Reeve Bill Lee also encourages local producers to call the number. At least it’s something. While it won’t even begin to cover the losses, it’s certainly better than nothing.
