Prince Edward Island expects to draft a long-term vision for its agriculture industry through a new commission on the future of agriculture and agri-food in the province.
“It is apparent that the current commodity model of production is not working for producers in this province,” Agriculture Minister Neil LeClair said Thursday in launching the commission.
“We need a unique Island approach to issues that are facing the agriculture sector nationally and globally,” he said in a release. “We are in a unique position to succeed, and the new commission will help to define that approach.”
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The P.E.I. commission, which is expected to produce a draft report by about Oct. 14 and a final report by Dec. 5, is launched in the wake of the final report of a similar commission in Quebec in February.
The Quebec commission recommended a number of both sweeping and minor changes meant to encourage young people to enter the industry, spur diversification and development, and revamp provincial ag income supports.
The P.E.I. commission, whose members have yet to be named, will be co-chaired by former provincial deputy ag minister Rory Francis and by ag economist Ed Tyrchniewicz, associate dean of the University of Manitoba’s Asper School of Business.
Tyrchniewicz and Francis have until May 16 to appoint the commission’s other members, who are expected to include “predominantly” ag producers, as well as reps from the food processing sector, ag support industries and general community. The general public will be able to provide input into the process by way of a moderated online forum, the province said.
The commission’s project secretariat is to come up with a background document on the current state of agriculture and agri-food in the province by June 16, to serve as the foundation for the work of the commission, the government said. The commission’s process is then expected to run from late June through October.
The federal government will be providing financial and technical support to the commission, the province noted.
“Current difficulties”
LeClair said the province will continue to work with some sectors of the industry to deal with their “current financial difficulties,” while the commission proceeds with its work. He added that he plans to meet with farm groups’ representatives next week to discuss specific issues.
Apart from low prices and high feed costs, Island livestock producers face obstacles such as the recent closure of the NOFG organic pork plant and a cutback in weekly slaughter at the Atlantic Beef Products packing plant.
The launch of the commission came on the same day as a large rally of farmers at the P.E.I. legislature, spearheaded by the P.E.I. Federation of Agriculture and the National Farmers Union.
According to the Charlottetown Guardian, the groups called for a moratorium on farm foreclosures, immediate cash aid to help with spring planting, tax relief on farmland and farm buildings and development of strategies to help farmers earn back their cost of production plus a fair return for their crops.
“I grow potatoes and I’ve been growing them for 17 years and we are selling potatoes for the same price now that we sold them 17 years ago,” potato grower Cecile Nabuurs was quoted as saying in the Guardian article. “It’s insulting.”
