A consultant hired by a consortium of farm groups to study how payments to farmers can be better secured has released its second a final report on the issue.
The Steering Committee investigating options for Producer Payment Security Mechanisms includes commodity groups such as the Canadian Canola Growers Association and the Canadian Special Crops Association, as well as general farm groups like the Agricultural Producers of Saskatchewan and the Canadian Federation of Agriculture.
The desire to evaluate payment security options comes as a result of the potential changes to the Canada Grain Act affecting the payment security program under the Canadian Grain Commission. The farm organizations behind the study say there’s a need in light of these changes to identify and assess the options available to farmers to better guarantee payment security to growers once they’ve delivered their product.
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Four options, including the current system, were studied. The following models were included: security-based, insurance-based, fund-based, and, to a lesser extent, a clearinghouse system.
The organizations involved in the committee will now seek feedback from their memberships. This will include what the next steps will be in further developing one or more of the options, including continued refinement of the current payment security program.
A full copy of the final report in Microsoft Word format is available at the link.
