Saskatchewan’s general farm group has put together their biggest concerns which they’d like to see taken into consideration by federal party leaders.
The Agriculture Producers Association of Saskatchewan has outlined five key farm issues for this fall’s election campaign.
President Todd Lewis talked about how farmers need improved farm risk management programs. He pointed out AgriStability, crop insurance and AgriInvest are the three major programs pork producers are most familiar with. However he believes coverage levels are very poor for many producers.
While Lewis would like to see improvements to programs, he also wants some discussion on protecting producers from trade injury like China’s ban on Canadian canola.
“All parties are aware of it and we hope to see some recognition of this on their platforms,” he said. “We want to work with the new government to speak about this issue. . . when trade disruptions occur, we need to support the people who are affected by it.”
Transportation of goods and materials was another topic he mentioned.
The association’s president hopes railway infrastructure can receive a boost, especially Western Canadian ports such as Prince Rupert and Vancouver and more money towards the port in Churchill.
“They need improvements for both capacity and efficiencies there when getting our grains to ports.”
Other important farm election issues he brought to light include protecting farmers from trade injury, rail performance, climate change and rural infrastructure.
