Farmers make case for aid if tariffs imposed

Glacier FarmMedia—Farmers from various Canadian agricultural sectors told federal officials this week the government must be prepared to help if tariffs take effect.

They said existing programs won’t be sufficient for the economic hurt tariffs would cause.

Sam Millar, assistant deputy minister of economic development and corporate finance in the finance department, said work is underway across departments on how Canada would respond to American tariffs.

He said Canada is also making sure Americans know they will be affected, too.

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“The main message that we’ve been delivering on all fronts, and the one which has been well-received by many at the national and state level, is that a 25 per cent tariff would be a very self-defeating action for the United States and would cause severe harm to American consumers, workers and to the U.S. economy broadly,” he said at the Canadian Federation of Agriculture meeting.

The meeting took place against the backdrop of tariff uncertainty and as many industry and government officials were in Washington to make their case against president Donald Trump’s plans.

The latest deadline for imposing U.S. tariffs is March 4.

Millar said the tariffs would be a direct and flagrant violation of the U.S. market access obligations under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement and its commitments under the World Trade Organizations.

Canada prepares to respond

Canada is prepared to react, Millar said, and the initial response prepared earlier last month is to minimize disruption to Canadian supply chains and limit the negative impacts on integrated sectors such as agriculture. The plan includes a remission process to consider requests for relief in exceptional circumstances.

Financial agencies such as Farm Credit Canada have been instructed to think about how it can increase business liquidity to mitigate some of the impact.

CFA past-president Ron Bonnett said Canada should engage with other countries as it prepares its response. Millar said the deputy minister of agriculture, Lawrence Hanson, was in various European capitals, and all embassies and high commissions are doing outreach.

Other farmers at the meeting suggested the government look now at trade corridors for more east-west traffic and specific infrastructure projects, such as another bridge at the Port of Vancouver.

Andrew Morse from the Canadian Ornamental Horticulture Alliance said members of the organization are entirely reliant on the U.S. market and are already seeing pinch points.

The industry relies on Valentine’s Day to Mother’s Day as its busiest season, and he said lost sales are already reported.

“People are already starting to look for alternative providers because the rhetoric around this is enough that retailers in the U.S. are trying to reduce their risk exposure,” he said.

Canadian growers post bonds to gain access to the market, and Morse said some are being asked to find a lot of capital very quickly.

AgriStability not enough

The flower sector is worried about liability and loan protection because there are about $3.8 billion in long-term liabilities across the country and probably more when all greenhouses are included, Morse said.

The industry will need capital support and loan protection.

“AgriStability is not designed to handle the economic shock that we’re talking about,” he said.

Colin Hornby from Keystone Agricultural Producers agreed AgriStability won’t be enough. He said the government should also consider the effect the carbon tax has on livestock buildings, greenhouses and grain drying while it’s looking at ways to help.

He asked if the government has decided how any countertariffs would be distributed, but Millar didn’t say. Millar did, however, say, changes to the Advance Payment Program are under consideration.

Ontario Federation of Agriculture director Teresa VanRaay drew attention to how the hog sector would be affected.

She said pigs shipped from Ontario to a plant in the U.S. make that plant efficient, and it may not be able to operate without them.

“As of today, if the tariff is on it’ll cost our farm $78 Canadian per pig,” she told the meeting.

She said there is no alternative plant if pigs can’t go south.

“We can’t just put them out into the field to grow,” VanRaay said.

“There will have to be some thought for live animals.”

British Columbia Cherry Growers Association president Sukhpaul Bal made a case for the APP to be offered at the highest level possible. He also said AgriStability hasn’t worked for the last several years to deal with climate events, and adding an economic disaster to it would mean it will fall far short.

He said Canada should take advantage of the current sentiment to support Canadian-made products and make key investments to add value to farm products.

Steve Peters, chair of Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers, said 87 per cent of what is grown under glass in that province goes to the U.S.

“We’re not going to eat our way out of this in any way shape or form,” he said.

“It’s extremely important to us that you look at business risk management programs because existing programs do not work well for the greenhouse sector.”

CFA president Keith Currie said the government should look at how to alter existing programs for immediate help.