No mention of agriculture in provincial budget speech

Friday, March 26, 2010

by GEOFF DALE

While the government points to a $150-million increase in agricultural spending, reaction from the agricultural community to Thursday’s Ontario budget is decidedly mixed with some expressing outright shock the industry was not even mentioned in the speech.

“I was certainly disappointed the word ‘agriculture’ did not appear in the speech,” says Ontario Federation of Agriculture president Bette Jean Crews. “But there is an increase in overall spending of $150-million – whether that is simply a case of programs being moved about I’m not sure.”

Giving Finance Minister Dwight Duncan’s financial document a C-plus grade, she adds in a time of recession it was positive to see the retention of some ongoing programs and an announced $2-billion contingency fund.

Don Kenny, chair of the 28,000 member Grain Farmers of Ontario, was less enthusiastic, expressing particular disappointment in the absence of funding to retain the three-year grains and oilseeds risk management pilot project.

“We were anxious for a long-term commitment from the province,” he says. “We appreciate the leadership shown in implementing the program but are very disappointed there was no budgetary commitment in the speech.”

Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario general manager John Clement estimates that sales tax relief from the introduction of the harmonized sales tax will mean about $30-million to farmers, worth about $600 to each farmer, “so on aggregate that’s good.” However, “it is frustrating the government doesn’t signal its support of such a key sector with better communications.”

Sean McGivern, provincial coordinator for the National Farmers Union says he assumed there would be little agricultural support announced in the budget. As a result he emailed the agricultural minister Carol Mitchell Wednesday, requesting a face-to-face meeting on the issue.

“It’s the province’s second largest industry and in the last 30 years we’ve lost 50,000 farmers,” he says. “The fact agriculture wasn’t even mentioned in the speech seems to indicate the government is not that worried about such an alarming statistic.”

Ontario Cattlemen’s Association communications manager Lianne Appleby says at first glance it appears agriculture is simply left out the budget. In advance, the association submitted a request for the risk management program to ensure the sustainability of beef farmers.

“The current risk management programs are not working as we have made clear to the minister,” she says. “The non-supply managed groups in Ontario have come together to form the Ontario Agriculture Sustainability Coalition and have agreed upon one umbrella program to enable producers to better manage the risks inherent in our industry.” She says the association will continue to push for the request.

Wilma Jeffray, chair of Ontario Pork, expressing little surprise about the lack of new fiscal funding, says the coalition is the way the industry will continue to “interface” with the minister. “And there is that contingency money. It would be nice to see the provincial government use some of this as we move toward the implementation of the program we are after.”

Saying the $150-million increase is a step in the right direction, the chair of the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association Brian Gilroy says his group nonetheless “feels for the grains and oilseeds people who were trying for a risk management program and is saddened by that omission.”

“There are positives and negatives here,” he says, referring to the contingency fund and pointing out agriculture is mentioned in background documentation as a key sector. But with “no real hard and fast commitments” to agricultural programs, “it’s a document where you almost have to read between the lines.”

Predictably, Conservative agriculture critic Ernie Hardeman was far from impressed, pointing to the omission in the speech and the lack of any new funding for the industry.

“I don’t know what agriculture would find in this budget to be particularly happy about other than the fact the government is clearly playing with and obviously shifting some numbers around.” BF