Federal-provincial support helping disaster-affected farmers

Press Release

Oct. 20, 2023

VICTORIA – After an intense summer of wildfires and drought, B.C.’s farmers and ranchers are receiving additional support to repair or replace damaged infrastructure and to help with the expenses they incurred to keep their animals fed, sheltered and safe during these emergencies.

The support is provided through the 2023 Canada-British Columbia Wildfire and Drought AgriRecovery Initiative and offers as much as $71 million to help producers throughout the province return to full operation and provide the food British Columbians rely on.

“I’ve had the opportunity to meet with farmers and producers from across Western Canada and they’ve shared just how challenging this growing season has been for their operations,” said Lawrence MacAulay, federal Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. “This support under the AgriRecovery Framework will help producers in British Columbia recover so they can continue to feed Canada and the world.”

Pam Alexis, B.C. Minister of Agriculture and Food, said: “This summer was an extremely challenging time for B.C.’s farmers and ranchers as we dealt with unprecedented drought and wildfire. We’ve been listening to and working with farmers and ranchers, and providing programs and support that meet their unique needs. AgriRecovery is another way we are taking action to protect the livelihoods of our province’s food producers, helping them return to their land, while supporting local food security and our local economies.”

Farmers and ranchers will receive assistance with as much as 70% of certain extraordinary expenses incurred during the emergencies, such as:

livestock feed due to decreased pasture availability;
transportation costs related to moving livestock to feed and water;
transportation and veterinarian costs supporting animal health and safety;
repairs or replacement of critical irrigation infrastructure damaged by wildfire not covered by insurance;
labour costs to repair fencing damaged by wildfire;
re-establishing forage crops damaged by the wildfires; and
replacing apiaries, bee colonies and beekeeping equipment lost in the wildfires.

“This is welcomed news after the challenging season ranchers have faced,” said Brian Thomas, president, B.C. Cattlemen’s Association. “Any producers affected by wildfire or drought have been anxiously waiting for this announcement of AgriRecovery. Today’s announcement of support will make a real difference to those ranchers facing tight feed supplies.”

AgriRecovery programs are created to support producers with extraordinary costs they incur due to an emergency, and to get them back into production. Each one is developed to meet the needs of farmers and ranchers affected by a specific situation.

AgriRecovery funding is available through the disaster relief assistance policy framework defined in the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (S-CAP). Sustainable CAP is a five-year (2023-28) $3.5-billion investment by federal, provincial and territorial governments to strengthen competitiveness, innovation and resilience of the agriculture, agrifood and agri‐based products sector. Sustainable CAP includes $1 billion in federal programs and activities and a $2.5-billion commitment cost-shared 60% federally and 40% provincially/territorially for programs that are designed and delivered by provinces and territories.

Learn More:

For more information about the 2023 Canada-British Columbia Wildfire and Drought AgriRecovery Initiative, producers can call: 1 888 332 3352
Or email: AgriRecovery@gov.bc.ca

Program and application details will be available on Monday, Oct. 23, 2023, at noon (Pacific time) at: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/governments/organizational-structure/ministries-organizations/ministries/agriculture

Emergency management for agriculture: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/industry/agriculture-seafood/business-market-development/emergency-management

Three backgrounders follow.

Contacts:

Dave Townsend
Media Relations
Ministry of Agriculture and Food
250 356-7098
250 889-5945 (mobile)

Francis Chechile
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
francis.chechile@agr.gc.ca

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Media Relations
Ottawa, Ontario
613 773-7972
1 866 345-7972
aafc.mediarelations-relationsmedias.aac@canada.ca

BACKGROUNDER 1

Provincial support for farmers and ranchers

The $71 million allocated as AgriRecovery funding is not an estimate of damage from this year’s wildfires and drought. Instead, it has been budgeted to support the most severe possible outcomes.
Launched in the summer, the B.C. government has partnered with the B.C. Cattlemen’s Association to help farmers and producers affected by drought get hay and feed through the Access to Feed Program.
To date, 186 B.C. farmers have received more than $7.2 million in support through targeted advance payments from the federal-provincial AgriStability program.
The Province’s new $20-million Food Security Emergency Planning and Preparedness Fund is supporting the purchase, upgrading and installation of equipment and infrastructure by those who have a direct role in preparing and responding to agricultural emergencies, including farmers, local governments, First Nations, industry associations and other service providers.
The B.C. government’s new $20-million Agriculture Water Infrastructure Program is helping B.C. farmers adapt to climate change impacts, like increased drought, and grow more food through funding for new and improved water storage and water supply infrastructure.
A suite of business risk-management programs is also available through the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership to support farmers during times of difficulty:
- AgriStability provides support when producers experience a large income decline.
- AgriInvest provides cash flow to help producers manage income declines.
- AgriInsurance provides insurance against natural hazards (weather) to reduce the financial impact of crop production or plant losses.

Contact:

Dave Townsend
Media Relations
Ministry of Agriculture and Food
250 356-7098
250 889-5945 (mobile)

BACKGROUNDER 2

AgriRecovery supporting B.C. farmers and ranchers with extraordinary costs

The 2023 Canada-British Columbia Wildfire and Drought AgriRecovery Initiative will cover extraordinary costs, and the program terms and conditions define the support limits and eligibility, including:

Individualized support is provided for extraordinary feed costs due to the loss of access to pasture. These payments will be based on a maximum regional assistance limit and confirmed through receipts for purchases of additional feed:
- up to 70% support for transportation costs to help farmers and ranchers who moved livestock to feed and water through the recovery period;
- up to 70% support for extraordinary quality feed testing for additionally purchased forage; and
- in situations where producers downsized their breeding livestock, support of up to $160 per animal is available for extraordinary replacement costs.
In situations in which producers have been affected by wildfire, the following supports are available:
- where Crown range or pasture is lost due to wildfire, specific support for alternative grazing requirements;
- up to $80 per head to re-establish safe winter-feeding facilities and general cleanup; and
- up to 70% of extraordinary wildfire related costs for:
  - livestock veterinary services;
  - mustering of livestock;
  - mortality of breeding animals;
  - critical irrigation and infrastructure repairs that were not insurable;
  - labour costs to repair private livestock fences; and
  - reseeding and re-establishing tame livestock forage damaged by wildfires.
Up to 70% of the extraordinary costs are available for B.C. beekeepers and honey producers to replace lost bee colonies, apiaries and equipment.

Contact:

Dave Townsend
Media Relations
Ministry of Agriculture and Food
250 356-7098
250 889-5945 (mobile)

BACKGROUNDER 3

AgriRecovery framework
This announcement is part of a larger disaster response totaling $365 million in federal-provincial cost-shared funding under the AgriRecovery Framework to help farmers and ranchers in British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan with extraordinary costs due to this year’s extreme weather conditions.

Producers already have access to a comprehensive suite of business risk management (BRM) programs that are the first line of defence for producers facing disasters. BRM programs include AgriStability, AgriInsurance and AgriInvest. With joint funding from the federal government and provinces, these BRM programs provide protection against different types of income and production losses.

The federal government also announced an initial list of designated regions in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba where livestock tax deferral has been authorized for 2023 due to extreme weather conditions.

Contact:

Dave Townsend
Media Relations
Ministry of Agriculture and Food
250 356-7098
250 889-5945 (mobile)

Connect with the Province of B.C. at: news.gov.bc.ca/connect

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