2023-24 Budget Includes Support for Farmers
The 2023-24 budget presented by Federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland includes funding for a vaccine bank for foot-and-mouth disease, and more financial support for farmers in eastern Canada to reduce their reliance on imported fertilizer.
The budget allocated $57.5 million over five years, beginning this fiscal year, to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to establish the FMD vaccine bank and develop response plans. Ottawa intends to ask the provinces and territories to cost-share the initiative.
The Canadian cattle sector has been advocating for a vaccine bank, citing the potential danger of relying on the United States for vaccines if the disease were to spread to North America.
Eastern farmers who rely heavily on fertilizer imported from Russia will be eligible for $34.1 million over three years from the On-Farm Climate Action Fund to support nitrogen management practices that minimize the use and need for fertilizer.
The budget also proposes to provide $13 million to Agriculture Canada to increase the interest-free limit under the Advance Payments Program from $250,000 to $350,000 for the 2023 program year.
Ottawa plans to collaborate with provinces to develop ways to provide financial assistance to small producers in urgent financial need.
In addition, a $333 million fund will be available over ten years to support research and development of new products that use solids non-fat as the dairy sector faces a growing surplus of the processing byproduct. According to the budget documents, limited processing capacity for SNF represents lost opportunities.