Federal-Provincial-Territorial Annual Meeting of Ministers and Deputy Ministers of Agriculture
NEWS RELEASE – MINISTERS ANNOUNCE PRINCIPLES OF NEW AGRICULTURAL DISASTER PLAN
FREDERICTON, N.B., July 6, 2000 -- Following the signing of a new three-year safety net framework agreement yesterday, Federal, Provincial and Territorial Ministers of Agriculture today closed their annual meeting by setting out the general principles of a proposed Canadian Farm Income Program (CFIP) – the next generation in disaster assistance programming.
Under CFIP, the federal government will contribute up to $1.3 billion over three years, with the provinces providing up to $870 million for a total of almost $2.2 billion. These funds are part of the three-year, $5.5-billion agreement announced by Ministers yesterday.
The CFIP will provide farmers with additional, ongoing protection against dramatic income reductions, above the core safety net package of Net Income Stabilization Account (NISA), crop insurance and province-specific companion programs. Its principles will be applied across the country but it will also offer signatories flexibility to address producer-specific needs.
The major principles of CFIP are that:
- it is targeted to farmers in need, based on whole farm income
- it is geared to ensuring incomes at 70% of an historic average
- it treats all farmers similarly regardless of what commodities they produce and includes all labour (family and non-family) as an allowable expense
- it will minimize the potential for trade challenges
- and it will be better integrated with NISA.
Some provinces have already approved the plan in principle, while others will be making funding decisions as part of their budgetary process.
Federal negotiators updated Ministers on the status of World Trade Organization talks on agriculture which began in March 2000. Canada's proposal on market access was tabled in Geneva two weeks ago and has received encouraging support from numerous other countries. Ministers affirmed their commitment to work together and to consult producers about developments in the negotiations.
Ministers discussed the possibilities for Canadian agriculture resulting from the advances in information and biological technologies. Recognizing the value of innovation and diversification, they agreed to continue exploring potential applications in areas such as pharmaceuticals, construction materials and renewable energy products. Ministers recognized the potential to not only enhance the sustainable growth of the sector through greater diversification, but also to contribute to a healthier environment for all Canadians.
There was a consensus to increase efforts of the federal/provincial/territorial working group on biotechnology. Ministers reaffirmed the importance of ensuring the safety of Canada's food, including a rigorous regulatory system.
Ministers noted the benefits of raising awareness within the agriculture sector on the issue of climate change. They agreed that continued work was needed to address the following areas – crop nutrient management, livestock nutrition, manure management and bio-fuels. Ministers continued to emphasize the role agriculture can play as a carbon sink.
Finally, Ministers were given an update on efforts to revise and modernize federal-provincial agreements for the poultry and egg industries.
Next year's annual meeting of ministers will be in Whitehorse, Yukon.
Record of Decision
Preamble:
Building on previous discussion, Ministers have added their efforts to advance the development of agricultural strategies which address key climate change priorities.
Recommendation:
Ministers:
- Commit to ensuring that agriculture is adequately addressed in the overarching international, federal, and provincial climate change strategies.
- Commit that each of them would ensure that climate change and greenhouse gas reduction strategies are accorded appropriate priority in their 2001 business planning.
- Recognize that while sufficient knowledge exists now to take immediate action in some areas, investments in both publicly and privately funded research must be assigned a high priority now if solutions are to be available in the medium and longer term.
- Recognize that these agricultural federal and provincial climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies must be developed in consultation with industry and other stakeholders.
- Agree to the importance of maximizing the impact of their respective contributions by, as appropriate, initiating, coordinating and supplementing federal and provincial funding initiatives, activities and programming.
- Commit to intergovernmental collaboration and working with stakeholders to assess how a Domestic Emission Trading system could apply to agricultural greenhouse gas emissions and sinks, including elements such as options for establishing baselines, credit for early action and voluntary land use and management practices registration.
Record of Decision
Recommendation:
Ministers:
- signed the final text of the Framework Agreement on Agricultural Risk Management
Signing of the new three year Framework Agreement on Agricultural Risk Management.
Expected Results:
All Ministers signing the Framework Agreement.
Background:
Discussions on a renewal framework agreement were launched over two years ago. Ministers have moved forward from the agreement on the principles for the new framework agreement at the July 15-16, 1998 meeting to the breakthrough on the allocation of federal funding and commitment to income disaster programming at the March 22-23, 2000 meeting. The text of the final agreement is now ready for signature following work at the officials' level.
July 6, 2000
Record of Decision
Recommendation:
Ministers agree that NISA is a tool available to farmers which provides them the flexibility to stabilize their income from farming in the manner most appropriate to their individual circumstances. The incentives which lead to NISA's use as an investment vehicle or an annual income supplement must be minimized.
Ministers further agree to examine the NISA design parameters as they relate to other safety net programs so as to avoid duplication of payments and overlap of program objectives.
Ministers direct officials t
- Consider steps which can be taken to allow NISA to fulfill its role as a stabilization tool;
- Undertake a review of NISA in order to properly situate it in the safety nets package.
- Return to Ministers with principles, questions, and possible options for discussion.
Record of Decision
Recommendation:
- The ministers have agreed in principle to create the new Canadian Farm Income Program based on the principles and common program design features.
- Subject to authorities being in place, the program announcement will be in the early fall.
- Ministers requested officials to finalize the program agreements for final review and signature.
- With respect to the NISA - CFIP linkage, Ministers directed that:
- For the first year of the Canadian Farm Income Program (CFIP), the linkage to NISA will be based on the actual government contributions for the year prior to the claim if no claim was made under the income disaster assistance program for 1999.
- The NISA review will include examination of features that could strengthen the NISA linkage with CFIP. An appropriate NISA linkage with CFIP for non-NISA participants as well as a linkage based on potential contributions will be considered as part of the NISA Review with a view to ensuring that NISA is used appropriately as a risk management tool.
- Pending the NISA Review, for the second and third years, for those in the NISA Program, the linkage to NISA will be based on up to three years of actual government contributions where no prior claim has been made.
- For the first year of the Canadian Farm Income Program (CFIP), the linkage to NISA will be based on the actual government contributions for the year prior to the claim if no claim was made under the income disaster assistance program for 1999.