Saskatchewan and Alberta announce funding leading up to CAP launch on April 1

Oneil Carlier and Lawrence MacAulay at the CAP funding announcement in Calgary on Monday (photo via @oneilcarlier, Twitter)

The Alberta and Saskatchewan governments have announced funding for provincial programs under the new Canadian Agricultural Partnership (CAP).

The five-year federal-provincial-territorial agriculture framework is set to begin this weekend (April 1), as Growing Forward 2 comes to an end.

Alberta

Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay was in Calgary on Monday, where he announced $406 million in funding together with Alberta Ag Minister Oneil Carlier.

“This agreement marks our commitment to the future of Alberta’s diverse agricultural sector. Agriculture is the cornerstone of our province’s economy and our largest sustainable industry,” said Carlier. “The investments made through this program will expand the capacity and efficiency of the sector, creating more jobs for Albertans and increasing our capacity to export our agri-food products to the world.”

Details on programs in Alberta related to irrigation, farm water and stewardship programming will be made available in early April, with additional programs to be announced in the next few months.

“People will be able to go on the website to find out what programs might specify. People in the industry are appreciative of the Canadian Agricultural Partnership, knowing it will be very similar to what Growing Forward 2 was,” said Carlier, when asked about program specifics.

Listen to the press conference in Ministers MacAulay and Carlier here:

Details on Alberta’s CAP programs can be expected here.

Saskatchewan

On Wednesday, the federal and Saskatchewan government announced CAP funding for provincial programs in Saskatchewan worth $388 million over the next five years.

The Saskatchewan suite of programs fall under six priority areas:

  • Science, Research and Innovation: $191.5 million investment to build on Saskatchewan’s competitive advantages by advancing science and research capacity.
  • Environment and Climate Change: $70.5 million to support the long-term resiliency and sustainability of the sector.
  • Risk Management: $48 million to support the sustainability of the sector by anticipating, mitigating and responding to risks.
  • Value-Added Agriculture: $30 million to support growth in the value-added and agri-food processing sector.
  • Public Trust: $8.5 million to support public trust initiatives.
  • Trade and Market Development: $7.5 million to assist industry in expanding domestic and international trade opportunities.
    Additional investments of $32 million will be allocated to activities delivered by the federal government on behalf of the province.

“This joint investment supports continued growth and profitability for Saskatchewan’s agriculture industry,” Saskatchewan Agriculture Minister Lyle Stewart said. “The programs, services and investments supported by the agreement are responsive to the needs of Saskatchewan’s industry now and in the future.”

Most of these programs are cost-shared on a 60/40 basis between the federal and provincial governments.

These provincial programs are separate from federally-funded initiatives, as well as the business risk management suite under CAP, which includes AgriStability, AgriInsurance (eg. crop insurance) and AgriInvest.

For more information on Saskatchewan’s CAP programs and application details, click here.

Wake up with RealAgriculture

Subscribe to our daily newsletters to keep you up-to-date with our latest coverage every morning.

Wake up with RealAgriculture