If ever there was a time when we needed a strong voice to stand up for our industry, it was this past year. 2019 was a difficult year for farmers and ranchers in this province, and APAS worked hard at being Saskatchewan’s agricultural voice at many venues and tables across Canada. In 2020 we’ll dig deep to keep learning about the issues raised by our membership, have productive discussions, and offer constructive solutions to problems facing Saskatchewan producers.
Sask farmers faced weather problems in 2019, and many other issues besides. China closed its borders to Canadian canola, pork, and beef imports. The carbon tax began to affect producers’ bottom lines, especially those drying grain. Crop pricing and grading has become unpredictable. We had yet another rail service disruption. Farm income is down 45% from two years ago and we are seeing the results in the economy. Just talk to the farm machinery dealers; sales have collapsed on many types of equipment.
Producers using grain dryers were particularly hard hit in 2019 by the added cost of the carbon tax. It is both frustrating and ironic that one of the most easily recognizable adaptations to climate change – grain drying – has been targeted by the carbon tax. Without this valuable tool and innovation, many more millions of acres would be left out in Sask fields this winter and tens of millions of bushels of harvestable crops would be at risk of spoilage or prove unsellable due to tough and damp conditions. In 2020 APAS will continue to work towards carbon tax exemptions for essential farm activities such as grain drying and transportation.
Business risk management programming is ineffective to mitigate the current problems. We are experiencing an almost perfect storm of problems in our international trade environment. The well-documented trade disruptions between Canada and our major trading partners in India, China, Italy, and Saudi Arabia have had a negative impact on the price we receive for our products. At the same time, our input prices are being artificially supported upwards by US farm policy that is transferring billions of dollars to the American farm sector to mitigate income issues caused by US trade wars.
Saskatchewan producers require a better backstop from both the provincial and federal governments to address the current income shortfalls being experienced by many Sask producers. APAS will continue to offer up ideas to make current programs more relevant as well as designing new programs to help producers get past our current trade problems.
The results of the federal election make for an interesting lobbying environment at the federal level. We will continue to talk to all political parties at all levels of government. It is our job to talk about farm policies to the people that form government as well as the opposition. APAS is well situated to lobby a minority government. We are recognized and trusted as being nonpartisan and look forward to working with Sask MPs as well as all federal parties to improve policies for Saskatchewan producers.
In 2019, APAS retained 98% of participating RMs and welcomed nine more transitional members, for a total of 137 RMs. As we prepare to celebrate 20 years as Saskatchewan’s general farm organization in July 2020, these numbers mark an all-time membership high. We have never been a stronger voice for Saskatchewan producers, and there is no better time to join us.
Todd Lewis farms near Gray, SK.
