AGRI Committee Report

Recommendation 1

The Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food recommends that Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada review the current functioning of agricultural programs to see how they can be used, or modified, to better allow farmers to time the purchase of their most important needs when prices are most attractive.

Recommendation 2

The Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food recommends that Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada communicate with farmers the outcome of this review by providing concrete examples of how current programs could be used in order to better time the purchase of their production inputs.

Recommendation 3

The Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food recommends that Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada expand the input price comparisons coverage included in its Data Book “Farm Income, Financial Conditions and Government Assistance” by considering increasing the frequency of the price comparison and the number of border regions under analysis, as well as publishing results in a timely fashion on the AAFC website.

Recommendation 4

The Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food recommends that Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada includes, as a recurring theme, the comparative analysis of fertilizers prices between Canada and the U.S. in its bulletin “Canada: Farm Fuel and Fertilizer Expenses”.

Recommendation 5

The Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food recommends that Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) expand its review of regulatory measures susceptible of putting the Canadian meat industry at a competitive disadvantage to include all farm input related industries, such as feed products and pesticides manufacturers, as well as agri-retailers. AAFC should also report back within six months to the Committee on the results of this comprehensive review.

Furthermore, the Standing Committee recommends that any additional costs resulting from these regulatory measures should be covered by the appropriate Departments, and not only by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

Recommendation 6

The Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-food recommends that the Own Use Import Program continue in its existing form so as to ensure that farmers have the opportunity to access these products in a price competitive manner in order to enhance competitiveness of the Canadian agri-food sector.