Governments Help Manitoba Livestock Producers Purchase Feed

News Release

Feed and transportation support coming for livestock producers affected by excess moisture in Manitoba

November 12, 2014 – Ottawa, Ontario – Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

Manitoba livestock producers facing the extraordinary costs of having to buy and move feed for the winter months following an extremely wet growing season will receive forage shortfall assistance, thanks to a new AgriRecovery initiative. Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and Manitoba Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development (MAFRD) Ron Kostyshyn, today announced a new initiative to help affected livestock producers maintain their breeding herds over winter.

This 2014 Canada-Manitoba Forage Shortfall and Transportation Assistance Initiative will provide:

Assistance of up to $0.16 per tonne per loaded kilometer for the transportation of forage/feed and up to $0.08 per head per loaded kilometer for the transportation of breeding livestock and their unweaned calves to feed sources.
For the Lake Manitoba/Lake Winnipegosis regions, forage purchase assistance of up to $50 per tonne.
To ensure payments are targeted to those most affected, payments will be calculated based on individual need and receipts will be required to ensure producers have incurred eligible transportation and feed costs.

Additional program details and application forms will be available later this week at MAFRD Growing Opportunities (GO) Offices and online at www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture.

Quick Facts

There are 460,000 beef cows on Manitoba farms, generating an estimated $620 million in farm cash receipts.
Extreme weather conditions in May and June of 2014 resulted in significant forage shortages for livestock in Manitoba.
The downstream flows of the excess moisture created significant flooding on lands around the Lake Manitoba/Lake Winnipegosis regions that were relied upon to produce winter feed for breeding herds, affecting an estimated 75,000 acres of hayland and winter feed production for about 330 farms. This AgriRecovery initiative will help replace the winter feed requirements for the breeding herds.
This federal-provincial initiative is being delivered under the AgriRecovery Framework, which allows governments to respond to unforeseen disasters that result in extraordinary costs for producers and where assistance required is beyond what is available under existing programs. Producers are encouraged to continue to make full use of existing government programs - AgriInsurance, AgriStability and AgriInvest, designed to help them mitigate income and production losses due to disaster events.

Quotes

“Beef producers play an important role in creating economic growth in Manitoba. This support, combined with that available through existing programs, will help producers with the extraordinary costs of accessing forage for their herds over the coming winter months.”
- Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz

“Manitoba farmers in many parts of the province have dealt with unprecedented wet weather and poor growing conditions this year. Producers told us what was needed to ensure the health and sustainability of their herd over the winter and this program is a comprehensive response. I know this program has been long-awaited and Premier Selinger and I are pleased we’re able to confirm our ongoing support for producers affected by flooding and excess moisture, above and beyond the programs already in place. These new support measures will also help ensure the continued success of our local economy.”
- Ron Kostyshyn, Manitoba Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development

Additional Links

Contacts

Jeff English
Director of Communications
Office of the Honourable Gerry Ritz
613-773-1059

Media Relations
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Ottawa, Ontario
613-773-7972
1-866-345-7972
Follow us on Twitter: @AAFC_Canada

Caedmon Malowany
Press Secretary
Office of Minister Ron Kostyshyn
204 945-1494

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Governments Help Manitoba Livestock Producers Purchase Feed

News Release

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