The national cull breeding swine program will start taking applications from hog producers on April 14.
The Canadian Pork Council, which will administer the $50 million federal program, said in a release Wednesday that payments of $225 per breeding sow, boar or pregnant gilt, less the animal’s selling price, will be available for approved producers who sold animals between Nov. 1, 2007 and April 13 this year and can provide receipts and documentation.
Meanwhile, payments of $225 per animal culled after April 14 will go to qualifying applicants, along with reimbursement for slaughter and carcass disposal costs.
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To take part in the program, approved producers must not sell potentially eligible breeding stock through commercial channels after April 14. They must also agree to depopulate an entire breeding barn and to commit to not housing swine breeding stock in the same barn for three years.
Options for disposal of breeding stock through this program will be outlined on the application, the council said. Application forms will be available on the council’s web site as of April 14, the group said.
The program is meant to help the industry restructure by helping cut the size of Canada’s swine breeding herd by about 10 per cent.
“Our industry is in dire straits and this restructuring initiative is a good place to start on the road towards a healthier, competitive Canadian swine industry,” said CPC president Clare Schlegel, who farms at Tavistock, Ont., in the council’s release.
Other deadlines
April 14 is also the application deadline for farmers who haven’t been automatically enrolled in the federal/provincial AgriInvest program to apply for “Kickstart” funding for their AgriInvest accounts, the federal government noted Wednesday.
The last call for applications applies to any farmer who hasn’t already received a letter explaining his or her Kickstart benefit.
The federal government also reminded farmers of the April 30 deadline for the 2008 federal/provincial AgriStability program. Producers must respond to their 2008 enrolment notice by that date and submit their 2008 AgriStability fee by then, or within 30 days of the date on their notice. Fees will be accepted up until Dec. 31, 2008 but a late-fee penalty will apply.
Farmers who didn’t take part in AgriStability in 2007 or who are new to farming will want to call the federal program office for more information. Farmers in Alberta, Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick, where provincial governments deliver the program, can call their provincial administration for more information.
