A new task force on agriculture launched last week by the federal Liberal party is expected to come up with good ideas for the sector, but those ideas will need to be useful in the drafting of a new Canadian ag policy framework, according to the Canadian Federation of Agriculture.
The CFA reacted in a statement Tuesday to Liberal leader Stephane Dion’s appointment the previous Wednesday of an “Opportunity in Agriculture” task force to address what the party called the “current challenges” facing Canada’s farmers.
“The CFA believes it is a good thing whenever any of Canada’s political parties look to find solutions and develop good policy through active consultation with Canadian farmers,” said CFA president Bob Friesen on Tuesday.
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Liberal agriculture critic and Prince Edward Island MP Wayne Easter, a former national president of the National Farmers Union, will co-chair the task force with Cindy Duncan McMillan, the Liberal candidate for the Quebec riding of Pontiac.
Duncan McMillan, a rancher, former president of the Quebec Farmers Association and councilor with Quebec’s Union des producteurs agricoles, was recently named Dion’s special advisor on agricultural affairs in Quebec.
“Through the creation of this taskforce we will be better able to work towards ensuring that farm families have the opportunity to prosper in the future,” Dion said in a statement Dec. 5. “Important parts of this prosperity are found in supporting orderly marketing and by addressing the current crisis in the livestock industry.”
Easter added that the task force will “engage with Canadian farmers and continue the Liberal Party’s strong defence of supply management in Canada.”
“Mr. Easter and Ms. McMillan both know the industry and I am confident they will deliver good ideas,” said Friesen, who farms at Wawanesa, Man.
“The critical thing will be, when this task force delivers its final results, that the recommendations will be useful in the government/industry partnership work on ‘Growing Forward’ (the new proposed federal/provincial policy framework). These recommendations should not be allowed to simply gather dust on a shelf.”
