The Saskatchewan government says it will put up to $70 million toward “immediate measures” to support livestock producers, ahead of an expected federal-provincial AgriRecovery program for that purpose.
Application forms are expected to be available via Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corp. (SCIC) “in the coming days” for funding “to help offset extraordinary costs of feeding livestock to maintain the breeding herd in Saskatchewan.”
Precipitation has remained well below normal in much of Saskatchewan, particularly in western regions, contributing to “a substantial moisture deficit and hindering recovery of pasture and forage ranges,” the province said.
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The provincial funding pledged Monday will provide eligible producers with up to $80 per head “as soon as possible” to maintain breeding stock for beef cattle, bison, horse, elk, deer, sheep and goats. SCIC, on its website, said more information “will be available in the coming weeks.”
The funding will be available based on receipts or appropriate documentation for “extraordinary expenses for the purchase of feed or transportation of feed or livestock,” the province said in its release Monday.
Meanwhile, the province said, it “continues to work quickly with the federal government to jointly examine how AgriRecovery could help respond.”
For its part, the federal government said in a separate release Monday that work with drought-affected provinces to finalize AgriRecovery programming is “urgently progressing,” and that it’s already “worked quickly” with Saskatchewan as well as Alberta and British Columbia on joint AgriRecovery assessments.
The feds on Monday announced their initial list of areas eligible for the livestock tax deferral provision for 2023, including 96 RMs and other municipalities in western Saskatchewan.
“We appreciate the province stepping up and providing their portion of the AgriRecovery payment,” Keith Day, board chair of the Saskatchewan Cattlemen’s Association, said in the province’s release Monday. “We look forward to a similar announcement from the federal government to provide their funding to ensure our producers get the help they need through these challenging times.”
“We are confident that the federal government is working together with the province to assess how they can provide additional support through AgriRecovery and look forward to seeing what that much-needed assistance will be,” Ray Orb, president of the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities, said in the same release. — Glacier FarmMedia Network
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