At a panel titled Sustainability Disclosure in Canada: Overcoming the Headwinds, hosted by the Canadian Sustainability Standards Board (CSSB), speakers discussed the challenges and opportunities for Canadian businesses as international trading partners increasingly look for environmental, social and governance (ESG) transparency.

Eight out of Canada’s 10 biggest trading partners either have or will soon have mandatory disclosure rules — including those in the Indo-Pacific region, an emerging market for Canada’s agri-food sector, said Canadian Sustainability Standards Board chair Wendy Berman.

She called Canadian Sustainability Standards the “ticket to play” in a global market which may also be moving toward sustainability disclosure practices.

Canadian standards in the global market

Companies do not need to be perfect, only rigorous, Berman said.

“If you communicate that rigour, and you put sunlight around the main assumptions, which our standards tell you to, then that is what you’re communicating to the market.”

Berman said the standards board is helping Canadian companies address the market’s needs by looking at global reporting baselines and adding changes to reflect the uniqueness of the Canadian market.

“What we also have is a Canadian version of proportionality mechanisms,” she said. “What we’re saying to the market is ‘It’s okay, build capacity on these items and continue to do that so that you’re ready to enter the global market’.”

Ontario Securities Commission CEO Grant Vingoe said Canada will need to follow a global baseline if it wishes to continue on the path of market diversification. He said he hears many investors express frustration at a lack of a consistent global framework, forcing them to rely on private sources.

Disclosure fatigue

Canada is in a “pivotal moment for sustainability in Canada,” one “full of complexity and uncertainty and also real possibility,” said Elizabeth Dove, executive director of the UN Global Compact Network Canada.

“Over the last few years, Canadian companies have stepped up,” Dove said. “They’ve adopted climate action strategies. They’ve incorporated ESG into governance and risk. They’ve built systems to measure, disclose and manage sustainability performance. But let’s be honest, it hasn’t been easy.”

There has been fatigue around disclosure, and some businesses are now asking if the measures are necessary — particularly if they seem to hamper the company’s ambitions.

“We cannot allow ambition to be the casualty of uncertainty,” Dove said.

“Climate change is not waiting for regulatory clarity.”

Adoption of ESG will likely increase as the means of measuring climate risks improve, said Peter Routledge, superintendent of the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions.

“Guess what? As you measure the risk more effectively, boards of directors and senior management teams will make really smart decisions about how to invest to counteract that risk,” Routledge said.

“That’s the beauty of market capitalism at work.”

“It is not a regulatory burden for the sake of increasing costs to in pursuit of some abstract virtue,” Routledge said. “That’s the last thing we’re interested in. What we’re interested in is creating management and risk measurement discipline to elevate and improve and sustain shareholder value.”

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Panels covered ESG and the changing Canadian ag landscape from national and global perspectives.

The first panel focused on ESG standards in a global context.

IFRS Foundation Montreal office Director Isabelle Mégré, said that in many international markets, like the United States and European Union, sustainability disclosure could soon become standard.

To illustrate how this could affect Canada, she gave the example of a California bill set to take effect in 2026 which would see large companies required to disclose climate-related financial risks, including value chain emissions.

“Canada was worth nine billion in 2023,” she said of Californian export money. “We are actually California’s top agriculture and agri-food export market”

Centre for Agri-Food Benchmarking Founder David McInnes asked the speakers how ESG standards can be created to apply to the disparate sectors of Canadian agriculture.

“The standards are not a one-size fits all as we might think,” Mégré said. “It actually requires a lot of judgment and reflection from new companies that are using it.”

“It might feel like a one-size-fits-all, because there’s one set of standards. But really, when you dig into it, it’s about reflecting on what is affecting your company’s perspectives, your company’s business models.”

“We’re trying to find this common place where it can fit for everybody,” she said.

Canadian sustainability Standards Board Interim Chair Bruce Marchand stressed the importance of having organizations like his remain independent in this process.

“In some countries, the regulator sets the standard and the regulation at the same time,” he said, “and in other countries, the regulator and the standards are separate, but they’re both an arm of government.”

“I want to stress that our board is independent, so it’s not a government and it’s not a government board like our sister boards.”

Mégré closed the discussion by warning that ESG regulation can be very politically polarizing. She said that this has created a fear of backlash among investors wanting to discuss ESG.

The second panel took on upcoming policy such as the Jan. 1, 2025, implementation of the S1 and S2 of the ESG Sustainability Disclosure Standards as well as Bill C-59, which aims to increase greenwashing accountability.

Deloitte Senior Manager of Infrastructure and Capital Projects Michelle Leslie expressed concern over how producers and businesses will have a burden of proof put on them for their sustainability efforts in accordance with Bill C-59. “There’s no standard as to what that burden of proof is,” she said.

Leslie thought definitions of sustainability have not been sufficiently broadened beyond just environmental factors. “If you achieve emissions reductions but it’s at the cost of bankrupting communities, if it’s at the cost of making people poor in the process, then I would say you have failed.”

Pulse Canada VP of Corporate Affairs Greg Northey said ESG goals are not as important to Canadian producers and consumers as other economic development goals.

“From an agricultural sector perspective, we’re still very much focused on how do we become the best, most competitive producer in these global markets,” he said. “And a lot of the time, sustainability, ESG, is not as much an issue.”

United Farmers of Alberta Sustainability Director Selene Munro said there should be more attention paid to cost and scope when creating ESG standards.

“There is a cost to implementing or building or consolidating these standards. Not all programs are built out. There is no understanding of scope.”

“A lot of those organizations will not meet the requirements for reporting because they’re not publicly traded,” said Munro. “The companies that are publicly traded are going to need or require that data from individuals within the supply chain, and that will go down to producers.”

The panelists also highlighted the importance of data collection for influencing public policy.

Before lunch, breakout groups of attendees discussed questions about disclosure standards and a National Index. Following the break, panelists from the breakout groups debriefed on the Importance of consolidation and issues with limited awareness of the standards.

They also spoke to the importance of translating tenets of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) to be relevant to ag-specific data tracking.

Finally, Centre for Agri-Food Benchmarking Tarra Drevet closed the conference with some words about ESG, sustainability and data collection, stressing the importance of quality information and communication of data.

Drevet communicated an overall note of hope in her closing remarks: “I think we can be optimistic about what’s coming up next.”

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The report, titled Forces Impacting Animal Agriculture In Canada: A Synthesis, delves into the issues surrounding cattle, dairy and poultry production in the country and how it is interconnected within various factors in day-to-day life of residents.

Al Mussell, CAPI’s director of research, said the report draws from a lengthy technical report and while both that and the Synthesis document come to the conclusion of the importance of animal agriculture, the actual economic impact may not be so clear.

“It makes the point, and really drives home, that animal agriculture is extremely important in Canada. It’s extremely important from an economic growth perspective but it is particularly important regionally in rural areas that otherwise would not have the same levels of employment, levels of income in local communities,” said Mussell.

It’s also an industry that is built on using farming byproducts to increase the value of animals.

The report also highlights that Canada has some of the lowest CO2 emissions from the production of pork and beef, outclassing Western Europe, South America and Australia.

As well, the report highlights that farmers are the most trusted people in the Canadian food system and that animal agriculture in the country produces $90 billion in sales, 164,000 direct jobs and roughly two-and-a-half times that in indirect jobs.

The importance of animal agriculture provides options to farmers whose crops have been ravaged by hail and drought, and enhances pasture lands through grazing.

Mussell said such points can get lost in the complexity of the agricultural food production system.

“The motivation for writing this report, this major initiative on our part, comes out of the concern there are quite a number of people who need to be involved in decisions that relate to animal agriculture but don’t bring particular expertise to it,” said Mussell.

“Those people are in a difficult spot because there is always a tendency to fall into a subset of isolated facts that might take you in a particular direction when in fact this is a much more complicated type of a system.”

The report is designed to provide a well-rounded perspective to such decision makers to offer a balanced understanding of the value of animal agriculture and its importance to many communities.

“In Canada, we have an excellent animal agriculture system. It’s not perfect. There are problems. There are challenges and they need supportive policy to make headway on those challenges,” Mussell said.

One is the continuing diminishing of cattle inventories in the country over the past two decades.

On the other side, the positive parts of the industry when it comes to improving biodiversity through responsible grazing techniques might not be fully understood, Mussell said.

“You look at what we are able to do today to make better use of grasslands, lighten up the footprint of animal agriculture within that — pretty impressive and that’s over and above the basic conversion efficiency of animal agriculture.”

That conversion efficiency applies across Canada and involves calculating land not suitable for crop production and otherwise would be wasted if it were not used for livestock feed, said Mussell.

“We manage all of this in a manner which is profitable for each of the segments involved and which also supports communities that can work together to deal with the many issues that can come up and mitigate those by working together,” said Mussell.

The Forces Impacting Animal Agriculture In Canada: A Synthesis report can be found on the CAPI website.

— Alex McCuaig reports for Glacier FarmMedia from Medicine Hat, Alta.

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According to the latest FCC Food and Beverage Report, released Tuesday, sales increased 11 per cent to $156 billion in 2022. These gains came largely from higher export values and strength in the grain and oilseed milling industry.

On the manufacturing side, margins were tighter last year as companies navigated increases in the prices of raw materials, labour shortages and supply chain disruptions.

“Gross margins as a percent of sales fell to their lowest level in over 20 years in 2022,” FCC’s chief economist J.P. Gervais said.

“While margin trends vary based on industry, we do anticipate an overall improvement to gross margins in the coming year.”

FCC projects a modest two per cent growth in sales in 2023. However, dairy, meat and seafood are expected to outperform that forecast.

“Consumers cut back on discretionary spending last year as they faced higher inflation, depleted savings and higher costs of servicing debt,” Gervais said.

Domestically-produced food faced a decline, reverting to the pre-pandemic consumption mix of domestic versus foreign foods. However, that’s partly the result of an increasingly diverse Canadian population looking to put different kinds of food on their tables.

“Inflation led to changes in food consumption decisions which resulted in fewer purchases of locally made or higher-value foods that consumers supported in mass during pandemic lockdowns,” Gervais said.

“We all know money doesn’t have the same buying power it once did, and consumers are being careful with their grocery budgets. Despite inflationary pressures, we continue to see Canada’s food and beverage sector adapt and innovate to meet the changing market demands.

“The sector remains healthy and has a positive long-term outlook.”

Global demand for Canadian-produced food is growing rapidly, he said. Promising food manufacturing innovations and technology can position Canada to expand its reach into profitable emerging industries.

There is also opportunity to grow the sector by meeting consumer demand for affordable, convenient and sustainably produced foods.

“How businesses adapt to changing consumer needs and economic conditions will determine their success going forward,” Gervais said.

“There have been many tests of resiliency and adaptability in recent years and the strength of the sector proves that despite challenges, there are opportunities Canadian food and beverage manufacturers are eager to take advantage of.”

The annual FCC Food and Beverage Report features insights and analysis on grain and oilseed milling; dairy, meat, sugar, confectionery, bakery and tortilla products; seafood preparation; and fruit, vegetable and specialty foods as well as soft drinks and alcoholic beverages. — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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The province on Tuesday announced plans for what it calls the Alberta Agri-Processing Investment Tax Credit — a 12 per cent, “non-refundable” tax credit for corporations making capital investments in “value-added agri-processing” in Alberta.

The tax credit would be applied against eligible capital expenditures for corporations investing $10 million or more to build, or expand, agri-processing facilities in the province.

Capital investments made as of Tuesday or later may be considered in the calculation of a company’s total tax credit, the province said, adding it will be ready to start accepting applications this spring.

Eligible qualifying applicants may include corporations that have received funding from other provincial sources, the province said.

“We have heard from Alberta’s producers and processors that we need to do more to help grow our province’s agri-processing industry,” provincial Ag Minister Nate Horner said during an announcement at Harmony Beef at Balzac, just north of Calgary.

The province, he said, “has the fundamentals to take our value-added agriculture industry to new heights and meet the increasing global demand for food.”

With the tax credit, “Alberta has positioned itself to attract more large-scale sector investments than ever before from companies like mine,” Harmony CEO Rich Vesta said in the province’s release. “This is the right way for Alberta’s agri-food sector to support diversification, create jobs, compete and win.” — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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The Canadian arm of Rabobank — an Amsterdam-based farmer co-operative lender, providing banking, leasing and real estate services in more than 38 countries — announced Tuesday it’s getting set to offer “financing, risk management and partnership solutions” to primary producers in this country.

For now, the company said, it plans to focus on a “core market” of the three Prairie provinces, served by a remote workforce rather than physical branch offices.

Rabobank’s Canadian arm has operated out of Toronto since 1997 and today has a staff of about 20 providing loans, asset-based financing, private placements, merger-and-acquisition services and risk management products among others.

It describes its Canadian business so far as “food and agribusiness industry-specific,” for wholesale clients across much of the value chain.

At the farm level, though, the Canadian arm’s work has until now been only indirectly, through “third-party vendor finance partnerships.” For example, Rabobank has provided financing on crop inputs to an estimated 12,000 farmers via Richardson Pioneer’s ag business centres on the Prairies.

The company said this week via email its decision to enter the farm lending business will have no impact on its offerings through third-party vendors such as Richardson at this time.

In a joint venture with Calgary-based Telus Agriculture, Rabobank in 2021 also took ownership of Minneapolis tech firm Conservis, whose software products gather and integrate farm-level data from platforms such as Climate FieldView, the John Deere Operations Center, Crop Data Management Systems and Rabo AgriFinance.

Since Rabobank’s arrival in Canada, “we’ve gained a deep understanding of the marketplace and how Rabobank can best serve Canada’s leading growers,” Paul Beiboer, Rabobank North America’s CEO, said in a release Tuesday.

Expanding its Canadian portfolio to include direct farm-level lending has already been an ongoing project for nearly three years, the company said Tuesday, noting it’s already met all national and provincial regulatory and licensing requirements.

Rabobank said it plans to offer “short- and long-term debt options” at the farm and ranch level. “We will be a one-stop shop for Canada’s agricultural term and operational lending needs, as well as other financial services and risk management products,” Marc Drouin, Rabobank Canada’s general manager, said in Tuesday’s release.

Rabobank has also already named Roxane Lieverse as its new head of Canada agricultural banking, to be based in Calgary. Lieverse, up until October, was director of Alberta agricultural banking with Scotiabank, and previously was a regional manager for National Bank of Canada.

Lieverse is also now building a “dedicated team of relationship managers” for the ag lending business, Rabobank said.

The company is now “onboarding several experienced and talented relationship managers,” she said via email, adding that it’s entering the market “with skilled bankers who truly understand agriculture and want to support industry growth.” Meanwhile, she said, farmers will be able to contact the company via its general email.

In Rabobank’s release, Lieverse said the company plans to “do business with our customers at their kitchen table (and) meet face-to-face with clients to listen to their needs and understand their operations.”

Rabobank’s approach, she said via email, will focus on a “partnership model” with a producer. Such producers, she said, “tend to take a longer-term, growth-based view of their operation and understand that they need a financing partner through the industry cycles.”

Setting Rabobank apart from other lenders in the same market, she said, is the bank’s “deep global research… which prospective customers will benefit from, as they navigate the global impact on their operation.”

In a separate interview this week with Rod Nickel of the Reuters news service, company officials said that out of the total Canadian farm lending market, currently dominated by Farm Credit Canada and the big six domestic banks, Rabobank aims to command a 10-15 per cent share within 15 years.

“The number of young farmers is actually growing and the country is on track to become the world’s second-largest food and agricultural products exporter,” Beiboer said in Tuesday’s release, describing Canada as “an attractive and logical market” for Rabobank to work with farmers and ranchers as well as its current corporate clients.

— Article updated Jan. 14, 2023 to include additional information from Roxane Lieverse of Rabobank.

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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s tour through the region last week included a pledge of $31.8 million over five years for a regional agriculture office, to be set up at an as-yet-unnamed location.

The new office is meant to “position Canada as a preferred agriculture and agri-food supplier to the region, strengthening trade on both sides of the Pacific,” the government said Friday in a release.

The new agriculture office will be devoted to “engaging with stakeholders, regulators, and policy decision makers” and “deepen(ing) partnerships with Indo-Pacific partners to diversify export markets and products.”

The announcement comes as the feds work toward development of a comprehensive Indo-Pacific strategy — which was telegraphed in Global Affairs Canada’s departmental plan this spring, and which Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly has said will be released before the end of this year. It’s expected that more details on the ag office will be announced after the overarching strategy is released.

In a joint statement, the Canola Council of Canada, Cereals Canada and Pulse Canada said they were “pleased to see” the support for an agriculture office, noting the Indo-Pacific region “represents a significant opportunity for Canada to diversify its agricultural exports while positively impacting global food security.”

Canada’s cereals, canola and pulse industries “enjoy a significant export share within the region and there are great opportunities,” the groups said, but “the rise of non-tariff barriers may prevent Canada from achieving its full potential in the region.”

Support for resources to deal with sanitary and phytosanitary issues in a “strategic, co-ordinated manner with industry” would help to build, and maintain, market access, they said.

“Nearly every day I get calls asking about Canadian soybeans, to resolve issues, or to do more promotion of our products in Indo-Pacific markets,” Brian Innes, executive director of Soy Canada, said Friday in a separate statement. “We’re ready to work arm in arm with our government partners to make today’s modest investment produce results.”

“It is important for Canada to have a proactive presence in the region to help address market assess barriers and increase Canadian beef exports by maintaining stable and open trade,” Canadian Cattle Association president Reg Schellenberg said of the proposed office in a separate release.

The Indo-Pacific region today takes about 20 per cent of Canada’s beef exports, the CCA said, listing Japan, mainland China, South Korea, Vietnam and Hong Kong as the region’s top five markets.

Funding initiatives Trudeau announced Friday in Bangkok also include $45 million over five years for “Modern Team Canada 3.0” minister-led trade missions; $92.5 million over five years for almost 60 new positions to “significantly expand” capacity at Canada’s missions in the region; and $13.5 million over five years to expand and diversify trade in Canadian natural resources.

“By opening new markets and opportunities for Canadian businesses, innovators, and entrepreneurs, and attracting investment to Canada in sectors like clean energy that will define the global economy, we are building an economy that works for all Canadians,” Trudeau said in a statement.

The Bangkok visit, Trudeau’s first to Thailand as prime minister, was the third and final leg of a tour of the region which also included appearances at the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) summit at Phnom Penh, Cambodia and the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia. — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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And by diversifying exports, farmers will become less dependent on current major markets, reducing their financial risk.

“When borders close for any number of reasons due to trade tensions or shock caused by disease or weather having a broader range of export markets allows Canadian exports to be re-allocated, rather than reduced,” FCC said in a news release Tuesday along with the release of its 2020 trade report, “Opportunities and Challenges to Diversify Canada’s Food Exports.”

After identifying the world’s biggest and fastest growing food import markets — including those where Canada has a small existing market share — FCC identified opportunities to expand five Canadian food exports: canola oil, prepared or preserved pork, potato products, prepared crab and prepared or preserved beef.

In 2019 Canada ranked fifth and 11th in global agricultural and food exports, respectively, with sales earning $67 billion — a 10 per cent increase from 2015.

Of those sales, $29 billion were for food, accounting for 45.5 per cent of the total.

Food exports are up 28 per cent since 2015.

But 79 per cent of the increase was due to exports to just one market — the United States.

That’s a lot of eggs in one basket.

“Combined with our competitive advantages in natural resources and innovation, and a stellar food safety reputation, Canada has an opportunity to improve its world standing as a major food exporter, as well as to diversify its export markets,” J.P. Gervais, FCC’s chief agricultural economist, said in the release.

“World population growth, higher purchasing power in emerging markets and new trade agreements are key factors in potentially creating more opportunities for Canada to increase exports.”

Why it matters: Canadian farmers rely heavily on exports of unprocessed agricultural goods because they grow so much more than the domestic market consumes.

Canada’s agri-food industry has so far been able to fill domestic and export demands, despite COVID-19, Gervais told reporters via telephone Friday ahead of the report’s release.

“I would say there is a huge opportunity for us as an exporter in this world where a lot of food importers are not food secure… to say ‘here we are in Canada with quality and safety… we have all that to offer…'” Gervais said. “I think that’s a huge opportunity for us in 2021… we can be a leading supplier.”

Canola oil

Canola oil is the fastest growing vegetable oil behind coconut, FCC says. Canola oil is used mostly for food rather than biofuel. Importers in Asia and the West prefer it because of its more environmentally friendly than some other oils. FCC says there is more potential to export more Canadian canola oil to Asia and Europe.

Pork

Beyond China, most Canadian pork has an advantage in small countries with slow recent growth. Excluding China, the markets that show the greatest potential for Canadian pork are in Europe — Italy, France, Germany, Belgium and Poland. There are hurdles, including a European Union requirement that meat imports be certified free of antimicrobials, Gervais said.

“If you break down all the barriers we have a very competitive pork product in Europe,” he said.

Potato products

In 2019, Canada was the fourth largest exporter of potato products, worth just over $1 billion. The expanding Western diet has increased demand for French fries and potato products. While the United Kingdom is the largest and fastest growing importer, there is opportunity for expansion in Europe and China.

Crab meat

From 2009 to 2019, Canada has been the world’s largest exporter of prepared crab, capturing 33 per cent of total global exports last year. China, along with South Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and Hong Kong, represent a third of the global import growth. However, Russia is threatening to overtake Canada in crab meat exports.

Beef

Global prepared and preserved beef imports grew by 58 per cent between 2009 and 2019 and China accounted for almost 40 per cent of it. Over the same period, Canadian exports grew by almost 125 per cent. Last year China surpassed the U.S. as the largest beef importer, including prepared and preserved beef. There are opportunities for Canadian beef in Europe and other Asian countries..

While FCC’s report extolls the benefits of increasing food exports and diversifying markets, it acknowledges it’s not easy. That’s why FCC is helping smaller and medium sized companies to first grow exports to existing customers, Gervais said.

“Then afterwards I am convinced we can see some diversification given the efforts,” he said.

“Diversification almost always entails seeking markets that are further away and more expensive to develop,” the report says.

Some potential markets are price-sensitive, especially for high-quality Canadian products, the report says.

China can also be as influential in world food markets as the U.S.

“It (China) can engage in the protracted tensions that have shaped much of global trade since 2019 and lead to shifts in trade flows that do not truly reflect diversification,” the report says.

“A slower pace of economic expansion worldwide can mean more timid growth in food demand, impeding diversifying efforts. The pandemic has reminded us of the importance of a robust food supply chain and economic consequences for some countries may last years.”

— Allan Dawson reports for the Manitoba Co-operator from Miami, Man.

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Ontario, Canada’s most populous province, issued guidelines on Wednesday allowing some migrant farm workers back to work as farms battle outbreaks that have killed three people and infected hundreds more.

Federal chief public health officer Theresa Tam said protocols that separate COVID-19-positive and -negative workers must be stringent, and workers’ health must be considered.

“People can begin to have symptoms anytime during that incubation period and potentially can get sick fairly fast,” she said. “You need to make sure that you screen them for symptoms and enable them to stop working if they’re not feeling well.”

Canadian farmers rely on some 60,000 temporary foreign workers, predominantly from Latin America and the Caribbean. Many live in crowded bunkhouses where the virus can spread quickly.

Sudeshna Nambiar, chief operating officer of Lakeside Produce, a Leamington, Ont. greenhouse operation, welcomed the new policy. She said each employee is responsible for 23 rows in the greenhouse, allowing for ample distancing.

Lakeside had 13 infections among workers in the spring, but all have recovered.

“This is the new normal. This is how we have to operate, with more hygiene and social distancing,” she said.

Srinivas Murthy, an infectious disease specialist and professor at the University of British Columbia, said the virus is likely to spread if workers return.

On Wednesday, the Ontario Federation of Agriculture said workers will not be forced to work.

“This isn’t a community that has a lot of flexibility in their lives,” said Murthy. “Most individuals are not in a place where they can make a free and fair choice.”

‘Unique challenges’

The Ontario government said Wednesday its public health guidance allows COVID-19-positive asymptomatic workers to keep working as long as they “follow the public health measures in their workplace to minimize the risk of transmission to others.”

Local health officials “will assist with interpreting test results and developing a plan that, first and foremost, ensures essential workers in the sector are able to return to work safely,” the province said.

Ontario’s current ag sector outbreaks are centred on the Windsor and Essex County area, in the province’s southwest.

As of Thursday morning, the county health unit reported six workplace outbreaks, all in the ag sector, with four in the Leamington area and two in the Kingsville area.

The province said late Wednesday it would allow Windsor-Essex to enter the second stage of the province’s pandemic reopening plan starting Thursday, behind all other regions of the province, which reopened between June 12 and 24.

Stage Two allows for reopening of malls, restaurants, bars, beaches, parks, recreational facilities, community centres and various personal services.

The exceptions from Stage Two in Windsor-Essex are Leamington and Kingsville, which “are being held back due to the higher transmission rates in the local agriculture and agri-food sector,” the province said Wednesday.

Outbreaks in the ag and agrifood sectors “pose unique challenges that require a targeted and collaborative response,” the province said, adding it would work with federal and local authorities on a “three-point plan to support Leamington and Kingsville to move into Stage Two as soon as it is safe to do so.”

COVID-19 testing will be provided and expanded on work sites in those areas, the province said.

— Reporting for Reuters by Kelsey Johnson in Ottawa and Allison Martell in Toronto; additional reporting by Rod Nickel in Winnipeg. Includes files from Glacier FarmMedia Network staff.

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During a meeting Tuesday of the Commons standing committee on finance, the president of Quebec-based Sollio Co-operative Group shared plans to limit consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on the agrifood supply chain.

Sollio employs more than 15,000 people and has three agri-food divisions, including meat packer Olymel.

President Ghislain Gervais told MPs the government needs to invest in increasing productivity by improving its automating and robotizing infrastructures, while continuing to support exporters through investments in food processing.

The company is also calling for the fast deployment of telecommunications infrastructure to ensure the different regions of the country remain strong.

Sollio also listed the need for supporting a “sustainable economy” which, according to its submission, involves “significant support for the digitization and performance of agriculture, as well as promoting and supporting the co-operative business model.”

Citing ongoing labour challenges, the company also requests the federal government promote front-line trades to ensure the industry has enough workers.

“Canadian government support must be well targeted and sustained to protect our supply chains,” Gervais told the committee. “Supporting us in our investments, in a context of scarce resources, means ensuring that Canada will be able to increase its food self-sufficiency, as well as better protect its capacity and its reputation as a world-class exporter.”

Gervais finished his testimony by telling the committee members the COVID-19 shock was just the latest challenge for supply chains, noting the CN strike, rail blockades and difficulties accessing the Chinese market were all recent issues.

The finance committee has met regularly to discuss the financial impacts of the pandemic since the start of April, hearing from dozens of witnesses since.

At its meeting a week earlier, Denise Allen, CEO of Food Processors of Canada, told members “the COVID-19 pandemic has placed extraordinary strain on our entire supply chain.”

She said her organization’s members have spent an approximate $1 billion in added operational expenses to mitigate the pandemic’s impact. She called for more funding to assist in operating expenses and an injection of working capital “to backstop a minimum of three to six months’ worth of food orders to offset the receivables risk to distributors and discourage changes to payment terms.”

Other groups representing the agri-food and agriculture sectors have also testified before the committee, including the Canadian Federation of Agriculture and the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association.

— D.C. Fraser reports for Glacier FarmMedia from Ottawa.

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