"The proposed short-term changes do not address many of the outstanding issues associated with the program.” – Blaine Pedersen.

Manitoba’s ag minister turns thumbs down on Bibeau’s AgriStability proposal 

Twenty Manitoba farm groups urged Blaine Pedersen to endorse the short-term fix

[UPDATED: Jan. 27, 2021] Manitoba agriculture minister Blaine Pedersen has rejected Manitoba farmers’ calls to implement the federal government’s proposal to improve AgriStability. In a Jan. 17 letter to Pedersen obtained by the Manitoba Co-operator, 20 Manitoba farm organizations, including the Keystone Agricultural Producers (KAP), “strongly” encouraged Pedersen to “to ratify the changes to AgriStability

(Glacier FarmMedia Network photo)

Provinces’ feet held to fire on AgriStability

Ministers' meeting co-chairs push for progress to allow changes to be made retroactive for 2020

The co-chairs of Canada’s agriculture ministers’ meeting are pushing to get proposed improvements to AgriStability in place sooner than later. Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and her Ontario counterpart, Ernie Hardeman, “urge all provincial and territorial ministers to support the proposed changes to the AgriStability program,” they said in a joint statement Tuesday. At a


"We need these changes to make the program work for farmers, ranchers.” – Bob Lowe, Canadian Cattlemen’s Association.

Commodity groups push provinces on AgriStability

Year-end virtual town hall sees call for quick adoption of policies to accept AgriStability changes

Leaders of several leading Canadian producer groups called on provincial governments to accept Ottawa’s proposal to improve business risk management (BRM) programs. During an end-of-year virtual town hall meeting, Canadian Federation of Agriculture president Mary Robinson said federal Minister of Agriculture Marie-Claude Bibeau’s proposal to fix AgriStability, a leading irritant of the BRMs, “represents a

Comment: Stepping up to help Prairie farmers

Comment: Stepping up to help Prairie farmers

Provinces need to do their part to fund improvements to AgriStability

Farmers face many risks these days – the impacts of a global pandemic on the supply chain, the trend towards protectionism in trade, and the increasing frequency of extreme weather events, to name a few. Solutions on how to deal with those risks vary considerably, depending on who you ask. As the prime minister’s special



Manitoba farmers are caught in the midst of a risk management spat between Broadway and Ottawa.

Province eyes Agristability costs

The federal government is proposing enhancements but the Prairie provinces fear it could be too expensive

Manitoba farm groups generally like the recently proposed improvements to the AgriStability program, but the provincial government is less positive. The changes won’t be implemented unless a majority of provincial governments agree, including at least one from the Prairies, which some see as unlikely due to the extra cost. Meanwhile, two agricultural economists say the


Pedersen touts margin-based insurance as alternative to AgriStability

Manitoba's ag minister says the program would be more bankable for farmers

Blaine Pedersen isn’t a big AgriStability supporter. Neither are most farmers, but while many farm groups have been pushing to fix the farm support program, Manitoba’s minister of agriculture and resource development has been exploring four alternatives, including a margin-based insurance program that might be able to replace AgriStability, also a margin-based program. Canada’s agriculture

The cost of AgriStability bill would be a lot higher if the payout trigger was restored to 85 per cent, says one industry analyst.

Economist says provinces should consider Bibeau’s AgriStability proposal

Farmers are operating in a less stable environment and improving AgriStability reduces calls for ad hoc aid

The federal government’s proposed improvements to AgriStability will cost it — and provincial governments — more money. But they need to be considered because Canadian agriculture and downstream industries need stability, says economist Al Mussell, with Agri-Food Economic Systems in Guelph, Ont. “The risk situation has got significantly different,” he said in an interview Dec.


Manitoba Agriculture Minister Blaine Pedersen speaks at Ag Days in Brandon on Jan. 21, 2020. (Manitoba Co-operator file photo by Alexis Stockford)

AgriStability proposal could have hidden cost, Pedersen warns

Manitoba's ag minister warns Bibeau's plan may hurt crop insurance, AgriInvest funding

Ottawa’s proposal for an improved AgriStability program could give farmers short-term gain for long-term pain, Manitoba’s agriculture minister Blaine Pedersen warns. At the online federal-provincial-territorial agriculture ministers’ meeting on Friday, federal Agriculture Minister Marie Claude Bibeau proposed dropping AgriStability’s maximum reference margin, and increasing the compensation rate from 70 to 80 per cent retroactively this

It’s not true to say that AgriStability is fundamentally broken, says Keystone Agricultural Producers.

Letters: BRM not ‘fundamentally broken’

In a November 5 Manitoba Co-operator article on AgriStability reform, we read some frustration into Minister Pedersen’s comment, “And what we keep asking KAP to do is to look at the long term on this.” KAP is intently focused on the long term. That is why our vision statement is “A sustainable and profitable future