Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and Ontario Agriculture Minister Ernie Hardeman are pushing for approval of a reform package that would greatly increase government support for AgriStability.
They are co-chairs of the forum for the federal, provincial and territorial ministers of agriculture.
But Manitoba remains hesitant to support the deal, saying only after Tuesday’s announcement that they want time to study it.
At a Nov. 27 online meeting with her provincial and territorial counterparts, Bibeau proposed to remove AgriStability’s reference margin limit and to boost the compensation rate for when a payout is triggered to 80 per cent from 70.
“Accepting the proposed changes soon is key to ensuring the enhanced supports can be applied retroactively to 2020, something we know farmers across the country have been asking for,” Bibeau and Hardeman said Tuesday.
“Since the federal government has confirmed its 60 per cent contribution, it rests with the undeclared provinces and territories to come forward with their 40 per cent share. We thank those provinces who have already confirmed their participation and hope to hear from those others soon.”
