PUBLISHED BY BY MANITOBA MANITOBABEEF BEEFPRODUCERS PRODUCERS
MARCH 2022 JULY 2021
The photographer had the cattle’s undivided attention as a fresh bed of hay was laid down at a farm in the Deerwood area. (Photo credit: Jeannette Greaves)
New ACL rules still cause frustration three years in Laura Plett, of Sawmill Creek Livestock near Stead, enjoys some family time with son Dustin between filming segments on her property for the upcoming Season 32 of Great
BY: ANGELA LOVELL(Photo credit: Donalee Jones) Tastes of Manitoba.
role as minister of agriculture, I’m looking to find ways of Crown land lease coming up for an open auction; we can better serve Manitobans and achieve long-term the chance of being able to outbid a more established Changes to the Agricultural Crown Lands (ACL) sustainability and success for the beef industry. The producer are slim. That’s the reality, so the benefit for a program implemented in September 2019, are causing a changes that have taken place with respect to agricul- young producer in that scenario is certainly not there.” Dale Myhre, who ranches with his three sons near lot of frustration for cattle producers across Manitoba as tural Crown land should be viewed in the context of crane River in the Interlake region, says he’s seen a lot broader adjustments that might be possible to ensure the results of those changes begin to play out. of young people leaving the area, and a lot of older profair and transparent processes.” Changes to the ACL program have included subducers being forced to give up their agricultural Crown “Manitoba’s approach to the use of agricultural stantial rental rate increases, reduction of lease terms lands and retire over the past years.cow and interCrown land should be based on optimism for not only from 50 to 15 years, an online auction process, extending was detected in three an Alberta That means good news for both trad- Lowe. BY RON FRIESEN When proposed changes to the ACL program were modernization and increased productivity, but for our leaseholder eligibility to Canadian residents of beef and ranchers who proThe industry has asked Ottawa to en- national borders immediately slammed ersoutside who export first announced, Myhre and a group of other Crown government’s protein strategy and for the sustainability Manitoba, and the but elimination of finally unit transfers. It took 18 years, Canada has courage Canada’s trading partners to recog- shut to Canadian beef exports. duce it,These industry officials say. land lease holders Since formed lobby the of thiswill land whiletothe nize industry grows,” Johnson changes are BSE-free. causing a lot of insecurity and financial been declared the OIE’s ruling and accept Canadian 50 an per association cent of beef to in Canada is “The difference be base the ability government to review the changes. Their biggest fear added. pressure for many current andfornew ACL leaseholders. The World Organization Animal exported, producers suddenly found themaccess markets that we otherwise weren’t beef without restrictions, he said. backAgriculthen wasselves that with increases in market rent and theand online Not living up Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP)ashas Health (OIE) has recognized Canada a been In billing a May 27 statement, federal collapsed prices aniableinvolved to because we didn’t have that status, ” to their auction process would mean a lot of long-standing lease Many Manitoba producers are questioning whether in the consultation from sponthe outset country with negligibleprocess risk of bovine saidand TylerproFulton, Manitoba Beef Producers ture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said the mals they could not sell because the market not benot able to afford the program is achieving anygovernment of the provincial govern- holders would could vided recommendations to the provincial giform encephalopathy (BSE), giving it the government, will do so. absorb them.to bid on the parcels president. they had relied on, in some cases, for generations. ment’s stated goals for making the changes. Those goals manypreferred of whichstatus haven’t madethe their waysysinto the new most under OIE’s “Canada will inform those trading The result was cataclysmic for the inBobACL Lowe, Canadian Cattlemen’s AsNow, three years later, Myhre’s have included supporting the growth of Manitoba’s livestock program. tem for evaluating BSE risk. direct fears economic sociation (CCA) president, said some Asian partners of Canada’s BSE negligible risk sta- dustry. CCA estimates worst come true. industry in a sustainable manner and helping young “MBP has had many concerns that acountries lot of the The announcement in May removes still limit Canadian beef imports tus and will undertake immediate work to losses between 2003 and 2006 alone ranged producers providing betterexpanded access toglobal Crown “It has the way webillion expected; thatbillion. there would changes the ACL program not line up the final to trade barrier againstdid Canadian support market access forgone between $4.9 and $5.5 Some to with cattle what under 30 months ofbyage, citing BSEthem lands. be a major loss of ranchers and economic hardships,” we had recommended in our consultation, concerns. and we have beef exports. beNow they no longer have reason Canada’s high-quality cattle, beef and beef 26,000 beef producers left the industry “It’s hard to understand products, what some of thesaid. benefits Myhre says. “The said More we’rethan bringing in beenNegligible looking torisk get status some adjustments to those modernmeans importto do so. ” Bibeau tweengovernment 2006 and 2011. 2.2 milare to some of the groups that the Province saw benthese programs to free up some agricultural land for izations ever no since,” says Carson Callum, MBP General ing countries longer have any grounds “Assuming that the world is based It has been a long and difficult jour- lion acres of pasture lands were converted efiting says Matthew Atkinson, young but the younga people, they’veenvironleft and Manager. for restricting beef from Canada because of on science-based creating major negative trade,from there’sthem,” no reason ney for Canadian beefChair producers sinceproducers that to crops, of MBP’s Crown Lands Committee. “I am still in the this has happened over only three years.” The new Minister of Agriculture, Derek Johnson BSE. to have those restrictions anymore,” said black day in May 2003 when a case of BSE mental and ecological impact. Page 2 Page 7 told Cattle Country in a recent statement: “In my new demographic of a young producer, and if I have a parcel
President's Column
Weatherrelated emergencies
Reliable summer water
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Canada achieves BSE negligible risk status