Canada
February 6, 2017

Soy Canada is very pleased with the agriculture growth strategy outlined in a report released today by the Prime Minister’s Advisory Council on Economic Growth.

The second report of the Council chaired by McKinsey Managing Partner Dominic Barton emphasizes the need to unleash the growth potential of Canada’s agriculture and food sector. Specially, the study recommends that the federal government “take a targeting approach to removing growth obstacles” and “galvanize” the sector around a growth strategy agenda.

“Today’s report is a very refreshing, well-thought out blue-print for growing Canada’s agri-food sector,” said Soy Canada Executive Director Jim Everson. “We support the cooperative federal, provincial and private sector partnership outlined in this visionary report.”

The Barton Council correctly captures the promise of economic growth inherent in Canada’s agri-food sector as well as the benefits of Canada’s rich, natural assets and clean environment for food and feed production. It is critical that Canada’s agriculture sector continue to be a leader in sustainable production.

The Council’s report also comes at a time when the federal government is in the final stages of developing the next five-year Agriculture Policy Framework set to begin on April 1, 2018. Trade, science and innovation, value-added processing and sustainability are the building blocks of a strong and prosperous Canadian agriculture sector. Including these priorities in the next APF is imperative to unleashing the agriculture industry’s growth potential described in the Council’s report.

The Canadian soybean sector is in its ninth year of consecutive growth – almost doubling production over the last decade. Soy Canada welcomes active involvement with the federal government and other industry partners to advance the recommendations outlined in the report and tap into the growth potential for the soybean sector. The full report of the Council and chapter related to the agriculture sector’s growth potential can be found online at http://www.budget.gc.ca/aceg-ccce/home-accueil-en.html.

Website: http://www.grainfarmersontario.com

Published: February 6, 2017