Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada News Release
May 4, 2007

CANADA’S NEW GOVERNMENT DELIVERS BETTER CASH ADVANCE PROGRAM TO FARMERS

CLAVET, Saskatchewan – Lynne Yelich, Member of Parliament for Blackstrap, on behalf of the Honourable Chuck Strahl, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board, today announced that Canada’s New Government is delivering on a commitment to provide a new and improved loan program, to which farmers can now apply. Changes to the Advance Payments Program (APP) means more money for farmers interest free, more time to repay the loans, and a larger number of farmers now eligible to apply for loans.

“Canada’s New Government is delivering on our commitment to support farmers as they begin spring seeding. Cash advances are popular with farmers when the time comes to buy fertilizer and other inputs, and we have built on their suggestions to make changes for the better,” said MP Yelich. “By improving the Advance Payments Program, more farmers are eligible, and we are providing 40 percent more loan support and more time to repay.”

Changes to the Agricultural Marketing Programs Act and the regulations under the Act are in effect and agreements are now being signed with the producer organizations delivering the program. Producers will benefit from significant improvements:

  • Cash advances are available for spring and fall under a single program;
  • Livestock and additional crops, including berries, are now eligible;
  • The limit on cash advances has increased from $250,000 to $400,000;
  • The amount of money available interest free has doubled from $50,000 to $100,000; and,
  • The maximum time for producers to repay cash advances has been extended from 12 to 18 months.

“Producer groups had suggested several positive changes to the cash advance program to make it more responsive to the needs of today’s farming operations and we are pleased the federal government is following through on their commitment to make these improvements,” said Ross Ravelli, President of the Grain Growers of Canada. “As spring seeding gets underway, being able to access higher advances with more money available interest free will help producers with the high cost of putting a crop in the ground.”

Canada’s New Government will have provided a total of $4.5 billion to farmers through Budget 2006 and Budget 2007 measures. Much of this funding is being invested to replace the Canadian Agricultural Income Stabilization (CAIS) program with improved national farm income programs. Together with provincial and territorial governments significant improvements have been made to the margin-based program, and agreement in principle has been reached on a disaster relief framework and expanded production insurance. Work has begun on a new producer savings account with a cost of production component. This new suite of programs represents the federal proposal to replace CAIS.

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