Saskatchewan’s premier says the federal government’s boost in cash advances to canola farmers buys time in order to sort out a trade dispute with China.
Scott Moe says Ottawa largely granted the province’s request of raising the ceiling of a payment program to $1 million from $400,000.
The province had initially asked for the maximum amount of $1 million to be interest-free, but Moe says he appreciates the federal government making $500,000 interest-free.
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“We’re appreciative of the effort and, in fairness, the federal government has shown that they do support western Canadian agriculture,” Moe said Wednesday.
“What would be sufficient for farmers is market access into China and all other countries in the world.”
Moe said the province will be taking part in future trade missions to Japan and South Korea to try to expand its customer base for canola.
The Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan says the increased cash advances will be another tool farmers can use to weather the trade dispute.
“It’s not the silver bullet that’s going to fix everybody’s problem,” said president Todd Lewis, who pointed out the relief comes in the form of a loan.
Ottawa’s move comes after China blocked Canadian canola shipments in what is widely considered retaliation for the detention of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou.
This week, Moe called for Canada to apply reciprocal treatment in the form of increased scrutiny on Chinese products coming into Canada.
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