September 23, 2016
Governments Invest in On-Farm Food Safety and Animal Welfare Projects
NEW BOTHWELL—The Canada and Manitoba governments will invest $1.2 million in 275 on-farm food safety and animal welfare projects, Manitoba Agriculture Minister Ralph Eichler and Dr. Doug Eyolfsen, member of Parliament for Charleswood, St. James, Assiniboia, Headingley, on behalf of Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay, announced today.
“This is the first year animal welfare projects were included in the program and the response from Manitoba farmers was extremely positive,” said Eichler. “Manitoba farmers continue to be innovators and leaders when it comes to biosecurity, assurance systems, animal care and food safety. We are proud to support their good work with funding from this program.”
Manitoba farmers applied for funding to improve biosecurity, traceability, food safety and quality, and animal welfare practices on their farms.
“Farmers are committed to producing safe, high-quality foods that consumers enjoy and trust, both in Canada and abroad,” said Dr. Eyolfson. “Investments in biosecurity, traceability and assurance systems contribute to consumer confidence and yield greater prosperity for Manitoba farmers and their families.”
In total, 255 livestock producers and 20 crop producers were approved for funding under Growing Forward 2’s Growing Assurance – Food Safety On-Farm program. To be eligible, producers must have implemented a national on-farm food safety program for their commodity where one exists.
“This Growing Forward 2 funding helps farmers keep pace with technology upgrades,” said Jake Wiebe, owner of NEWEST Farms, located near New Bothwell. “The remote bird welfare monitoring equipment installed in my barns keeps me more closely connected to what is happening when I cannot be there in person.”
More than half of the approved projects (141) focus on animal welfare and will help Manitoba farmers implement new requirements under national codes of practice for caring for livestock.
Some of these projects, valued at more than $610,000, include:
• purchasing and installing low-stress handling equipment for cows and sheep;
• adding non-slip flooring and stall enhancements for dairy cows; and
• improving environmental monitoring inside poultry barns.
Manitoba leafcutter and honeybee producers received more than $83,000 for 50 projects including:
• participation in a honeycomb exchange program,
• new microscopes to more quickly identify and address diseases on-farm,
• bee cell sampling, separating or sorting equipment; and
• queen honeybee rearing equipment and training.
Grain farmers were able to apply for funding to support a number of projects that would improve biosecurity, including in-field pest monitoring, seed testing for pathogens, grain sample storage and managing access to equipment and fields.
Eichler also noted a new biosecurity fact sheet has been developed for Manitoba Agriculture employees, to help ensure they also support on-farm efforts to reduce the spread of pests, diseases and other contaminants.
The federal and provincial governments are investing $176 million in Manitoba under Growing Forward 2, a five-year, federal-provincial-territorial policy framework to advance the agriculture industry, helping producers and processors become more innovative and competitive in world markets. For more information about Growing Assurance, go to www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/growing-forward-2 under Strategic Initiatives.
For more information on Manitoba’s agricultural programs and services, follow the Twitter account at www.twitter.com/MBGovAg.
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