OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Jan. 26, 2016) - Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay, Treasury Board President Scott Brison and Nova Scotia Agriculture Minister Keith Colwell announced today an AgriRecovery initiative to help Nova Scotia tree fruit growers recoup the cost of managing the fire blight outbreak.
The Fire Blight Initiative will provide up to $2.69 million to assist Nova Scotia's tree fruit growers with an industry-led strategy to bring fire blight under control and minimize the potential for damage in the future.
Quick Facts
- Farm cash receipts in Nova Scotia for the tree fruit industry total close to $16 million a year.
- Post-tropical storm Arthur caused significant damage to Nova Scotia apple and pear orchards in 2014, resulting in a province-wide outbreak of fire blight affecting 95 percent of orchards. Fire blight is a devastating disease that affects mainly apple and pear trees and that, if not properly managed, can cause significant damage and loss to tree fruit growers.
- The Canada-Nova Scotia Fire Blight Initiative is funded under Growing Forward 2, the five-year framework agreement for agriculture, which is cost-shared 60-40 between the federal and provincial governments.
- This initiative is being delivered under the AgriRecovery Framework, which allows governments to respond to unforeseen natural disasters that result in extraordinary costs for producers. Producers are encouraged to continue to make full use of existing business risk management programs-AgriInsurance, AgriStability and AgriInvest-designed to help them mitigate income and production losses due to disaster events.
Quotes
"This important investment demonstrates the Government of Canada's commitment to work with provinces and industry to help producers recover from the impacts of disasters and disease. This support, combined with assistance available through existing programs, helps ensure Nova Scotia's tree fruit industry remains strong and competitive."
- Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
"This initiative is representative of the Government of Canada's overall commitment to supporting Canada's agricultural sector and to taking action to support industry recovery."
- Scott Brison, President of the Treasury Board
"With this investment, we are helping fruit growers protect and rebuild their orchards after they have been damaged. The industry called for support against fire blight orchard infections and together we have answered their call."
- Keith Colwell, Nova Scotia Minister of Agriculture
"On behalf of the Nova Scotia Fruit Growers Association, I would like to express our sincere appreciation to the federal and provincial governments for approving this AgriRecovery support program. This will help the Nova Scotia apple industry reinvest money to continue to produce high-value fruit and capitalize on the strong export market the industry has developed."
- Andrew Parker, President, Nova Scotia Fruit Growers Association
Information on how to apply will be available in the coming days from www.AgPal.ca and through the Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture.
Additional Links
Nova Scotia Fruit Growers Association
Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture - AgriRecovery Programs
