As of Oct. 1, Canadian nursery growers will be able to access the same low-cost financing that other producers benefit from each spring, even though they may not be participating in the Agristability program.
Growers currently participating in the 2012 Advance Payments Program at Agricultural Credit Corporation (ACC) may also qualify for additional advances.
The Advance Payments Program which was recently expanded to include nursery growers was developed by the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association, ACC, and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. It was designed to support growers and assist with costs of production and marketing of nursery stock. Producers are now able to use their inventory as security to access up to $400,000 in operating capital with the first $100,000 being interest free. Calculations are based on the number of products being harvested and to be sold between March and September 2013.
“What began as a program which covered a small number of nursery products for a few Ontario growers has expanded and evolved into a program which is now available in all provinces and covers thousands of nursery products,” said Jaye Atkins, CEO of ACC.
Applications are available for download at www.agcreditcorp.ca until Feb. 28 and all advances issued during that time will be required to be repaid no later than Sept. 16.
For a complete listing of all eligible products visit the ACC website. To add a product to the current listing, contact the office at 1-888-278-8807.
