A weekly press release prepared by the staff of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. If you require further information, regarding this press release, please call the Elora Resource Centre at 519-846-0941. Office hours: 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. For technical information, call the Agricultural Information Contact Centre at 1-877-424-1300 or visit the OMAFRA Website: www.omafra.gov.on.ca
SUPPORTING FARMERS AFFECTED BY WILDLIFE DAMAGE
Ontario is increasing the compensation farmers can access for damage caused by predatory wildlife.
Through the new Wildlife Damage Compensation Program livestock producers will receive improved compensation when their livestock or poultry are injured or killed by predatory wildlife or when bee colonies, beehives or beehive equipment are damaged by wildlife.
The new program expands the current list of wildlife species and variety of livestock that farmers can be compensated for, and increases the maximum compensation rates for farmers. It also:
• Provides a $30 reimbursement for each claim a municipality processes;
• Provides a $50,000 fund for strategic investments with industry to better understand how to prevent agriculture-wildlife conflicts; and
• Commits to reviewing the program every two years to ensure it is up-to-date.
The Wildlife Damage Compensation program is part of Growing Forward, a joint federal-provincial-territorial initiative.
QUICK FACTS
• Guidelines and applications will be available on July 1 at www.ontario.ca/predation.
• Since 2009, almost 13,700 livestock animals were injured or lost due to predators like coyotes or wolves in Ontario.
• These changes modernize the 30 year-old Livestock, Poultry and Honey Bee Protection Act, which governs wildlife damage compensation.
LEARN MORE
• Support for new program
• Public safety information can be found at www.ontario.ca/wildlife to help individuals protect themselves, their properties and their pets from various wildlife species.
CONTACTS
• Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada media relations, 613-773-7972
• Meagan Murdoch, office of the Honourable Gerry Ritz, 613-773-1059
• Sarah Petrevan, office of the Honourable Carol Mitchell, 416-326-6439
• Susan Murray, OMAFRA media contact officer, 416-326-9342
Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs – ontario.ca/agriculture
AGRI INVEST ACCOUNTS PROVIDE CASH FLOW TO PRODUCERS
When 2010 AgriInvest deposit notices appear in mailboxes in the coming weeks, producers are encouraged to take advantage of this easy-to-use program and consider the benefits of building their accounts.
AgriInvest is a self-managed producer-government savings account that allows producers to set money aside which can be used to recover from small income shortfalls or to make investments to reduce on-farm risks.
The 2010 AgriInvest deposits notices will let producers know the amount they can deposit into their accounts to receive matching government contributions.
Deposits are based on a percentage of a producer’s allowable net sales and qualify for matching contributions from federal, provincial and territorial governments.
Account balances for AgriInvest currently total $982 million, which includes producer deposits and government contributions. AgriInvest accounts are held at participating financial Institutions. Producers can simply bring their deposit notice to their financial institution to make their 2010 deposit, and contribute any amount up to the maximum deposit limit shown on the notice. Current account balances also appear on the notices.
Producers have 90 days from the issue date on the Deposit Notice to make a deposit at their financial institution. Producers have the flexibility to withdraw funds at any time throughout the year. AgriInvest is cost shared on a 60/40 basis between the federal, provincial and territorial governments. The program is delivered by AAFC in all provinces except Quebec where it is delivered by La Financière agricole.
For more information on AgriInvest, producers can visit the program website at www.agr.gc.ca/agriinvest or call AAFC toll free at 1-866-367-8506.
COMING EVENTS:
Aug. 2 Wellington Federation of Agriculture, monthly Board meeting, check for information on special August meeting, details with secretary, Lisa Hern at 519-848-3774, or email: jplh@golden.net.
Aug. 4 Waterloo Federation of Agriculture, monthly Board meeting, normally held at the St. Agatha Community Center. For information contact Secretary, Richard Cressman at: (519) 662-2790, or email: rcresman@sentex.net.
Aug. 5-7 Drayton Agricultural Fair, Drayton. Call 519-668-2950 or the website: www.draytonfair.ca.
Aug. 17 & 18 Hasting County Plowing Match and Farm Show – 2 Countryman Road, Tweed, ON. Free parking; $5 adults, children under 12 free from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Visit: http://www.hastingsfarmshow.com/; call 613-395-5177 or email jaciegunning@gmaill.com.
Aug. 24 & 25 Farm & Agriculture Emergencies Training – Grain Entrapment, Grain Bin Entry & Technical Rescue – Emergency Training Centre – Blyth www.estc.ca.
Aug. 24 Herb Demonstration Day – OMAFRA Simcoe Research Station, Simcoe. Call 519-426-7120.
Aug. 27 Tractor Pull at Grand River Raceway – (Raindate: August 28) starts at 4pm.; Tickets: TBA. For more information call Grand River Agricultural Society: tel: 519-846-8879 or info@grandriveragsociety.com or Marlin Stoltz 519-669-1561.
