Environment

Canadian Farms Hammered by Heat and Drought; Climate Change Will Make Such Events More Frequent and Damaging

Le français suit Saskatoon, SK—Across BC, the Prairies, and western Ontario, intense heat and lack of rain are withering crops, pastures, livestock feed, orchards, and vegetable fields and drying up water supplies.  The results are devastating.  More than three-quarters of Canadian farmland has been impacted by drought. Arzeena Hamir and her husband farm in the Read more

Submission to PMRA on Glyphosate Proposed Maximum Residue Limit

NFU members are increasingly concerned about the health and environmental impacts of glyphosate. Via our democratic policy development process, we adopted our position opposed to the pre-harvest spraying of glyphosate in 2014. This stance informs our position against the proposed MRL increases. Read more

Priorities for the Next Agricultural Policy Framework

The National Farmers Union sent the following letter to each federal and provincial Agriculture Minister in the lead-up to their annual conference, which will be held virtually in July. At this meeting they will develop the set of priorities, principles and measuring sticks that will guide the successor to the Canadian Agricultural Partnership programs, called Read more

NFU comments on Draft Greenhouse Gas Offset Credit System Regulations

Submission to the Public Comment Period for the Federal Government’s Draft Greenhouse Gas Offset Credit System Regulations This brief technical submission to Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) should be read in conjunction with the NFU’s longer document, A Critical Analysis of Greenhouse Gas Offset Schemes and Draft Offset Credit System Regulations, which provides background, Read more

Union Farmer Newsletter: April 2021

In this issue … Seed For Food System Resilience: Private versus Public Interest – by Cathy Holtslander Canada’s seed variety system is in US trade crosshairs – by Cathy Holtslander US farm groups and unions ask Biden to end CUSMA attack on Canada’s supply management systems – by Cathy Holtslander Vegetable Seed Snapshot   Seed For Read more

Federal Budget Creates Important Programs to Reduce Agricultural GHG Emissions

Today’s federal budget committed significant new money to programs to help reduce agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.  New funding in Budget 2021 includes: $200 million over two years to fund programs to improve nitrogen fertilizer-use efficiency, accelerate cover crop adoption, and expand rotational grazing. In addition to new spending, the Budget allocates existing funds to create new programs, including: $60 million, over two years, from previously announced funding, for a reverse auction pilot program to protect wetlands and trees on farms;  $10 million to help farmers adopt clean energy solutions and begin to transition off fossil fuels; $50 million to help farmers purchase more efficient grain dryers; and Approximately $100 million of the money that farmers currently pay in carbon levies on natural gas and propane will be rebated back to farmers.    Read more

Supreme Court Decision on Carbon Pricing Important Step Forward

Le français suit NEWS RELEASE     MARCH 25, 2021 The National Farmers Union (NFU) applauds today’s decision of the Supreme Court of Canada to declare the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act (GGPPA) constitutionally valid.  This decision confirms the federal government’s jurisdiction to take strong national leadership action to curb greenhouse gas emissions and safeguard Read more

Imagine If: A Vision of a Near-Zero-Emission Farm and Food System for Canada

On March 18th, the National Farmers Union (NFU) released a new report: Imagine If… A Vision of a Near-Zero-Emission Farm and Food System for Canada.  The report takes a 2030 viewpoint and invites readers to imagine a wide range of positive policies and on-farm measures implemented in the 2020s to reduce food-system emissions and increase Read more

Indigenous, Environmental, and Agricultural Organizations across Saskatchewan call on the Province to halt the liquidation of Crown land

Indigenous, environmental, and agricultural organizations throughout Saskatchewan have come together to call on the provincial government to halt the sale of treaty land to private owners. Since 2007, the Province has auctioned off over 2 million acres of Crown land – totalling an area larger than Prince Albert National Park – with sweeping implications for Read more

Protection of Manitoba’s Democracy is Critical, says NFU

(Garland) — The National Farmers Union (NFU) in Manitoba objects to Bill 57, the Protection of Critical Infrastructure Act on the grounds of both substance and process. In November, the government introduced Bill 57 and passed it at First Reading without revealing its contents. This is unacceptable in a democracy. Not only is the bill’s apparent Read more