Up-and-coming farmers and farms in financial difficulty are being given a buoy by Quebec to weather the inflationary storm. The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, André Lamontagne, announced Thursday afternoon the creation of an emergency aid account with financial support that could reach up to 100 million.
Thanks to the implementation of this measure, eligible businesses will be able to obtain a loan of $50,000 without having to repay the capital or the interest for three years.
Up to 2,000 companies will be able to benefit from this aid.
In mid-April, the union of the Union of Agricultural Producers (UPA) published the results of a survey revealing that one in ten farms were considering going out of business in order to meet their financial obligations. Start-ups were among the hardest hit.
This announcement is in a way the answer to the concerns of farmers who feel they are being taken by the throat.
During the press conference, the president of the UPA, Martin Caron, praised the “speed” of the implementation of this aid. “I want to be clear, it should not be seen as an expense. When we support agriculture and agri-food, we support the pantry [du Québec], we support food autonomy. »
700 companies in difficulty
To qualify, businesses will need to have sales of less than $1.5 million as well as cash surplus and negative working capital.
The loan guarantee of $50,000 will be spread over a period of ten years. The financial assistance will cover the repayment of interest rates up to 5%.
The program will be managed by the Financière agricole du Québec. Already, 712 agricultural businesses have been identified as being in a precarious situation, of which 683 are succession businesses, i.e. managed by farmers under the age of 40. There are also 26 companies in pork production, a sector that has been experiencing a major crisis for several years.
Quebec has approximately 29,000 agricultural businesses. Those most affected are those who will find it difficult to absorb higher interest costs and agricultural inputs such as fertilizers.
The 712 companies on the tightrope will all be contacted for personalized follow-up.
The alarm has been sounding for agricultural relief workers across Quebec for several weeks. With the increase in interest rates, production costs and on top of that the increase in the price of land, this creates a time bomb that hovers over the heads of agricultural successors.
The president of the Quebec Federation of Agricultural Succession, Julie Bissonnette
For half of its members, rising interest rates could prevent them from meeting their financial obligations.
“For us in this announcement, there are two pieces of good news. Yes, the amounts announced will help many farmers, including successors, to have cash, but above all, it is the government’s message that is important. Today, we are being shown that the demands of agricultural relief have been heard and that they will not be alone to face the storm,” she added.