Much of the conversations today are centred around trade and tariffs. There is a lingering uncertainty and fear. Producers through to processors are trying to navigate the shark infested waters.
How then do we as an agricultural industry not only survive but thrive in such a stormy environment?
The immediate thought is to fix the internal handicap of interprovincial trade. At last calculation, the barriers between provinces generated a 6.9% tariff. Until there is both enabling legislation and regulatory framework, including access to supply managed supplies, and the much-needed infrastructure is in place, it is highly unlikely that growth across the nation can occur.
As an added weight, the reality of food insecurity compels us to look at immediate solutions that are inclusive of the universal right to access food. With 26% of Canadians hungry, they will soon run out of patience as food prices increase. With heavy hearts they watch food commodities and food leave the nation, primarily to the United States.
Canada is the 8th largest exporter of agricultural and food products and we have become dependent on this trade, leaving opportunity on the table in terms of interprovincial trade. Most of what we export is in the form of a commodity and not a value-added product. Yet as a whole, the agri-food industry is a powerhouse, generating 7% of the nations GDP and providing one in every nine jobs.
The ag and food space is big business that is populated by a variety of farms and many small food processors scattered among the giants. The food processing industry is growing but the 8500 businesses in the country do not begin to tap into the production that is available. And it is interesting to note that many of those processors are in more remote locations or are clustered in a region.
Nuffield Scholar Shawn Moen looked at small and medium size (SME) processors around the world and found that there were commonalities in those resilient companies and communities. There was local collaboration and and cooperation that lead to healthy competition.
It reminded me of the massive growth in the places of worship on Road 5 in Burnaby BC, famously known as the ‘Highway to Heaven’. Here 20 different streams of culture-based faiths are housed and line the road. All the buildings are at capacity and many are expanding. They all believe in one outcome and because they co-exist, rather than compete for souls, there is a fascinating vibrancy.
Highway to Heaven addresses the cultural fragility and what Moen termed the ‘competitive fragility’ through identifying regional strengths and working together. (Think of collaborative zoning requirements).
But first – we have to talk to each other. Take, for example, pork, chicken, beef, fish and lentils who currently compete for consumer attention and are all wonderful sources of protein. At any table, one or all may show up as the principal protein on the plate. The conversation in the creation of resilient value add should be focused on the finished dish – not about competing for space within it. The customer will decide that dependent on preference and marketing – always believing they are making an informed choice.
Its time to stop compartmentalizing the pantry and the freezer. The main point of intersectionality between the meat/fish//lentils in the stir fry is the nutritional value of the protein in the human diet. Working together to ensure that they are all Canadian proteins for Canadian plates incubates a robust competition and ensures that there is uptake for product within the nation in the value-added offerings we can manufacture.
And here is the kicker, small family-owned SME’s make up the majority of the businesses in agri-food in Canada and around the world. Often in clusters, these regional enterprises have the advantage of a shorter supply chain and, as Moen reminds us, a sense of ‘collective resiliency’.
The solution to the circling shark isn’t in running in panic and deciding as a tribe which harpoon to use. The solution is to stop being the bait. We have the capacity to collaborate and cooperate internally. We have the talent to create food products. We can demand a regulatory framework that is reflective of the need and speed of the private sector and interprovincial barriers can be erased.
Economically it may take some adjusting as we need access to supply managed eggs, poultry and milk. We need to support rural regions and SME through to commercialization and marketing. We need to protect our water and to erase barriers and build infrastructure. All which are long overdue.
Most importantly, we must employ a national creed to feed our people first and honor our societal obligations of “three meals a day” with Canadian ingredients and food from Canadian farms – building an innovative, collaborative and resilient agri-food industry.
2025 Brenda Schoepp All Rights Reserved