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By Curtis Galbraith

Agriculture

GGC chair welcomes Canada joining Sustainable Productivity Growth Coalition

Mar 6, 2022 | 7:00 AM

Grain Growers of Canada is welcoming a decision from the federal government to join the Sustainable Productivity Growth Coalition.

Nineteen countries are now part of the group started by the US, as are a long list of research organizations and private businesses.

Its aim, according to the USDA website, is to have more sustainable food systems through productivity growth that considers the social, economic and environmental aspects of sustainability.

GGC chair and Valhalla farmer Andre Harpe says it also considers what we have to produce to feed the world and ourselves.

“It is not so much what we are going to get but what it does is (it allows) us to show the good work we are doing already, how sustainable we are, and, at the same time it allows us to be sustainable in a way that we can be sustainable.”

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“When we talked about reducing fertilizers, if we reduce fertilizers, we reduce our production. That is not good for anybody because what we have been doing is providing fairly cheap food at a very reasonable price.”

Harpe says farmers were worried Canada would follow the European idea called Farm to Fork which calls for reducing fertilizer use.

He adds this will allow farmers here to get a look at practices other countries are using, and possibly use them in their own operations

“If you look at the Peace Country, we’re quite far north but at the same time, we’ve got a lot of sunlight in the summertime so we’re kind of unique in where we’re at so we have to be able to adopt whatever practices we can come up with to work here.”

Harpe says agriculture groups are looking at practices to become more sustainable, with some financial help from the federal government.