CROP RESEARCH HEADS WRONG WAY
BY BRUCE BURROWS
A year ago in these pages, Grain Growers of Canada (GGC) warned that the country was losing ground on crop research. Public investment was declining, competitors were investing more aggressively and farmers were being asked to do more with fewer tools. We called on the federal government to reinvest in the science grain farmers rely on, because productivity growth keeps Canadian grain competitive.
A year later, the direction has only worsened. Canada is underinvesting in public crop science and cutting into remaining capacity. In January, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada announced plans to cut hundreds of positions and close seven research sites. Most of the reductions are expected to affect the science branch, including the people who run field trials, maintain long-term research and support the breeding programs.
The closure of research farms is unfortunate for Canadian agriculture. Consequences go beyond loss of buildings and equipment. Field trials end. The generation of long-term data stops. Local expertise leaves. Research partnerships are disrupted. These are tools farmers do not get back quickly, if at all.
These reductions are also poorly timed. The federal government has made food affordability and food security central priorities. That is the right focus, but keeping food affordable over the long term starts with support for the farmers who grow it. Crop research is a practical tool governments use to strengthen productivity, reduce risk and help farmers produce more with fewer resources.
Traits such as cold tolerance, winter hardiness and regional disease resistance are essential to Canadian farmers. They are not always a priority for international or commercially driven breeding programs. This gap is filled by public research: the wheat that stands up to Fusarium, the canola that performs in dry conditions and the pulse variety bred for a short Prairie growing season. It is practical, field-tested science that helps farmers manage risk and produce more with less.
Beyond the farm gate, crop research supports stronger yields, better disease resistance and improved crop resilience that help stabilize supply. Stable supply helps manage costs throughout the value chain. Manageable costs can help strengthen the long-term affordability and resilience of Canada’s food system.
GGC moved quickly when the announcement of cuts was made. We called on agriculture minister Heath MacDonald to provide clear, program-level disclosure of the impacts of the proposed cuts and raised the issue directly with the minister at a roundtable and in subsequent meetings with members of Parliament.
Twenty farm groups also joined the push and asked the minister to pause the closures and reveal the analysis behind them.
Parliamentarians have also raised the alarm. On May 6, the House agriculture committee tabled a report calling on the government to pause and reverse the closures and members agreed without dissent. The all-party call reflects how widely the concern is shared.
Now, the government has the opportunity, and the responsibility, to align its decisions with its own food security mandate. The response to Parliament’s recommendations is due in early September. The path ahead should be straightforward: adopt the committee’s recommendations, reverse the closures, disclose the full impact of the proposed reductions and reinvest in the applied research capacity farmers rely on.
Canadians deserve a food system built for the long term, and Canadian grain farmers deserve the strong public research system that helps supply it. This critical work rarely makes headlines, but it shows up through better varieties, stronger disease resistance, improved resilience in a dry year, a few more bushels when margins are tight and a more secure food system when global supply chains are under pressure. These gains help keep Canadian grain competitive and our farms viable.
A year ago, we asked Ottawa to invest in this work. This year, we ask the government to stop moving in the wrong direction and rebuild the public research capacity farmers rely on. If food affordability and food security are national priorities, crop research must be treated as part of the solution.
Bruce Burrows is the executive director of the Grain Growers of Canada.
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