Honourable Jack Hayden by Bonnie Warnyca
April, 2010
Alberta's new Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Honourable Jack Hayden, a fourth generation Alberta farmer, has spent the first few months in his new portfolio getting to know the industry players. In an era where production is taking a back seat to marketing, he's looking to the cattle industry to forge a new economic recovery plan.
When the minister spoke to the Alberta Beef Industry Conference in February in Red Deer, he made it clear that the industry can no longer afford to be at odds. "All members of the value chain must be at the same table in order to develop a blueprint of new strategies that will reward the primary producer," challenges the minister. "Livestock numbers are steadily declining and there are some frightening numbers at the end of industry projections. If the cow/calf producer exits the business it will mean a domino effect for the entire industry. Each member of the industry has a responsibility to ensure everyone is profitable."
Hayden says that governments do not have enough money to pull the livestock industry out of its difficulties but he is open to helping to fund new ideas for recovery. When asked if he would consider funding smaller packing plants to cater to more value chains, he replied, "There are already more than 50 smaller packing plants in the province plus Cargill and XL. You require two things to have a sustainable business plan. You must have a seller and a buyer. So far, no one has shown me enough committed buyers to warrant an investment into yet another packing plant."
For the time being, Hayden is working with the federal government and the Canadian Food and Inspection Agency to overcome some of the juggernauts for interprovincial trade. He says, "We have started discussions in that direction. CFIA needs to focus on their role of inspection and get out of the policy part. It's now easier to trade with someone in Montana than in Ontario. That's just not acceptable."
Many in the industry wonder aloud if the government should have legislated $1 of the refundable Checkoff money to go directly to the Canadian Cattlemen's Association as it does in other provinces. The Minister admits there are a lot of misconceptions about the $1 in question. He says, "The $1 in the past was earmarked for research and market advancements globally and not necessarily to the CCA. If the Alberta cattle industry wants to fund their national association then they need to give me clear direction about that."
While the Minister's timetable is still pretty stacked with roundtable meetings, he hopes to be able to soon allot more time to the Alberta Livestock & Meat Strategy. "ALMA's function is to be an advisory to the Minister and to open new markets and uncover new value-added opportunities," explains Hayden. "I've only had the opportunity to meet with the ALMA board twice and I want to spend more time with these key members of industry. There's good communication between my office and the ALMA office, but I want there to be excellent communication."
Hayden points out that there have been more than 75 value-added agricultural products including nine beef products developed through the Food Processing Development Centre within the past three years proving that labeling a product not only adds value but creates more employment. He wants to add to that figure and feels that a more unified and market-focused cattle industry will make that happen. |
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