Federal agriculture officials address research cuts
The House of Commons agriculture committee began an emergency study this week around recent cuts and closures of federal research centres.
Deputy minister of agriculture, Lawrence Hanson, and two assistants were the first witnesses to speak to the group. Hanson said that as part of a cross-government review, his department had to find nearly 155 million dollars in savings by 2028 and 2029.
Agriculture Agri-Food Canada’s budget is about 800 million dollars annually. Science and research facilities account for about 300 million dollars.
Hanson said the research facilities have required more upkeep over time and the department decided it would be more cost effective to consolidate into fewer sites. Hanson said the department is not reconsidering the decision.
Opposition MPs criticized previous government spending such as 8.5 million dollars for a cricket farm. Others noted that the former Stephen Harper government cut the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration, among other reductions.
Flour production down in U.S., up in Canada
Flour production is down in the United States but up in Canada, according to the latest statistics.
U.S. flour production totalled 21.3 million tonnes in 2025, down 0.9 per cent from 2024 levels, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
That’s the smallest output in 14 years.
On the flipside, Canadian mills produced nearly 2.7 million tonnes of wheat flour in 2025. That’s a nearly eight per cent increase from 2024.
DTN lead analyst Rhett Montgomery said the slowdown in U.S. flour production is linked to a rise in wheat-free diets. However, he said he’s not overly concerned.
Greg Horstmeier, DTN’s editor-in-chief, said what might be a cause for concern is the newly published Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which placed meat protein at the top of the pyramid and grains at the very bottom. They reduce the number of recommended servings of grains to two to four servings,
instead of six to eleven servings.
Income Tax Act changes could help extended family members inherit farms
An Ontario consultant is lobbying for changes to the federal Income Tax Act that would allow extended family members to inherit farms tax-free.
Under the current act, only the children of the farm’s owners can inherit without paying taxes. This has significant financial implications for those who don’t qualify.
Derryn Shrosbee is the founder of 33seven, a firm specializing in estate planning and farm succession. He said allowing nieces and nephews to inherit farms would make it easier for Canadians to keep farms in the family. Without this change, Shrosbee said he expects a significant decline in family farm ownership.
Shrosbee said he’s reached out to federal and provincial officials to raise this issue.
The federal finance department told Glacier FarmMedia that it has some measures in place to reduce the tax burden when transferring farm businesses. For example, the Income Tax Act exempts certain dispositions from tax, grants capital gains reserves on some dispositions, and defers tax on inter-generational transfers.
