Orchard and vineyard owners in Quebec and Nova Scotia will get federal funding to pull outdated trees and vines in favour of new varieties.
The federal government on Friday announced $5.6 million on top of the Quebec government’s $12 million toward an orchards and vineyards transition program in that province. Ottawa will put up $2.3 million for a similar program in Nova Scotia.
The Quebec program will use the federal funding, ending March 31, 2011, to help orchards and vineyards remove old trees and vines and develop “new strategic commodity plans.” The province’s portion will flow until March 31, 2012, to pay for replanting of new apple tree varieties that are “more popular among consumers,” improve growers’ productivity and profitability, and help better match apple supply to demand, the two governments said in a release.
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In the removal phase, eligible farmers will get $4,000 per hectare removed. To be eligible for that phase, growers must own at least two hectares of fruit trees or vines and remove at least half a hectare.
In the replanting phase, farms with apple orchards of two or more hectares that renew at least half a hectare and up to 25 per cent of the total area in apple trees will be eligible for $6,600 per hectare to replant dwarf apple trees and $4,000 for semi-dwarf trees.
Nova Scotia
In Nova Scotia the federal orchards and vineyards transition program will run until 2011 offering up to $4,000 per hectare toward costs associated with removing fruit trees or vines, to plant new varieties and other crops. The program will also help commodity organizations develop long-term marketing and production plans, the government said in a release.
Eligible Nova Scotia farmers who take part in the program will have to commit to keeping the land available for agriculture for five years, the government said Friday. Growers must have at least half a hectare in tree fruit or vines to be eligible.
More details will be provided to growers and industry groups on the application process this spring, the government said, once a federal/provincial committee, yet to be named, picks a program delivery agent. The program will be retroactive to cover removal of trees or vines as far back as Oct. 25, 2007.
The program also includes $96,000 for longer-term planning by Nova Scotia’s tree fruit and grape industries. Industry associations can apply to fund studies to help members improve long-term profitability.
Federal funding here is on top of $1.5 million in provincial initiatives, including the five-year Honeycrisp Orchards Renewal Program (HCORP), a provincewide apple replant announced in November 2005 and administered by the Nova Scotia Fruit Growers Association. Over 600 acres of Honeycrisp apple trees are expected to be planted over the life of the province’s program.
The Quebec and Nova Scotia programs follow an announcement earlier in February of $22.3 million for a similar program for Ontario tree fruit and grape growers.
