Funding available for ranchers and farmers to help with drought recovery

Following the very dry summer, the B.C. Government, in collaboration with the federal government, is rolling out funds for ranchers and farmers to access in order to cover expenses.

B.C. has set aside $20-million for ranchers who need help covering the expenses incurred for feed, shelter, animal health and safety and transportation related to this summer’s wildfires and drought.

Farmers in B.C. can also receive funding to help cover expenses related to reseeding forage, replacing fencing or other critical infrastructure that is not insurable but was damaged or destroyed in the fires. The funding, which is provided through the 2021 Canada-British Columbia Wildfire and Drought AgriRecovery Initiative, also covers the costs to beekeepers who have to replace colonies or apiary equipment lost in the wildfires.

“This year’s drought and fires have been incredibly difficult for many B.C. ranchers and farmers, and the B.C. government is here to help them keep their livelihoods and the province’s food security and economy moving forward,” said Lana Popham, Minister of Agriculture.

“The $20-million response package we’ve put together will help B.C. ranchers maintain their breeding stock, continue their operations and continue to supply British Columbians with food grown and raised in our province.”

The 2021 Canada-British Columbia Wildfire and Drought AgriRecovery initiative covers:

• Wildfire and drought support
  • Expenses caused by wildfires or drought related to ensuring livestock feeding needs are not impacted due to feed loss or decreased availability
  • Expensed caused wildfire and drought related to ensuring animal health and safety
  • Transportation costs to move animals to a safe feeding location
  • Feed for breeding livestock based on feed need requirement
  • Contributions towards re-establishing tame perennial forage damaged by fired
  • Herd management costs associated with replacement of breeding animals where breeding herds were reduced due to lack of forage
• Wildfire damages
  • Costs to replace apiaries, bee colonies and beekeeping equipment lost to the fires
  • Costs to repair or replace critical infrastructure that’s not covered by insurance was was damage by the wildfires

“The devastation to B.C. ranches, their livestock and operations from this year’s wildfires and drought has been extensive,” said Kevin Boon, general manager, BC Cattlemen’s Association.

“Experience from past wildfires has not been lost on th government. The announcement of this comprehensive AgriRecovery program will go a long way to assisting producers in their efforts to re-establish their operations and help them recover from the effects of this year’s debilitating events.”

AgriRecovery is a federal-provincial-territorial disaster relief framework aimed at helping agricultural produces recovering from natural disasters. The costs will be supported on a 60-40 federal-provincial cost sharing basis as outlined under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership.