Federal Government invests more than $8 Million to grow Canada’s organic sector

OTTAWA –  The federal government is investing $8.3 million towards organic agriculture research. It’s part of an effort to work with the Canada Organic industry to meet a 2020 deadline for updating the country’s organic standards.

The Canada Organic Trade Association says organic food production is the fastest-growing sector in Canadian agriculture and standards need to be updated to reflect the latest trends, research and innovations.

The government has set a target of $75 billion in agricultural exports by 2025 and the association says it is crucial that booming sectors such as organics be provided with equal opportunities in the global marketplace.

According to a news release, 4,289 farms reported organic farming in Canada in 2016, with the total acreage of organically farmed land at 2,433,602 acres. The organic acreage in Canada grew by 5% per year between 2006 and 2015.
 
To take advantage of organic farming, the five-year, Canadian Agricultural Partnership is providing a $3-billion investment by federal, provincial and territorial governments to strengthen the agriculture and agri-food sector. The Partnership builds on Growing Forward 2, the previous five-year agreement that ended on March 31, 2018.