Victoria, BC (Rural Roots Canada) — British Columbia’s agriculture minister says any cuts made to science research are a “huge concern.”
Lana Popham, B.C.’s Minister of Agriculture and Food, made the comments in response to the recent job cuts and facility closures at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC).
“I think any time there’s any indication that we’re going to be cutting science, it’s obviously a huge concern,” says Popham. “So far in BC, we’ve gotten off quite lucky. Our research stations seem to be staying open, which is great. We interact with them a lot on the provincial level.”
There have been no indications of any additional cuts or closures on the way.
Popham says she expects the issue of the AAFC cuts will be discussed among provincial agriculture ministers across the country in the near future.
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“We haven’t had any provincial and territorial discussions yet, but I know that our teams are sorting out a time to meet,” she says. “This is obviously something that right across Canada, we all would be concerned about.”
She believes the federal agriculture minister, Heath MacDonald, shares similar concerns.
“I think over the time that Minister Heath MacDonald has been in the position of Minister ofAgriculture federally, from what I know about him, I think he would also be concerned,” she said. “It would be a really tough one for him. I think he would be expecting us as a group of ministers from across the country to be advocating for cuts not to happen.”
Earlier this month, several agricultural research facilities across Canada were closed, and hundreds of jobs were slashed following budget cuts at AAFC.
In a statement, AAFC said it remains Canada’s largest agricultural research organization, with 17 research centres nationwide and research farmland in every province. It added that there are no imminent site closures, and any wind-down of scientific operations would follow a careful decision process that could take up to 12 months.
Photo Credit: AACF website
