MANSEAU, Quebec – Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and Christian Paradis, Minister of Industry and Minister of State (Agriculture), met with stakeholders in Quebec’s agriculture and agri-food industries to review Canada’s new agricultural policy, called Growing Forward 2, and to address other issues.

Growing Forward 2 includes funding for an array of agriculture-related initiatives, including ongoing multi-year funding for business risk management programs; more than $3 billion in strategic initiatives for innovation, competitiveness, and market development; and provincial flexibility. The new policy facilitates federal, provincial, and territorial partnerships to build sector productivity, profitability, and competitiveness to ensure the agriculture sector's long-term prosperity.

The ministers had discussions with Fédération des producteurs de porcs du Québec (FPPQ), which were part of the close work federal and provincial governments have undertaken with the Canadian Pork Council and other hog sector stakeholders to clearly assess the challenges facing the hog sector in Canada. The ministers also discussed initiatives developed by the federal and provincial governments and industry to quickly help the hog sector deal with short-term financial pressures.

Federal and provincial ministers also are working together to help Quebec livestock producers deal with the impacts of drought.