Agriculture and Agri-Food

The House of Commons Agriculture and Agri-Food Committee met on June 18, 2026, to study food security, hearing from Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Heath MacDonald, Deputy Minister Lawrence Hanson, and Canadian Food Inspection Agency Vice-President Debbie Beresford-Green.

Minister MacDonald opened by presenting the government’s first-ever national food security strategy, backed by $3.2 billion in investments. He highlighted measures to speed up regulatory approvals for fertilizers and pest control technologies, double guaranteed loan limits for young farmers under the Canadian Agricultural Loans Act, invest $750 million in controlled environment agriculture, and create a $1-billion Farm Credit Canada agri-food project finance fund. He also announced a new African swine fever zoning arrangement with Japan as a key achievement for the pork sector.

Deputy Minister Hanson confirmed that of 26 research scientists offered relocation following the closure of seven research centres, 23 have accepted moves to other departmental facilities. He offered to provide numbers but noted that individual employee names would be withheld for privacy reasons.

Vice-President Beresford-Green stated that the CFIA conducts system audits of foreign countries before opening new markets, with the most recent audits in Paraguay in 2022 and Brazil in 2018. She emphasized that the agency ensures reciprocal zoning and strong standards to prevent animal diseases from entering Canada.

Under questioning, Minister MacDonald defended the research centre closures as operational changes that would not reduce science capacity, and he rejected calls to remove the 35% tariff on Russian fertilizer imports, noting that the European Union is moving to a 100% tariff. He said he had raised farmers’ concerns about the Alto high-speed rail project with the transport minister but could not specify how many farms would be affected because the route has not been chosen. On supply management, he said protecting it remains a priority in ongoing U.S. trade negotiations. He also argued that new pesticide powers under Bill C-30 would not jeopardize Canadian health and are needed to level the playing field with other countries.

Conservative members pressed the minister on the research centre closures, the fertilizer tariff, and the Alto rail project’s impact on farmland. Bloc Québécois member Sébastien Lemire questioned the cuts to science and innovation research and raised concerns about the Mercosur trade agreement and the Alto project’s expropriation powers under Bill C-15. Liberal members focused on how the food security strategy would support regional food hubs, abattoirs, and competition in the grocery sector.

The committee then debated a motion from Sophie Chatel to extend the deadline for submitting recommendations on the business risk management study from June 26 to September 30. After discussion, the motion was defeated. A subsequent motion from Sébastien Lemire to resume debate on a previously adjourned motion concerning the Alto project was also defeated on a recorded vote of six nays to five yeas.