Farmers looking with concern at federal fertilizer target

As Saskatchewan farmers dive into harvest season, some are watching the federal government and its 2030 emission reduction targets with a raised eyebrow or two.

The federal government wants to see fertilizer reductions by 30 per cent to meet its emissions reductions goals for 2030.

Todd Lewis said farmers in general, and in Saskatchewan specifically, already reduce inputs like fuel and fertilizer as much as they can. He said that’s been the evolution of efficiency in agriculture on a yearly, and even daily, basis.

“Every time a farmer jumps in his tractor and uses GPS technology, which is widely used here in the province and, really, across the country, that’s a more efficient use of things like fertilizer and fuel,” said Lewis.

In particular in Saskatchewan, the innovation of zero-till farming was developed and is spreading across the country.

Farming being a low margin, high input business, Lewis said that’s why farmers are concerned about the federal targets. He said there’s confusion about what kind of a reduction, whether it’s a 30 per cent reduction in fertilizer use itself.

“When you hear a straight out fertilizer reduction that starts to hurt yields and if it hurts yields it’s going to hurt our bottom line and it’s going to make it more difficult to be sustainable in our industry,” explained Lewis.

But Lewis said if it’s a 30 per cent reduction in emissions from fertilizer use, which federal documents currently say, that’s a conversation worth having.

“We’re always driving toward being more efficient. And really, you know, less fertilizer use with the same yield, that’s a great goal, that’s money in our pockets,” said Lewis.

Lewis said there needs to be better modelling and more data to know whether a 30 per cent reduction is even possible and whether it’s possible without hurting yields – wanting information about different types of fertilizer with different applications and in different soil zones.

“That information just isn’t available,” said Lewis.

Lewis compared it to being asked to go on diet without knowing the starting point, the ending point or how they’re measuring. He also wants to know where the 30 per cent target came from.

He said farmers are looking at efficiency per unit, saying a farmer might be using more fertilizer than they were but they’re also getting more yield than they used to. Lewis called it a balancing act.

“We feed so much of the world and we have so many customers worldwide that count on our product that it’s got to be part of the conversation as to how sustainable some of these reductions would be as far as sustainability for our export markets and, really, our customers from around the world,” said Lewis.

There has been some communication from the federal government, according to Lewis – he said Agri-Food Canada has reached out, but that there needs to be more.

MPs speak out

Lewis and leaders from several other agricultural groups met on Thursday with three western Conservative MPs: Andrew Scheer and Warren Steinley out of Regina, and John Barlow from Alberta.

Lewis said they’re happy to talk to any politicians about this and that it was nice to have people coming to Saskatchewan from Ottawa.

“This isn’t a partisan issue, it’s about our livelihoods and about what farmers want to do to continue to support not only their own livelihoods, but domestic production and international production is a huge part of agriculture here in Saskatchewan,” explained Lewis.

Scheer said he’s heard a lot about a lack of consultation with the federal government, a lack of sound data behind the target, and what he said are incorrect facts the government is giving out around this.

Scheer said farmers aren’t getting credit for what they’ve already achieved in terms of reductions.

“No farmer wastes fertilizer, they have all kinds of precision equipment to make sure that they’re maximizing every last drop that they put on their fields,” said Scheer.

“This is going to have a direct reduction in yields, it’s going to lead to higher (food) prices, and a lot more instability around the world.”

Steinley said the three are going to take the questions they heard from the farmers back to Ottawa and try to get answers.

The federal government is holding online consultations on how to get to the 30 per cent reduction while sustaining yields, but Barlow doesn’t seem very hopeful. He said they should have had the consultations before they made the announcement and work with producers and stakeholders first.

“They’ve already made this announcement, they’re not going to back up and say ‘oh, we’ve heard from producers, we’re going to go to 20 per cent.’ I just don’t believe anything that this government is saying, certainly when it comes to agriculture — they haven’t exactly been listening,” said Barlow.

The consultations were extended but are expected to close at the end of August.