Farmers and ranchers who have suffered financially due to factors such as poor yields, rising costs or market changes are getting help from the provincial and federal governments.
Changes are being made to the AgriStability program to provide more financial support to B.C. farmers, following a virtual meeting of the federal, provincial and territorial ministers of agriculture.
“At our meeting last week, we agreed to make changes to AgriStability so that producers facing trade uncertainty and dry conditions have more protection,” said Heath MacDonald, federal Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food.
Effective Friday, July 25, 2025, there are several enhancements for the 2025 AgriStability program year, including:
- increasing the compensation rate from 80% to 90%, meaning producers will receive 90 cents for every dollar of eligible income decline;
- doubling the compensation cap from $3 million to $6 million to offer more equitable protection for larger farms and ranches; and
- advancing interest-free payments to farmers for up to 75% of their anticipated final claim.
B.C. farmers have until Thursday, July 31, 2025, to enrol in AgriStability for the 2025 program year. Click here for application details. herehere:
“We raised concerns we have been hearing from farmers here in B.C. at a national level, and our advocacy is resulting in improvements to AgriStability so B.C. farmers can continue to produce high-quality local food,” said Lana Popham, B.C. Minister of Agriculture and Food.
The changes respond to international trade concerns and are expected to help B.C. farmers who are enrolled in the AgriStability program and have suffered income losses from occurrences, such as extreme weather damage.