Province to invest $5B in ‘biofood’ sector
Policy aims to promote Quebec products, encourage expansion of exports: premier
Premier Philippe Couillard unveiled his government’s longawaited policy on Quebec’s food industry, and pledged to invest $5 billion in the “biofood” sector over the next five years.
The Liberal government’s “Politique bioalimentaire 2018-2025” is a seven-year plan that will bring about a sea change in the industry; one that will put consumers and their health first, Couillard said.
“Bioalimentaire” — or “biofood” in English — is a term that refers to all food-related industries including agriculture, aquaculture (fish farming, algae and shellfish), fisheries, food processing, wholesale and retail food distributors, as well as hotel, restaurant and institutional food services.
“With this policy we hope to better inform and better equip consumers,” Couillard said. “We want them to know what is made in Quebec, to see their region on their plates and to know who is producing their food.”
He said the policy will also grow and strengthen a sector that employs 500,000 Quebecers and represents eight per cent of the province’s GDP.
Among the policy’s main goals are to increase sales of homegrown food products in Quebec by $10 billion and grow Quebec’s food exports by $6 billion by 2025.
Each Quebec household spends on average close to $9,700 on food and drink, which represents 13.7 per cent of its total expenses, according to figures released in the policy. A little more than half (53 per cent) of that food demand is filled by locally sourced products, while the rest comes from other provinces or countries.
Besides selling more Quebecsourced food at home and abroad, the policy aims to:
Double the area of farmland devoted to organic food production in Quebec (from 49,000 hectares in 2015 to 98,000 hectares by 2025);
Increase the portion of aquatic products harvested in Quebec that are certified not to harm the ecosystem from 52 per cent to 70 per cent;
Improve the nutritive value of foods processed in Quebec (reduce salt, sugar and saturated fats);
By 2025, have the agriculture, aquaculture, fisheries and food processing industries to invest $15 billion to improve and modernize.
The new policy is the fruit of a consultation process that started in 2016 and culminated in a major food summit held last November. That event brought together over 200 consumers, farmers, fisheries workers, processors, distributors, retailers, and restaurateurs, as well as nutrition and health experts and municipal officials.
Reaction to the 108-page policy was mainly positive Friday.
The Union des producteurs agricoles, which represents 42,000 farmers across the province, said the policy is “good news for Quebec farmers.”
“This is the game plan that was missing to move forward into the future, to make clear decisions and profit from the many opportunities in the Quebec, Canadian and international markets,” said UPA president Marcel Groleau.
He said Quebec can still do more to improve programs that mitigate risk for farmers, and to support those located far from major urban markets. The horticultural sector in particular needs help to compensate for the recent increase in the minimum wage, he added.
The Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec also welcomed the policy, saying the $5-billion government investment is welcome and necessary for innovation and growth of the industry, particularly into foreign markets.
FCCQ president Stéphane Forget said the policy is a good response to clear calls from consumers for more organic and local products on store shelves.
“Because Quebec businesses and producers work in a context where norms are strict and practices respect the health of consumers, promoting Quebec foods and organic produce has a double advantage on the economy as well as the health of Quebecers,” said Forget.
La Coop fédérée, which represents 90,000 members of food cooperatives across Canada, praised the government for consulting all stakeholders, including consumers, to develop the policy.
“The new policy represents a step in the right direction. The importance of the Quebec biofood industry, which contributes $25.4 billion to the Quebec economy and generates more than 500,000 jobs, most certainly deserves the attention the government is giving it today,” said co-op president Ghislain Gervais.
In Quebec City, the opposition Coalition Avenir Québec denounced the $5-billion announcement as more cynical vote buying in the run-up to the October elections.
The CAQ’s critic on agriculture, Sylvie D’Amours, said the thrust of the policy is good, but the Liberals have had years to take action on agriculture, and investments in the sector have been constantly diminishing since 2011, which has hurt Quebec’s ability to compete with Ontario, for example. The Liberals have also not taken action to address long-standing complaints about agricultural property taxes.
“Like in other domains, the Liberals are giving to agriculture with one hand and taking from it with the other. Our food sectors want first and foremost a government that believes our workers and our entrepreneurs and gives them the tools and the means to compete against the other provinces. The CAQ will make agriculture a powerful economic lever, which the Liberals were incapable of doing over 15 years in power,” she said.
She said her party would match the Liberals’ promised investments in the sector and introduce a $50-million agriculture investment fund.
We want them to know what is made in Quebec, to see their region on their plates and to know who is producing their food.