Alberta’s government is making changes to the Agriculture Financial Services Corporation’s Next Generation Loan Program.
The goal of the changes is to reverse a couple of trends. The past two decades have seen steep declines in the number of young and middle-aged producers in agriculture, while the amount of farmers over the age of 55 has increased.
RJ Sigurdson, Alberta’s Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation, notes it is very fitting to be sharing this news at AgSmart – a two-day expo focused on moving Alberta’s ag industry forward by supporting farmers. He says “that is what is about is getting the youth into agriculture and understanding the potential in agriculture in Alberta and really what is happening in agriculture in the province of Alberta right now. Olds College is such a huge part of training the next generation and I’m very appreciative of all the hard work they do.”
The provincial government notes that expanding eligibility and updating the Next Generation Loan program’s terms will make it easier for producers to enter and re-enter the ag industry, give greater opportunities to new and growing operations, make succession more appealing, and encourage new and young people to get into farming. Sigurdson says “we’ve expanded eligibility on a couple aspects, the interest rate incentive and ownership requirements. Under these changes, the eligibility for a one per cent interest rate incentive has been expanded to included new and returning farmers. To help with succession planning, it also has been expanded to cover producers of any age including those 40 and older.”
Darryl Kay – CEO, Agriculture Financial Services Corporation – says AFSC is extremely excited to announce these enhancements and to continue to provide support to the next generation of producers in Alberta. He says “as Minister noted, the changes to AFSC’s Next Generation Loan program will help ensure that new and young producers have access to the capital that they need to get started in farming while supporting farm succession in Alberta. By increasing access to several Next Generation Loan features were are safeguarding the future of our industry by making it easier for farm families to transfer their farm from one generation to another. These changes also make it easier for new and beginning producers to become established in the industry and grow their operations.”
The changes will take effect at the beginning of September (September 1st) and producers can find out more by contacting their AFSC branch.
AgSmart continues today (July 31st) from 8:30am until 4:30pm on the south portion of the Olds College campus.
For tickets or more information head to the website OldsAgSmart.ca.