Saskatchewan farmers are growing increasingly concerned with how the Canadian and American trade war will impact harvest. Beginning Sept. 8, the federal government is implementing counter-tariffs on $27.6 billion worth of U.S. goods. in a dollar-for-dollar match of American tariffs implemented on Aug. 22. Until now, the province’s agriculture sector was largely unaffected by the ongoing trade dispute. Agriculture Producers of Saskatchewan president Bill Prybylski says that’s going to change. “I think the biggest concern is the uncertainty surrounding all the rhetoric. The threat of tariffs was withdrawn, and then they’re back. Just so much uncertainty,” Prybylski said. After a years-long dispute with China’s 100 per cent tariff on Canadian canola oil, canola meal and peas, famers had a brief period of relief. In February, the Candian and Chinese governments struck a deal to reduce seed duties to 15 per cent, and eliminate the tariff on canola meal altogether. Prybylski, who farms just west of Yorkton, fears whatever gains farmers may have seen from that deal may be undone from upcoming tariffs. “It just seems to be one issue after another that farmers are dealing with, besides the unusual weather that we’ve had to deal with.” The largest impact farmers are likely to see in the targeted Canadian tariffs are in machinery and equipment repair costs. As part of the federal government’s list of products subject to counter-tariffs, some agricultural equipment and agricultural machinery parts imported from the U.S. face a 15 per cent tariff. While those are specific to each farm operation, 50 per cent tariffs on most steel and aluminum products are expected to have greater implications across the entire industry. “Parts and repairs for your equipment is a very significant concern for producers,” Prybylski said. “That increase is to the cost of anything that’s made of steel or aluminum, which is pretty much everything we have on the farm here in terms of equipment.” With parts coming from south of the border expected to face a significant increase in price, farmers are caught in the middle of the trade dispute right as harvest ramps up. “It’s not a discretionary spend to fix your combine — that’s an absolute must,” Prybylski said. “Time is of the essence. If parts are increasing by 15, 20 or 30 per cent, we as producers are forced to pay that. We really have no recourse.” During a separate event announcing $11.6 million to support Saskatoon businesses facing uncertainty and disruption due to U.S. tariffs, Secretary of State for Rural Development Buckley Belanger did not indicate there would be any similar relief for farmers. “The bottom line is we have a country to defend,” Belanger said. “There will be challenges for all of us. And I just hope that through rational discussion and good free trade discussions, with our prime minister’s lead, of course, that we can recognize and weather that storm and rebuild a good relationship with the U.S.” Prybylski says farmers he’s spoken with are stockpiling as many replacement parts as they can before prices increase. While Prybylski fears predictable fixes for a blown belt on a combine or cutting parts on the header, he says unanticipated repair costs to a transmission or more serious breakdowns simply can’t be budgeted. As uncertainty looms, he hopes the federal government can expand existing programs to include farmers impacted by the trade war. He also hopes larger items like fertilizer and crops remain untouched in trade talks. “It would be very unfortunate if food and the production of food is being used as a weapon in a political dispute,” Prybylski said.
