Producers impacted by drought in 2023 have more time to apply for the 2023 Canada-Saskatchewan Feed Program announced in late October.
The AgriRecovery application deadline has been extended to March 15, 2024.
The submitted application needs to indicate the number of breeding animals on hand as of August 21, 2023, and kept until January 31, 2024. This deadline extension allows Saskatchewan producers additional time to review and finalize applications with actual extraordinary costs and breeding animal inventory, says the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture.
The announced updates also include an added 10 designated Rural Municipalities (RMs) eligible for full cost-shared funding of an initial payment up to $150 per head (see map below). This expansion responds to the dry conditions that further impacted livestock producers throughout the later months this past fall.
The 2023 Canada-Saskatchewan Feed Program is administered by the Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corporation (SCIC). An online application form is available at scic.ca.
In order to qualify, producers will need to submit their receipts or appropriate documents for extraordinary expenses incurred, these include purchased feed, self-hauling or transportation costs for feed or breeding animals, and/or land rented for additional grazing acres or additional feed production.
Eligible animal species include beef cattle and other grazing animals, limited to bison, elk, deer, sheep, goats and horses. A Saskatchewan Premises Identification (PID) is required to be eligible for the Program. This Program covers 70 per cent of extraordinary costs related to feed and freight incurred after May 1, 2023, now through to March 15, 2024.
“We recognize the areas significantly impacted by drought this past fall and the importance in maximizing access to financial relief for livestock producers by expanding the area eligibility,” says Saskatchewan agriculture minister David Marit. “In addition, extending the deadline provides Saskatchewan producers an additional two weeks to review program details and submit their applications.”
