February 24, 2010

Alberta reduces regulatory burden for cattle producers

To help reduce regulatory burden on cattle producers, the Alberta government is reviewing the existing regulatory process to identify barriers that add unnecessary costs and reduce competitiveness for the agricultural industry.

As a first step in this review, Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development will provide a grant of C$25,000 (US$23,703.4) to Livestock Identification Services to cover the cost of livestock inspection for Alberta beef producers who graze their cattle in Saskatchewan or British Columbia. This initiative will reduce trade barriers between provinces, lower production costs, and ease the regulatory burden for producers.

Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Jack Hayden says cattle producers informed that there are layers of unnecessary government rules and regulations that prevent the industry from achieving its overall goals of a profitable beef industry.

Providing the grant is a small step of many that the government needs to take to reduce the regulatory burden for the Canadian province's producers, he said.

The grant will cover inspection costs of cattle that temporarily move into Saskatchewan or British Columbia for the 2010 grazing season which starts in April. Traditionally, about 25,000 head of cattle move between the provinces for seasonal grazing.