New Organic Transition Program for Manitoba

The Manitoba Organic Transition Program (MOTP) will provide financial assistance to producers and processors who wish to transition farmland, livestock and processing facilities to certified organic operations. The program will reimburse fees charged by qualified organic certification agencies during the transition to organic certification. Producers and processors can receive reimbursement of two-thirds (2/3) of the cost of their transition fees up to the $800 maximum per year.

The MOTP is an initiative that will provide support for the growth and development of the organic sector in Manitoba. By encouraging more organic production and processing, the program will enable the industry to expand by taking advantage of growing opportunities in the marketplace. Organics is the fastest growing sector in agriculture, with retail sales increasing at 20% per year, yet production has not been able to keep up to the rapid growth in consumer demand for organic food.

New regulations coming

New organic regulations are also coming into effect that will apply to agricultural food and food products intended for human consumption. Both Canada’s Organic Products Regulations and Manitoba’s Organic Agricultural Products Act will take effect in 2009. This legislation is aimed at protecting consumers against misleading organic claims and to increase the access of Canadian organic products to foreign markets. After the implementation date, products labelled “organic” will have to be “certified organic”, which will provide traceability from the farm to the store shelf.

Visit the MAFRI “Organiculture” website http://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/organic/  for information on this program and all aspects of organic agriculture.