Financial Assistance

AgriRecovery: Herd Management Drought Assistance 

 

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION 

 
AgriRecovery is a disaster relief framework under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership that provides a coordinated process for federal, provincial and territorial governments to respond rapidly when disasters affecting several producers occur.
 
The Herd Management Drought Assistance program is the third program developed in consultation with industry to help meet the needs of Manitoba livestock producers experiencing drought conditions.  The other two programs include the Livestock Feed and Transportation Drought Assistance program and Livestock Transportation Drought Assistance program
 
This program will assist livestock producers in offsetting the cost of replacing breeding animals when culling is above normal due to shortages of winter feed. Producers may be eligible to apply for assistance to:
  • purchase replacement breeding females
  • retain replacement females from their existing herd or flock
The replacement is to assist in returning the applicant’s inventory of breeding females to pre-drought levels.
 
Animals culled under the Herd Management Drought Assistance program are not eligible for assistance under the other two AgriRecovery programs launched on Aug. 31, 2021. 

CLAIM DEADLINE

The February 17, 2023 deadline for submitting claims has now passed.
 

WHO QUALIFIES

 
Primary producers who owned eligible animals located in Manitoba, and were responsible for their feeding expenses as of March 16, 2021 are eligible. Elk producers must have a Game Farm Production Licence and only elk farmed under that licence are eligible.
An applicant must:
  • be an individual who is 18 years of age or older at the time of application; a partnership, a corporation, a cooperative, a commune or a First Nation.
  • be liable to pay income tax in Manitoba under the Income Tax Act (Canada), or is specifically exempted from filing income tax but is a permanent resident of Canada; and must file farm and expense tax forms.
Eligible animals
  • Breeding females of beef cattle, bison, sheep, goats, and elk owned by the applicant.
  • Breeding females are mature females (cows, ewes, does, bred heifers, bred ewe lambs, and bred does) that have previously calved, lambed or been exposed to breeding.
The producer must own a minimum of 10 animals (by animal type) to apply for the program.
 

AVAILABLE ASSISTANCE

 
Assistance is provided to replace breeding females culled due to drought and support returning the applicant’s inventory of breeding females to pre-drought levels.
 
Eligible Sales of Breeding Females Culled Due to Drought
 
The breeding females must be sold during the March 16, 2021 to March 15, 2022 time period and contribute to a decline in the applicant's inventory of eligible breeding females on March 16, 2022.
 
Eligible Replacement
 
Breeding females culled due to drought can be replaced by purchases or retaining replacement females from the applicant's existing herd or flock. The replacement must contribute to an increase in the applicant's inventory of eligible breeding females on January 31, 2023. Any increase in the inventory above pre-drought levels is not eligible.
The following replacements are eligible:
  • Purchases of mature cows, mature ewes, mature does, bred heifers, bred ewe lambs, and bred does.
  • Purchases of females that will be bred by Jan. 31, 2023
  • Retaining females from the applicant's existing herd to be bred for the first time by Jan. 31, 2023.
The replacement animals must be maintained in the herd or flock until Jan. 31, 2023 or later.
 
Breeding Herd Inventory
 
The following dates will be used for assessing the impact of drought and subsequent recovery on the applicant's inventory of breeding females:
  • March 16, 2021
  • March 16, 2022
  • Jan. 31, 2023
The difference between the recovery and drought impacted inventory indicates the effect of purchasing and retaining replacement females on recovering from the drought.
 
 
 

HOW TO DETERMINE HERD MANAGEMENT PAYMENT

 
Payment Rates
 
Payments per head for each animal type are listed in the table below for the replacement of eligible breeding animals culled due to drought. The payments are made for breeding females purchased or retained.
 
Animal Type(s) Payment ($) per head
Beef Cattle, Bison, Elk $250
Sheep and Goats $50
 
Producers are paid the rates shown in the table above, based on the increase in the breeding female inventory between March 16, 2022 and January 31, 2023.
 
The payments are calculated as follows:
 
 
Note: Payments are capped once inventory is restored to pre-drought levels. No payments are made for increases in inventory beyond the pre-drought level.
 
Other Criteria for Declaration of Inventory of Breeding Females:
 
The following animals should not be included in the declared inventories of breeding females:
  • animals sold prior to being exposed to breeding for the first time.
  • market livestock intended for slaughter or purposes other than breeding.
  • animals sold after March 15, 2022.
  • animals leased by the applicant.
  • animals not located in Manitoba as of March 16, 2021 (pre-drought) or Jan. 31, 2023 (when recovery complete). 
For the March 16, 2022 inventory declaration, breeding females that both gave birth and were sold in the Jan. 1, 2022 to March 15, 2022 time period should be included in the number of head declared.
Producers should maintain records of breeding animals sold or purchased in case they are requested by the program administrator.
 

CLAIM DEADLINE

Only producers who applied by April 15, 2022 were eligible to submit a claim.
The February 17, 2023 deadline for submitting a claim has now passed.

Further Resources

For more information, contact:

Manitoba Agriculture
AgriRecovery Drought Assistance
903-401 York Ave.
Winnipeg, MB R3C 0P8
Toll Free: 1-844-769-6224