minding your business
Red tape is tightening
CFIB survey says productivity and stress are amongmajor concerns for farmers.
A
s part of Red Tape Awareness Week in January, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) put a spotlight on the negative impact red tape has on Canada’s farmers.
Most businesses cite red tape as their second highest concern behind the total tax burden, but the CFIB sas recent data puts red tape at the top of the list of farmers’ concerns (79 per cent). Farmers are also the most likely to say the burden of red tape has grown: 72 per cent report the burden has increased over the past 3 years, compared to 55 per cent among all other sectors.
“Over-regulation, confusing paperwork, and bad customer service are crippling agriculture businesses and stifling innovation,” said Marilyn Braun-Pollon, CFIB’s vice-president for Agri-business.
“This is a concern to all Canadians, as it is a critical sector employing two million Canadians and generating over $44 billion worth of our trade.” CFIB’s survey found 69 per cent of agri-business owners saying red tape significantly reduces productivity in their businesses. Eighty-seven per cent of respondents said excessive regulations add significant stress to their lives, compared to 80 per cent among other small business owners. Sixty-eight per cent of farmers say red tape discourages them from growing their businesses, compared to 62 per cent of other business owners. “Farmers have no issue with the legitimate rules; but red tape is something else,” said Braun-Pollon. “For farmers, red tape takes many forms; it can be contradictory
20 British Columbia Berry Grower • Spring 2013
information from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), a dumb rule from Fisheries and Oceans saying you can’t clean out a man-made ditch or a Statistics Canada survey filled with questions that don’t
apply to their business. It all adds up to a lot of wasted time and money.” Survey comments reveal farmers’ frustration with regulators who often don’t understand the challenges of running a farm. For example, a number of respondents complained that Statistics Canada often sends surveys during spring seeding - one of the busiest times of the year for farmers. Farmers are twice as likely to cite Statistics Canada surveys as burdensome compared to other businesses (50 per cent vs 25 per cent, respectively).
“Farmers feel really disrespected by government agencies that don’t understand there are two really busy times of year—seeding and harvesting. Asking business owners to meet
compliance deadlines during these two peak seasons is the equivalent of CRA trying to do a retail audit on Boxing Day,” said Braun-Pollon.
Twenty-eight per cent of farmers say that if they had known about the burden of regulations, they may not have gone into business. “Succession is a big issue—we are concerned red tape will stop the next generation of farmers from wanting to get into the business,” added Braun-Pollon.
“There have been some recent government actions that give us hope, including some initiatives by the CFIA, but more work is required to reduce red tape so farmers feel some relief and can continue to provide safe, high- quality food for Canadians,” concluded Braun-Pollon.
Quality and Service ... It’s our pledge Berry trays, fruit and vegetable boxes
available at very affordable prices.
We Also Recycle Plastics
Toll Free: 888-77T-BIRD (888-778-2473) Fax: 604-433-6231 email:
info@thunderbirdplastics.com
www.thunderbirdplastics.com
6969 Shirley Avenue, Burnaby, BC, Canada, V5J 4R4
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24