Yorkton Chamber seeks grain drying carbon tax exemption

The Board of Directors of the Yorkton Chamber of Commerce recently sent a letter to the Federal Minister of Agriculture & Agri-Food, Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau to exempt prairie farmers from paying a carbon tax on the fuel used by grain dryers to dry the 2019 crop.

President Mike Stackhouse is very concerned about the effect the carbon tax is having not only on the farmers but also on the local business community. Using information provided by the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS), Stackhouse indicated that the estimated additional cost of the carbon tax on grain drying costs is $0.36 per acre. On a 1,000 acre farm, this results in an additional cost to the grain drying of $360. The extra cost for a 6,000 acre farm is $2160; and for a 15,000 acre farm the extra cost of the carbon tax on the grain drying bill is $5400.

“The carbon tax on the fuel for grain drying adds to the cost of production for the farmers”, said Stackhouse. “This in turn, negatively impacts local business as every dollar spent on the carbon tax is not available to be spent on purchases of goods or services in our city or region.”

Stackhouse added that in its letter to Minister Bibeau, the Yorkton Chamber urged her to have her government remove the carbon tax from the cost of grain drying. “We don’t like the carbon tax at all but to add it to fuel necessary to dry grain harvested in less than ideal conditions is absurd”, said Stackhouse. “There is no alternative method for drying the grain.”

The Yorkton Chamber of Commerce is “the voice of business in Yorkton” and represents over 465 members. 2019 marks the Chamber’s 121st year.