Federal Agriculture Minister Heath MacDonald has wrapped up a multi-day visit to Alberta during the Calgary Stampede, meeting with producers, processors, industry leaders and agricultural stakeholders.
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada says MacDonald travelled through Alberta from July 5 to 9, with stops focused on the province’s crop, beef, forage, agri-business and food processing sectors.
The visit included tours of farms, ranches, feedyard operations, agri-food businesses and agricultural processing sites.
Producers and industry groups consulted
During the trip, MacDonald met with Alberta producers and stakeholders to discuss issues and opportunities facing the agriculture and agri-food sector.
His schedule included consultations with Alberta’s crop sector, meetings with beef and forage representatives, and stops at local farms and ranches.
MacDonald also visited an agricultural innovation hub to learn more about farm-focused innovation taking place in the region.
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Stampede meetings held
MacDonald attended industry events tied to the Calgary Stampede, including the International Livestock Congress.
He met with regional, national and international industry leaders to discuss the livestock sector and continued engagement with crop, beef and business communities.
While at the Stampede grounds, MacDonald also met with producers, agri-businesses and stakeholders, and made a funding announcement in support of the beef sector.
Processing and veterinary medicine also highlighted
The federal agriculture minister also met with agri-food processors and manufacturers to learn more about value-added wholesale, retail and foodservice operations.
His Alberta visit included a stop at the University of Calgary’s Faculty of Veterinary Medicine for discussions on animal welfare, injury prevention, equine medicine and precision-based farming tools.
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada says the outreach was aimed at hearing directly from Alberta’s agriculture sector while supporting Canada’s producers, processors and food system.