VAUDREUIL-DORION, Quebec — More than 65 tractors, with their front bumpers sporting signs such as “Feeding your family is our profession,” came from throughout the region to join a rally of over 300 farmers and their supporters here April 10. This city of more than 43,000 people is an hour west of Montreal.
Organized by the Union of Agricultural Producers, the protest was one of several held in Quebec demanding the government increase its spending on agriculture, currently less than 1% of the provincial budget. They also demanded an end to the abusive paperwork farmers have to fill out to meet government-imposed environmental regulations. “Less than 1% of the budget, but 8 million mouths to feed” and “Less paperwork” read many of the farmers’ signs.
During its 99th anniversary convention held in Quebec City last December, the Union of Agricultural Producers mobilized 1,000 farmers outside the Quebec National Assembly calling for more support to farmers. Beginning in March the organization has held sizable actions throughout Quebec — in Rimouski, Charlevoix, Alma, St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Laval, Saint-Hyacinthe, and here.
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada has predicted the net income of farmers fell by 49.6% in 2023 and 86.5% so far this year. Meanwhile, the profits of supermarket giants like Loblaw and Metro who sell their produce have risen substantially.
The situation is particularly difficult for young farmers — 44% of whom hold jobs off the farm to feed their families. At the action in Vaudreuil-Dorion, these farmers were called up to the front of the crowd to show their signs.
All small farmers feel the impact of the crisis. “We’re here because of the interest rates and inflation plus the lack of certainty of our crops from year to year because of droughts or floods,” a tree farmer who also works off the farm in a union job told the Militant.
“Working farmers are workers’ allies on the land,” Katy LeRougetel, the Communist League candidate in the upcoming federal by-election in Montreal and a union bakery worker, told the Militant. “The Communist League explains that workers and our unions need to forge an independent working-class movement to back these farmers fighting for immediate government aid to guarantee them the costs of production and a decent living for them and their families. And we call for the nationalization of the land, guaranteeing its use by those who live on and till it.”