Grain Growers of Canada (GGC) is welcoming several targeted wins for farmers in the federal government’s 2025 budget — notably the permanent reversal of the capital gains tax increase — while warning that other measures could weaken the sector’s competitiveness.
“Budget 2025 acknowledged the impact that the capital gains tax increase would have had on family-run grain farms across Canada by permanently reversing it,” Kyle Larkin, Executive Director of GGC, said in a statement Tuesday, following the budget’s release.
“This will ensure that family farms can continue their succession planning with certainty and that the next generation of farmers does not pay millions of dollars more in taxes.”
The reversal represents a major victory for farm families concerned about intergenerational transfer costs. But GGC cautioned that while the move provides clarity and relief, broader challenges for the ag industry remain — especially around trade, infrastructure, and rail competitiveness.
The budget introduced several trade-focused measures to help farmers respond to trade disruptions. Among them are the creation of a Strategic Exports Office and additional funding for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to modernize digital trade tools and safeguard market access.
“I’m seeing first-hand how trade uncertainty is impacting grain farmers across the country,” said Scott Hepworth, Chair of Grain Growers of Canada and a grain farmer from Saskatchewan. “With challenges in the U.S. and tariffs in China, producers are under real pressure. The new investments in digital export tools and market diversification are positive steps. We need every tool available to keep grain moving, find new customers, and protect our bottom line in an unpredictable global environment.”
A Global News report yesterday said Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne mentioned canola farmers specifically in his budget speech in the House of Commons while promising relief and support for tariff-affected sectors.
“To our lumber and canola producers, we know times are hard, and we are working not only to restore your market access, but to expand it,” he said.
China has recently implemented several retaliatory tariffs on Canadian agricultural products in response to Canada's tariffs on Chinese goods. These include a 100% tariff on canola oil, canola meal, and peas; a 75.8% duty on canola seeds; and a 25% tariff on some pork and aquatic products. Further, India has announced 30% duties on all imports of Yellow peas, a market which Canada is by far the largest supplier.
Infrastructure also plays a key role in the budget, with $213 million earmarked for the Major Projects Office and a new $5 billion Trade Diversification Fund designed to strengthen export corridors. GGC urged the federal government to ensure the Port of Vancouver — the country’s largest grain export hub — is prioritized.
“We continue to urge the government to add the Port of Vancouver to the next major projects list,” said Larkin. “It’s the single most important export gateway for Canadian grain, and its inclusion would send a clear signal that Ottawa is serious about improving trade competitiveness.”
Larkin also criticized the absence of an extension to the interswitching program — which expired in March — and raised concerns about a 15% reduction in Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s operating budget, a move the CGG said could undermine public research and breeding programs essential to innovation and productivity.
.
