Agriculture committee  You'll find a bit of both. Having programs where it's easy for our producers to know that those are applicable to them and that the funds are earmarked to ensure a safe and consistent food supply for Canadians will be important. Of course, they'll also have access to some of the more global programs that have been announced.

Agriculture committee  Glenn, do you want to address that question?

Agriculture committee  The grocery code of conduct is going to be something very important for the industry. A focus on transparency and predictability for all those involved would be a key success factor. Yes, I would encourage that this happen as soon as possible.

Agriculture committee  Capital for expansion would come significantly from traditional sources of financing, such as bank loans or government grants. Any grant programs are always of benefit, especially to new producers who are coming into the industry. Also, many will utilize their other businesses, operations or personal savings to put into this.

Agriculture committee  It is always a factor, of course, in determining the length of time the loan is needed. The current rates and opportunities to access that capital are all considered as well.

Agriculture committee  Many times, our clients or the companies we're dealing with are competing against very large companies for funding with some big projects. We need something focused on food and beverage that will support the small and medium-sized enterprises in their operations. Again, technology doesn't need to be driven by something big and fancy like reinventing the wheel, when the wheel exists there.

Agriculture committee  There's an opportunity to really highlight these careers and these jobs to Canadians as they move through their training, to tell them those opportunities exist. As we move towards automization or a more skilled workforce, there will be increased compensation that comes with that, and hopefully some safe changes and more rewarding feedback for those employees.

Agriculture committee  Absolutely. Different clients will utilize it should the timing be appropriate for their current expansion and should that fit within their criteria.

Agriculture committee  I think that if the three things we mentioned today could be addressed in a manner that would move them forward, it would provide a real catapult for the industry and cover off a good portion.

Agriculture committee  I think the funds and their availability were always appreciated. One difficulty would be ensuring the funds are available when needed—and having access to those funds, of course.

Agriculture committee  I think it's also important to focus on the automation side of that. As we can look toward bringing automatization and automation to some of these industries, they'll be able to retain their current workers and hopefully have a smaller gap in the skilled workers they need. There will also be some opportunities to retrain some of those workers for skilled positions they can be proud of and find very rewarding.

Agriculture committee  It's always important for those producers to determine what their margins are going to look like, and that would certainly be a factor in profitability for many of them.

Agriculture committee  I apologize. You were breaking up there so I was having some issues hearing the question. Can I ask you to repeat it?

Agriculture committee  Especially in the last few years, our clients were dealing with some tightening margins and having difficulty accessing capital to make those large investments. Programs that would provide access to funding would be very beneficial. Additionally, those changes to a research or development tax credit could be beneficial.

Agriculture committee  Thank you. To date we have not completed an analysis on that, but we would be open to working with our client and with all those impacted on coming up with an analysis and providing some further information on it.