RBC tabs $5M for Manitoba ag initiatives
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A $5-million injection into Manitoba farming is coming via the Royal Bank of Canada.
RBC announced it’d route the money, over five years, to grow markets, skills and finance in Manitoba agriculture.
“As we embark on a new era of nation building, Canadian farmers will help us harvest Canada’s generation of growth,” said Dave McKay, RBC chief executive.
He spoke at a Winnipeg event attended by Premier Wab Kinew, provincial ministers and the University of Manitoba’s president Thursday.
“We are really going to be leveraging regional, local partners and expanding their capabilities,” said Lisa Ashton, director of agricultural policy at RBC Thought Leadership.
Part of the funding will flow to Nature United to start a model farm network in Manitoba. The network is akin to an incubation hub where producers are supported in testing practices and technologies, Ashton said.
Funds will go to the U of M, including towards in-demand micro-credentials, Ashton added.
Connecting farmers to global demand, upskilling RBC staff to assist farmers and investing in financial tools that help bridge the risks to agriculture growth fall under the $5-million umbrella, per a news release.
McKay said the more time he’s spent with farmers, the “more conviction I have that they need to be at the heart of Canada’s growth agenda … Our agriculture sector is too often overlooked.”
Kinew praised RBC’s announcement. He told the crowd he’ll visit Ottawa on Oct. 23 to meet with Prime Minister Mark Carney. Pork, canola, China (which has placed hefty tariffs on Canadian products), immigration and the workforce will be on the agenda, the premier said.
University of Manitoba president Michael Benarroch echoed Kinew’s warm sentiment to RBC’s announcement.
“I think that the challenges we face in agriculture and food sciences are enormous, but I think Canada is up to this challenge,” Benarroch said.
RBC will include the Canadian Alliance for Net-Zero Agri-food and Indigenous sustainable farming initiatives in its funding.
gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com
Gabrielle Piché reports on business for the Free Press. She interned at the Free Press and worked for its sister outlet, Canstar Community News, before entering the business beat in 2021. Read more about Gabrielle.
Every piece of reporting Gabrielle produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.
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Gabrielle Piché reports on business for the Free Press. She interned at the Free Press and worked for its sister outlet, Canstar Community News, before entering the business beat in 2021. Read more about Gabrielle.
Every piece of reporting Gabrielle produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
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