Coming out a year with extreme drought, grain growers in Canada were in a delicate situation.
2022, while bringing both good and bad for farmers, seems to have progressed relatively well for many farmers.
That's the thoughts of Brandon Leslie, the manager of policy and government relations for the Grain Growers of Canada.
"Overall, obviously, it was a bit of a mixed bag. Just some localized impacts whether it be drought or excess moisture across parts of western Canada in particular. I think everybody was generally happy with the fact that it wasn't the same extreme drought we faced in 2021."
The year didn't just help out farmers, but also the advocates who looked to speak on behalf of those farmers to Ottawa.
"As a national advocacy organization trying to work out of here in Ottawa, the so-called end of the pandemic in terms of returning back to our offices and having government officials and parliamentarians returning back in person, in-person meetings matter a lot."
"You can accomplish some things over zoom, but at the same time it's a lot better if I can look somebody straight in the eye and challenge what they said, be a bit more frank in our conversations."
Some of the key issues covered by the group included the fertilizer emission reduction targets, which ended up being national news.
"There's been a number of policy priority issues that I would say that we've really been trying to tell them, and obviously the flashpoint has been the fertilizer emission reduction targets that they announced back in 2020 but the discussion paper earlier this year is related to a 30% reduction in emissions target as it relates to nitrous oxide. We really pushed back on them, in terms of meaningful engagement versus consultation. You can't just come up with a plan without consulting farmers first."