Sask. government spending up to $70M to help livestock producers amid drought conditions

With dry conditions and below average rainfall in some parts of Saskatchewan, the provincial government has announced livestock producers will beeligible to receive $80 per head in order to help "offset extraordinary costs."

The government will beproviding up to $70 million in relief funding for livestock producers.

David Marit, Saskatchewan's minister of agriculture, said that he met with about 30 ranchers a few weeks ago and they expressedconcerns about securing feed and transporting it.

"They were starting to make those decisions on whether they were going to downsize their herd, so it was very important for us to get this announcement out as soon as possible," he said on Monday.

The money is meant to help offset costs related to feeding livestock to maintain breeding herds.

The support extends to producers of several different breeding stocks,including beef cattle, bison, horse, elk, deer, sheep and goats.

The relief program will be run by the Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corporation. Funding will be based on receipts or documents showing large expenditures for the purchase of feed or the transportation of feed and livestock.

Maritexpects there to be "a few thousand" applications for relief.

"The [drought] area is quite widespread in the southwest and south...but there's also other pockets in other parts of the province, too," he said.

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Marit also said thatLawrence MacAulay, who is the federal minister of agriculture and agri-food,has accepted an application from the province for an assessment under the AgriRecoveryframework.

It's the first step in a process that,if approved, could result in additional relief for livestock producers or a cost-sharing agreement between the federal and provincial governments.

"We're hoping that we hear from [Minister MacAulay]soon," Marit said.