Ronald Ouellette, Agriculture and Aquaculture Minister, informed that the new funding is the highlight of the ordinary, capital, and loans advances accounts departmental budget of $37.6 million for 2008-2009. He told that the allocation represents a rise of six percent over last year’s budget. According to him the additional funding of C$1 million will help the agriculture and aquaculture sectors to be viable over the long term by capturing opportunities and addressing industry challenges.
He also opined that the government is ready to continue its support to these sectors so that they can fully participate to the objective of this government of achieving self-sufficiency by 2026. He informed that the ordinary budget of the department is C$35.6 million, which is C$2.2 million more than last year’s budget.
The Province will invest $2.2 million in a new provincial fish health laboratory in St. George, which will place New Brunswick at the forefront of aquatic animal health science, said Ouellette. He also informed that the Province will recover C$535,000 of that amount through a partnership with the Atlantic Veterinary College for the construction and use of the new laboratory. He opined that these investments will help to enhance the conditions for companies in the agriculture and aquaculture sectors to be successful.
