SUMMERLAND, B.C.—Carlos Alfonso Pagaza Menchaca arrived in the idyllic small town of Summerland on Monday morning, hours before farmers across the country flew into a panic.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada would be indefinitely closing its borders to non-residents because of the coronavirus.

Americans are exempted, but Mexicans aren’t. That’s an issue for thousands of Canadian farmers who rely on the spring arrival of foreign agricultural workers.

On Wednesday, Public Safety Minister Bill Blair told the CBC in an interview that workers on visas and temporary foreign workers will be able to enter Canada after all. The news was a relief to many farmers and workers.

But by Wednesday evening, both the B.C. Fruit Growers’ Association (BCFGA) and the private sector Foreign Agricultural Resource Management Services (F.A.R.M.S.) were reporting that Blair’s statement was actually widely misunderstood.

“Elation turned to confusion when a very senior Minister in the federal Cabinet clarified that the travel ban was lifted only for (temporary foreign workers) from the U.S. ... The bad news is that the (agriculture) industry is back to square one,” the BCFGA said in a letter to members seen by the Star.

A Public Safety spokesperson told the Star in an email Thursday: “Details around temporary foreign workers and those with student/worker visas are currently being developed and will be announced shortly.”

“I imagine the bureaucrats are trying to make a solution, and will have to run it by health authorities,” BCFGA general manager Glen Lucas told the Star, saying he couldn’t disclose the Cabinet source.

“It’s unclear what they will be proposing. Hopefully Cabinet will give some information tomorrow.”

Lucas said that while farmers understand the need to fight COVID-19 transmission, a potential food shortage could become an even bigger problem in Canada.

“Half our food consumed in B.C. is produced here. So that becomes problematic if there are no workers to plant the seeds and harvest the food,” he said.

Farmers will now likely find themselves competing with one another to find workers willing to perform the hard, physical labour. Some fear they will lose their farms and food will go to waste.

Meanwhile, workers from places as diverse as the Caribbean, Germany and Japan had already paid for flights, visas and recruitment fees and were counting on recouping their costs.

“They need the money for their families,” said Menchaca, speaking to the Star while out pruning cherry trees this week.

“To me, to have work outside an office … I just really love nature,” he said, explaining that because he has an online business, he doesn’t depend on the income as much as others.

Foreign workers in the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program must earn at least the minimum wage in each province, which is $13.85 in B.C. and $14 in Ontario, compared to wages of $8 or less on Mexican farms.

Menchaca, 31, is the only one out of 18 Mexicans expected to arrive to work for the Canadian family-owned Carcajou Fruit Company, which farms 130 acres of cherries in Summerland, about 45 kilometres south of Kelowna.

He has no idea when his colleagues will be able to join him, but he has heard from them and says they are worried. For the time being, he’s living alone in an apartment when he’s not working on the farm.

“Now we’re spring pruning, then comes harvest, and then winter pruning,” he said cheerfully, explaining his plans until he returns home in October.

Erin Calrson, Menchaca’s manager, said she was surprised there was no exception for foreign workers who already had visas and flights booked.

“We are only halfway finished pruning, and that took the whole winter with the five local guys we have. It’s not going to get done without them,” she said.

A spokesperson for the federal government confirmed that the borders will be closed to foreign agricultural workers, including those who already hold visas and work permits for Canadian farms.

“We fully understand the importance of a stable labour force enabling Canadian food supply, and are committed to giving Canadians and businesses the support they need,” the statement said.

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A joint Emergency Response Committee consisting of “key agricultural and food processing stakeholders and government officials” has been set up to respond to issues arising from the COVID-19 outbreak.

Adrienne South, press secretary to the minister of agriculture and forestry in Alberta, told the Star in an email that negotiations are underway to address farm labour shortage concerns.

The emailed statement said they were working to extend visas for temporary foreign workers already in Alberta.

“At this time, supply chains are stable and the border closure does not affect the import or export of goods, or those who transport them (e.g. truck drivers),” tje statement read.

Kenton Possberg, a grain farmer in Saskatchewan and director of the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association, said wheat and oilseeds growers in the Prairie provinces are also worried about the impact the travel ban will have on their labour force.

These growers, as well as other farmers in agriculture and livestock, rely on thousands of workers with visas who arrive in the spring for seeding season, he said.

And unlike a factory, which can shut down and then reopen, one missed seeding season throws off the whole year, affecting food prices in as little as six months, he said.

“It’s absolutely critical for farms and for food production that we get this labour,” he said, adding, “The financial implications are tremendous.”

Possberg said he supports the decisions made by the Canadian government, and understands the situation is fluid. However, he said he wants to see exceptions in place so that the current situation doesn’t adversely affect Canadian farmers.

Possberg said he has not been able to talk with government officials yet, and time is running out for workers with completed documents as airlines curtail operations.

He said farmers are prepared to bring in workers early ahead of seeding season and keep them in quarantine for 14 days, just like anyone else entering Canada.

“This needs to happen now.”

Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said in an emailed statement that the government is working around the clock to respond to the health and economic issues.

“I want to reassure Canadians that we have a high-performing and resilient food system. Our priority is keeping Canadians healthy, and that includes keeping food accessible for all,” the statement said.

“That is why we are working closely with stakeholders through a joint Emergency Response Committee, consisting of key agricultural and food processing stakeholders and government officials. This will help respond to issues arising from the COVID-19 outbreak.”

In a statement, Ontario’s Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said: “We recognize that seasonal agricultural workers are critical for Ontario’s farmers and food processors. Minister Hardeman has been actively engaged with his federal counterpart Minister Bibeau to try to find solutions to the challenges the sector is facing.

“The Minister is also in daily communication with agricultural stakeholders to fully understand their sector-specific issues to ensure any solutions the government implements supports their needs.”

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, which has jurisdiction over border control concerns and issues work visas, did not respond to the Star’s queries at publication time.

Joanna Chiu is a Vancouver-based reporter covering both Canada-China relations and current affairs on the West Coast for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @joannachiu

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