Phosphorus regulations a high price for pig producers
The University of Manitoba has conducted a study which shows that that complying with proposed provincial phosphorus regulations will cost Manitoba swine producers US$18 – 28 million per year.
Manitoba government has proposed new environmental regulations that introduce limits for the application of phosphorus to agricultural land in addition to limits on nitrogen.
The economic assessment was conducted to determine what additional annual costs would be incurred by the pig industry. The finings were presented at the Manitoba Swine Seminar.
A graduate student with the department of Agribusiness, Janelle Mann, says researchers looked at two different threshold regulations: two times the annual crop removal of phosphorus and one time the annual crop removal.
- Two times phosphorus removal regulation resulted in an additional cost to the Manitoba pig industry of about 18 million dollars (18% of the net income of pig producers)
- Under a one times phosphorus removal it’s about 28 million dollars (28% of the net income of pig producers)
Mann believes this is a very important study that needs to be carefully considered. She notes that there is a large cost to complying with these new regulations and this needs to be taken into account when decisions are being made, both at a producer level and at a policy maker level.
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