Question Period Note: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION

Q1 — What actions has the Government taken to reduce methane emissions from the agriculture sector? Q2 — What is the Government doing in response to nitrous oxide emissions from synthetic fertilizer application?

R.1 - In October 2021, the Government confirmed support for the Global Methane Pledge, which aims to reduce global methane emissions from all sources by 30 percent below 2020 levels by 2030. In support of the Global Methane Pledge, Environment and Climate Change Canada published Canada’s Methane Strategy in September 2022, which outlines existing and upcoming measures targeting methane emissions reductions from the three key emitting sectors, including the agriculture sector. AAFC intends to continue working with the sector to determine the best path forward for reducing emissions.
Launched in November 2023, the Agricultural Methane Reduction Challenge will provide up to $12 million to advance innovative, low-cost, and scalable practices, processes, and technologies that reduce enteric methane emissions produced by cattle. During the summer of 2024, the 13 semi-finalist projects were announced as a part of the first stage of the challenge to receive just over $150,000 to continue advancing their innovations and develop a prototype.
In December 2023, Environment and Climate Change Canada published a draft protocol "Reducing Enteric Methane Emissions from Beef Cattle federal offset". The final protocol is expected in spring/summer 2025. In addition, a draft Reducing Manure Methane Emissions protocol was published in February 2025, for a 60-day public consultation period which ended on April 29, 2025.
Budget 2022 committed $100 million to the federal granting councils to support sustainable agriculture to fight climate change. Nearly all of this funding is being delivered through the Sustainable Agriculture Research Initiative by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, in collaboration with AAFC. This initiative will support research on transformative solutions for a sustainable, resilient and profitable agriculture sector in a net-zero economy - including reducing methane emissions from beef and dairy cattle through improved management practices and technologies. R.2 - There is a national target to reduce emissions from fertilizers by 30 percent below 2020 levels by 2030. The target is focused solely on reducing emissions and does not represent a mandatory reduction in the amount of fertilizer used on the farm. The goal is to reduce emissions while maintaining or enhancing yields and profitability.
Since 2021, more than $1.5 billion in initiatives have been announced to help the sector in mitigating and adapting to the impacts of climate change, including the Agricultural Climate Solutions–On-Farm Climate Action Fund, Agricultural Climate Solutions–Living Labs, and Agricultural Clean Technology Program. Each of these programs can support the research, development, and adoption of practices and technologies that can improve nutrient management and reduce emissions associated with fertilizer application.

Under the five-year, $3.5-billion Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, federal, provincial, and territorial cost-shared programs are available to assist farmers in adopting on-farm beneficial management practices, including those that can enhance nutrient use efficiency. In addition, federally led programs such as AgriInnovate and AgriScience have supported a number of fertilizer-related projects along the innovation continuum, ranging from fundamental research on nitrogen management to the development of fertilizer alternatives.

The Department is also moving forward with science through AAFC’s Strategic Plan for Science. Priority research areas include the development of technologies, tools, and beneficial management practices to enhance nutrient use efficiency and reduce nutrient losses in the Canadian crop production systems. The Government has also recently become a founding member of the Efficient Fertilizer Consortium, a public-private partnership that will facilitate international collaboration to advance research on enhanced efficiency and novel fertilizer products and practices.
A multi-stakeholder, expert-driven Fertilizer Emissions Reduction Working Group was created to provide advice and guidance to the Sustainable Agriculture Strategy Advisory Committee on the development of an approach to reach the target. The Working Group met regularly throughout its one-year term, which ended in May 2024, and held discussions focused on economic policy tools, innovation and research and development, beneficial management practices, data and measurement, and extension and communication. In June 2024, the Working Group submitted its recommendations and advice to help inform the development of a collaborative approach for reducing emissions from fertilizer application in Canada’s agriculture sector.

The sector has demonstrated a commitment to sustainable practices that help protect Canada’s soil, air, water, biodiversity and climate change. However, the sector accounts for 10 percent of Canada’s total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through crop production, animal production, and on-farm fuel use. Agricultural lands can also act as “carbon sinks” by storing (or sequestering) carbon in the soil, reducing the amount of carbon in the atmosphere.

The $3.5-billion, five-year Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership aims to achieve a three-to-five megatonne reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and includes a $250-million federal, provincial, and territorial cost-shared Resilient Agricultural Landscape Program to help producers conserve and enhance the resiliency of agricultural landscapes.

Since 2021, the Government has invested over $1.5 billion into supporting farmers with new technologies and farming practices to reduce emissions and improve farm performance. This includes the $185-million Agricultural Climate Solutions—Living Labs, $704.1-million Agricultural Climate Solutions—On-Farm Climate Action Fund, and the $429.4-million Agricultural Clean Technology Program, and the $12-million Agricultural Methane Reduction Challenge.

The Government has also set a national target to reduce emissions from fertilizer application by 30 percent below 2020 levels by 2030 and is working with fertilizer manufacturers, farmers, provinces and territories to develop an approach to meet it. The target does not represent a ban or mandatory reduction in the amount of fertilizer that can be used on farms but rather is intended to build on progress already made by Canadian farmers to reduce emissions and apply fertilizers more efficiently.

Canada’s Greenhouse Gas Offset Credit System
Canada’s Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Offset Credit System is designed to encourage cost-effective domestic GHG emissions reductions and removal from activities that go beyond business as usual. These must be activities that are not required by regulation and focus on the forestry, agriculture and waste sectors.

The specific agriculture practices that can generate offset credits are determined during the protocol development process. Protocols for Enhanced Soil Organic Carbon, Reducing Enteric Methane Emissions from Beef Cattle, and the Reducing Manure Methane Emissions are currently being developed for the agriculture sector. Technical expert teams have been established, which include scientists and analysts from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. Members of the public will have an opportunity to comment on draft protocols as a part of the protocol development process.

In December 2023, a draft Reducing Enteric Methane Emissions from Beef Cattle federal offset protocol was published for a 60-day public comment period. The protocol is intended for proponents undertaking a project to reduce enteric methane emissions in confined beef cattle feeding operations through improved management, diet reformulation, the use of feed additives, growth promoters, or other innovative strategies. Additionally, a draft Reducing Manure Methane Emissions protocol was published in February 2025, for a 60-day public consultation period which ended on April 29, 2025.

Supporting Post-Secondary Research
Budget 2022 committed $100 million to the federal granting councils to support sustainable agriculture to fight climate change. The NSERC-SSHRC Sustainable Agriculture Research Initiative’s (SARI) objective is to provide financial support to research to initiate or accelerate the development of solutions that will be required for a sustainable, resilient and profitable agriculture sector in a net-zero economy. In addition, the Common Ground Network, established through the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Network on Sustainable Agriculture in Net-Zero Economy initiative, will bring together academic institutions, research institutes, Indigenous communities, non-governmental organizations, industry and producers to advance sustainable agricultural sectors and food systems to support a just transition to net-zero in Canada.

• Producers have long been responsible stewards of the land and are already adopting sustainable practices. However, we recognize that additional support is needed to reach Canada’s climate objectives and to avert the worst impacts of climate change.
• Since 2021, our government has announced $1.5 billion in initiatives for climate change mitigation and adaptation in the agriculture sector.
• The Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership was launched in 2023, with a priority of addressing climate change and advancing environmental sustainability. It aims for a cumulative greenhouse gas emission reduction outcome of three to five megatonnes over five years.