Business Risk Management Programs Community Credit Union serves the financial AgriInvest helps farmers manage small income needs of members across Cumberland and Colchester declines, and provides support for investments to Counties in Nova Scotia. Credit Unions offer many mitigate risks or improve market income. A farmer can financial products and services similar to those found open an AgriInvest account, which builds as you make in large banks. One program that is unique is the annual deposits based on a percentage of your Allowable Nova Scotia Loan Guarantee Program. Net Sales. The government will match up to 1% of your Allowable Net Sales. The limit on matching government Through this program, financing up to $500,000 can contributions is $15,000 per year. be provided. It can be in the form of term loans, Potential Sources http://www.agr.gc.ca/eng/?id=1291828779399 working capital and lines of credit. Loans can have a term of up to 10 years. The Province of Nova Scotia of Agricultural AgriStability is a margin-based program which allows guarantees 90 percent of the value of all term loans. producers to protect their farm operations against large Financing declines in farm income. A program payment is triggered https://www.communitycreditunion.ns.ca/Home/ when a producer's margin (allowable revenue less allowable expenses) in the program year drops below Chartered Banks their average margin from previous years. The Federal BMO and Provincial Government will provide assistance once a https://www.bmo.com/main/business/who-we- producer's margin falls below 70 per cent of their work-with/agriculture historical reference margin. http://www.agr.gc.ca/eng/?id=1291990433266 CIBC https://www.cibc.com/en/business/agriculture.html AgriInsurance The Nova Scotia Crop and Livestock Insurance Commission administers production insurance RBC Royal Bank coverage to 16 Crop Insurance plans, a Dairy Livestock http://www.rbcroyalbank.com/agri_index.html Insurance Program and a Poultry Insurance Plan. The primary objective of the Commission is to assist NS Prepared by: farmers in years of reduced yields and losses due to https://www.scotiabank.com/ca/en/small-business/ insurable perils. industries/agriculture.html https://novascotia.ca/agri/programs-and-services/ financial-funding/crop-livestock-insurance/program- TD Canada Trust information/ https://www.td.com/ca/en/business-banking/small- business/credit/agricultural-solutions/ Agricultural Crown Corporations Farm Credit Canada is Canada’s largest agricultural Agri Commodity Management Association Contact: Brad McCallum term lender. (902) 895-0581 - 7 Atlantic Central Dr., East Mountain, NS https://www.fcc-fac.ca/en.html www.agricommodity.ca

Nova Scotia Farm Loan Board For almost 80 years Cumberland Business Connector the Nova Scotia Farm Loan Board has been committed to Contact: Jonathan McClelland supporting Nova Scotia farmers. (902) 614-6912 - 5 Ratchford Street, Amherst, NS https://novascotia.ca/farmloan/ www.cumberlandbusinessconnector.ca Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency The Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency works to create Canadian Agricultural Loans Act Program opportunities for economic growth in Atlantic Canada by The CALA Program is a loan guarantee program (to helping businesses become more competitive, innovative and lenders). It is designed to increase the availability of Community Business Development productive in the global marketplace. Programs offered loans to farmers and agricultural co-operatives. Farmers Corporation Cumberland include: can use these loans to establish, improve, and develop CBDC’s are not-for-profit organizations. CBDC farms. Cumberland serves the business community across Business Development Program (BDP) can help set up, Agricultural co-operatives may access loans to process, Cumberland County. Other CBDC are located expand or modernize a business. It can provide funding to distribute, or market the products of farming. Loans are throughout rural Atlantic Canada. develop innovative ideas, improve competitiveness, and limited to a maximum of: develop clean technology projects. This program provides • $500,000 to purchase land and the construction or CBDC’s assist in the creation of small businesses and repayable loans. Non-profit organizations that provide improvement of buildings. in the expansion and modernization of existing support to the business community may also qualify. businesses. This includes providing: • $350,000 for all other loan purposes, including consolidation/refinancing. • Loans for business start-up, purchase of an existing Atlantic Innovation Fund (AIF) encourages partnerships business, or expansion of an existing business. http://www.agr.gc.ca/eng/?id=1288035482429 among private sector firms, universities, colleges and other • Business counselling & training research institutions to develop and commercialize new or Advance Payment Program • Administering the Self-Employments Benefits improved products and services. The APP is a Federal loan guarantee program. Program

It provides farmers with low-interest cash advances. • Non-repayable funding for Consulting Advisory Producers can access up to $400,000 per program year Regional Economic Growth through Innovation (REGI) Services will foster the right environment to start and grow in advances based on the value of their agricultural product. Advances are repaid as the producer sells their businesses and create the conditions for the development of http://www.cbdc.ca/en strong, dynamic and inclusive regional innovation agricultural product (crop or livestock). ecosystems across the country. With the introduction of An APP advance can help meet a farm’s financial needs, REGI, all innovation-related projects are now to be funded Business Development through one of the two available streams from REGI: such as farm input costs. It allows farmers to sell BDC supports small and medium-sized businesses in agricultural products based on market conditions rather • the Business Scale-up and Productivity Stream. all industries and at every stage of growth with than the need for cash flow. Funding offered under this program stream helps http://agricommodity.ca/app/ money and advice. businesses at various stages of development, including high-growth firms, to accelerate growth and adopt FarmWorks Investment Co-operative Ltd Services provided by the BDC include: innovative technologies that support scale-up, FarmWorks Investment Co-operative Limited was • Flexible Financing for Businesses commercialization, productivity and market expansion to become more competitive globally. incorporated in 2011. It promotes and provides • Advisory Services, and • the Regional Innovation Ecosystem Stream. Funding strategic and responsible community investment in food • Smart Capital. production and distribution in order to increase access under this program stream helps create, grow and to a sustainable local food supply for all Nova Scotians. develop strong and inclusive regional networks that https://www.bdc.ca/en/pages/home.aspx support business growth and innovation. This will foster FarmWorks operates as a Community Economic the entrepreneurial environment necessary for more Development Investment Fund (CEDIF) that enables innovative regional economies and increase the Nova Scotians to purchase common shares. FarmWorks competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises provides repayable loans to farms, food processors, and (SME). value-added food producers. https://farmworks.ca/ https://www.canada.ca/en/atlantic-canada- opportunities.html