BONNYVILLE — After years of worrying about too little rain, some Lakeland farmers and ranchers are dealing with the other extreme in 2026.

Excessive moisture, flooding and saturated fields have created a difficult growing season across parts of northeastern Alberta, affecting crops, pasture, hay production and producers’ ability to simply get onto their land.

Now, changes to the 2026 AgriStability program are giving affected producers more time to enrol and allowing eligible participants to access a larger portion of their estimated payments sooner.

Bonnyville-Cold Lake-St. Paul MLA Scott Cyr said the conditions demonstrate just how quickly the challenges facing agriculture can change.

“Producers make significant decisions and investments each year without knowing what Mother Nature will bring, and moving from too little moisture to far too much in such a short period makes planning and managing risk even more difficult,” Cyr said.

The severity of the situation has already prompted local agricultural disaster declarations.

The County of St. Paul declared a State of Agricultural Disaster on July 28, citing excessive moisture and flooding. The Municipal District of Bonnyville followed on Aug. 11, declaring a Municipal Agricultural Disaster as producers faced similar conditions.

Cyr said saturated fields have prevented some producers from completing essential work, while crop development, pasture conditions and the ability to put up hay and feed have also been affected.

AgriStability deadline extended to Oct. 1

In response to extreme moisture conditions affecting producers, Alberta requested federal approval for late participation in the 2026 AgriStability program.

That request has been granted, extending the deadline to Oct. 1, 2026 for producers who did not enrol by the original April 30 deadline.

The interim payment rate has also been increased from 50 percent to 75 percent of the estimated final payment, allowing eligible producers to access more of their anticipated support earlier.

AgriStability is designed to protect producers experiencing significant declines in farm income due to production losses, increased costs or changing market conditions.

Under the program, support is triggered when a producer’s margin falls below 70 percent of their historical reference margin. AgriStability compensates 80 cents for every dollar of decline beyond that threshold, up to a maximum payment of $3 million.

There is an important catch for producers considering enrolling late.

Those joining during the late participation period will have any AgriStability benefit reduced by 20 percent, and they must pay the required upfront fee by Oct. 1.

Cyr encouraged producers who missed the April deadline and believe they have suffered significant losses this year to contact Agriculture Financial Services Corporation to determine whether late participation makes sense for their individual operation.

Local disaster declarations help document the impact

While declaring an agricultural disaster does not automatically trigger financial assistance, the declarations by the County of St. Paul and M.D. of Bonnyville formally document the severity of conditions facing producers and can help support advocacy for assistance.

Cyr thanked M.D. of Bonnyville Reeve Barry Kalinski and County of St. Paul Reeve Glen Ockerman, along with their respective councils, for bringing attention to the impact of excessive moisture.

He also credited Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation Minister Tara Sawyer for advocating for additional flexibility through AgriStability.

“Our farmers and ranchers have shown tremendous resilience through drought, rising costs, changing markets and now extreme moisture,” Cyr said.

The program changes won’t repair flooded fields, replace lost growing days or guarantee producers will be able to get this year’s crop off the land.

But for operations facing financial losses after an exceptionally wet summer, Cyr said they provide another option.

“These AgriStability changes cannot undo the impacts of an extraordinarily wet year, but they provide another tool to help producers manage financial uncertainty caused by conditions beyond their control.”

Producers looking for more information can contact the AFSC Client Care Centre at 1-877-899-2372.