Ottawa-Farm and other groups have blasted Agriculture Canada over plans to close seven of its research facilities across the country.

The plan became known when unhappy employees spread the news of the planned closures which entail 665 job losses.

To be closed are the research and development centres in Guelph, Quebec City and Lacombe, Alberta along with satellite research farms in Nova Scotia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

When asked about news reports about the moves, Agriculture Canada issued a statement saying it would remain Canada’s largest agricultural research organization, with 17 research centres nationwide and research farmland in every province.

“There are no imminent site closures and any wind-down of scientific operations would follow a careful decision process that could take up to 12 months. As such, it is too early to determine and share details on final workforce impacts.” the department said.

Serge Buy, CEO of the Agri-Food Innovation Council (AIC), said the loss of valuable national assets — particularly long‑standing field data collected across diverse regions — will have consequences that extend well into the future.

“In addition, the erosion of scientific expertise and institutional knowledge will significantly undermine Canada’s capacity to conduct high‑quality agricultural research in the years ahead.”

Canada should be strengthening, not reducing, its investment in research infrastructure, Buy said. “Historically, agricultural research has delivered some of the highest returns on investment of any economic sector.”

“While we recognize the need to manage public finances responsibly and to rationalize federal expenditures, AIC has consistently called for a comprehensive review of federal programs to identify redundancies and duplication.”

The National Farmers Union distributed a statement denouncing the job cuts issued by the Agriculture Union that represents Agriculture Canada employees.

The employees at the research facilities “are the backbone of Canadian agriculture research. They assist farmers by mitigating the impacts of climate change and drought, performing groundbreaking research and keeping our food production industries competitive on a global scale,” said Milton Dyck, National President of the Agriculture Union.

“These cuts will sabotage important gains we’ve made in agricultural research and set research on Canadian food products back by decades. We have been warning the federal government for months about cutting an already-decimated department. There is simply no more room to cut.”

While overall the federal service has grown by 30 per cent in recent years, the same has not been true for Agriculture Canada, Dyck said. “Staffing numbers at AAFC have decreased by 14 per cent between 2012 and 2025.”

The Canadian Wheat Research Coalition (CWRC) said “These staffing cuts, and related impacts at AAFC research stations, represent a tremendous loss for Canadian agriculture.”

CWRC chair Jocelyn Velestuk said “It is a loss of not only expertise and people who have contributed to farmers’ success, but also of agricultural research capacity that is crucial to fueling innovation and maintaining progress throughout the industry.”

Buy said the department could have reduced administrative overhead and generated meaningful savings without compromising core research capacity.

Reducing investment in research and innovation is never a sustainable solution for a country that seeks to advance, grow, and prosper, he said.

“We look forward to the government presenting a strong and credible plan to reaffirm its commitment to agricultural and food research and innovation in Canada. We believe a real dialogue on this is needed.”

This news report prepared for National Newswatch