Ottawa-While the recent Canada Investment Summit produced a lot of good news for Canada, it could have brought more for the agriculture sector, says the Rural Prosperity Group (RPG).

The Summit featured a lot of projects highlighted by the federal government and the provinces that could generate long-term economic growth and more than $500 billion in new investments was secured, including some rural economic opportunities, RPG said.

Agriculture was represented through projects promoted by several provinces including Ontario which promoted the proposed Martison Phosphate Project near Hearst, which could contribute to fertilizer, industrial phosphate and battery-mineral supply chains. Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta also emphasized agriculture, agri-food and value-added processing.

“These projects are important because they demonstrate what rural investment can look like when Canada moves beyond simply producing raw commodities and focuses on adding value,” RPG said.

“A soybean crop can support processing jobs. Agricultural production can feed food-processing industries. Phosphate can contribute to fertilizer supply chains. Renewable and agricultural products can become inputs into new energy industries.”

While the secured investments were good news for rural areas, Canada should be ready to ensure the communities hosting these investments have the capacity to support them.

“A processing facility needs electricity, water and transportation. Agricultural expansion depends on transportation networks, energy infrastructure and access to markets.”

As it is, these costs are often experienced locally, even when the economic benefits extend across the country.

“The real test of the summit's success will be what actually gets built, where it gets built, who benefits and whether the surrounding communities are equipped to sustain that growth.”

Rural and northern Canada should not be viewed simply as places where resources happen to be located. They are partners in the national economy.

The Canada Investment Summit has made an important statement to the world: Canada is open for investment and prepared to build.

While Canada's economic future will certainly be shaped in financial markets and corporate offices, it should also be shaped on rural roads, at farm gates, in northern mines and at the processing plants that keep the country’s economy moving.

Governments need to ensure that rural and northern communities are positioned to benefit from and support that investment is equally integral to Canada's future economic growth.