Nova Scotia farmers anxious over potential closure of export berth

Maritime farmers are worried of the future of a grain elevator in Halifax which could see closure.

Rory Crawford moved back to the family farm in River John, Nova Scotia four years ago. A shift to growing grains and soybeans was in the works, the latter draws a good price on the international markets.

Today he has about 400-acres in total committed to the crop.

“Soybeans is a very profitable crop here in the Maritimes. We have an excellent terminal in Halifax that allows us to reach international markets,” he says.

Those markets might soon be harder to access because of questions around the future of the Halifax Grain Elevators export portion of their business.

The Port of Halifax’s 50-year plan includes filling in the berth where ships tie-up to be loaded to allow them to expand the cargo business.

That would mean international shipments of 35,000 metric tonnes of soybeans annually, would have to go through Montreal.

“It would be devastating for my operation here. It would be cost prohibitive, we couldn’t afford to ship beans to Montreal. Farming is hard enough as it is,” Crawford says.

No soybean shipments would then directly affect businesses that transport the crop to the docks.

“If they close the elevators down, it’s going to close us down,” says Gerald Battist. He’s been in trucking for close to 30 years and says the entire economy would be hurt if the port closes the grain elevators.

“It’s all integrated and it’s money the province needs. It’s part of the economics of it all.”

Premier Tim Houston has been watching the situation unfold and sees the importance of the port to the province.

“That’s been an ongoing discussion for sometime. That grain elevator is incredibly important to our province and we’ll fight tooth and nail to keep it.”

Time however is ticking. The operator of Halifax Grain Elevators has a lease that expires at the end of 2026.

That gives Crawford one more growing season.

For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page