Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

Introduction: The Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada was created in 1868 – one year after Canada became a country – due to the importance of farming to the nation's economic, social and cultural development.

Our vision
Driving innovation and ingenuity to build a world leading agricultural and food economy for the benefit of all Canadians.

Our mission
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada provides leadership in the growth and development of a competitive, innovative and sustainable Canadian agriculture and agri-food sector.

Our responsibilities
The activities of the Department range from the farmer to the consumer, from the farm to global markets, through all phases of producing, processing and marketing of farm, food and bio-based products. Agriculture is also a shared jurisdiction in Canada, and the Department works closely with provincial and territorial governments in the development and delivery of policies and programs.

The Department is also responsible for ensuring collaboration with its Portfolio Partners which are also involved in regulating and supporting Canadian agriculture.

The Department includes the Canadian Pari-Mutuel Agency. This special operating agency regulates and supervises pari-mutuel betting on horse racing at racetracks across Canada.

Our organization structure
Consult the Department's Organization Structure for information on senior managers and key personnel.

Our service pledge
At Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, we take pride in what we do. We are an organization dedicated to serving the public. We are here to provide support to both our clients and colleagues. We are committed to delivering high quality service because we understand the importance of agriculture to our economy, communities, environment and human health.

At Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, we are...

Client-Focused
We take the time to understand the needs of our clients and colleagues.

Helpful
We provide assistance and reduce unnecessary burden placed on our clients.

Accountable
We are accountable to our clients, ourselves, and our colleagues.

Respectful
We demonstrate respect to both our clients and colleagues.

Timely
We provide timely and courteous services to clients and colleagues alike.

Accurate
We provide information that is accurate, accessible and up-to-date.

At Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, we are dedicated to making a continual effort to improve our services.

Our service standards
Service standards play a vital role in our Department's planning, reporting and performance management. They clearly define the level of service that clients can expect under normal circumstances. By meeting our service standards, we show that we are respectful of the needs of taxpayers and benefit recipients. We publish service standards to the public to highlight our commitment to:

transparent management
accountability for results
public-centered service delivery
Performance against service standards will be tracked and the results will be made available to clients on a yearly basis. Our goal is to achieve our service standards a minimum of 80% of the time under normal circumstances.

These performance reports will be used by the Department to identify:

trends in service performance
strengths
areas that need to be improved