The Minister of Agriculture (formerly the Minister of Agriculture and Resource Development) is a cabinet minister in the province of Manitoba, Canada, responsible for Manitoba Agriculture. The ministry oversees provincial government activity in agriculture, agri-food, and the agri-product sector, as well as natural resource development.
The current Minister of Agriculture is Ron Kostyshyn of the New Democratic Party. He was appointed following the inauguration of the government led by Wab Kinew after the NDP's victory in the 2023 Manitoba general election.
History Some changes in the ministerial responsibilities have resulted in change to the name of the ministry. Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives (MAFRI) was created on 4 November 2003, under the NDP government led by Gary Doer, when the Department of Agriculture and Food was merged with Rural Initiatives and Cooperative Development (both from the Department of Intergovernmental Affairs). On 3 May 2016, the new Progressive Conservative government, led by Brian Pallister, renamed the cabinet position as the "Minister of Agriculture".
In late 2019, oversight of the agriculture portfolio merged with that of natural resource development and sustainable development, thereby forming the new Ministry of Agriculture and Resource Development. Likewise, the remaining economic development and business portfolios of Growth, Enterprise and Trade formed the new Ministry of Economic Development and Training. NamePartyTook officeLeft officeMinister of AgricultureThomas HowardConservativeJanuary 13, 1871January 23, 1871Alfred BoydGovernmentJanuary 23, 1871December 14, 1871John NorquayConservativeDecember 14, 1871July 8, 1874Edward HayLiberalJuly 8, 1874December 2, 1874James McKayGovernmentDecember 16, 1875October 16, 1878Pierre DelormeConservativeJanuary 14, 1879June 4, 1879Maxime GouletGovernmentJanuary 7, 1880November 16, 1881Marc-Amable GirardConservativeNovember 16, 1881January 1883Alphonse LarivièreLib-ConSeptember 6, 1883August 27, 1886David Howard HarrisonLib-ConAugust 27, 1886December 24, 1887Thomas GreenwayLiberalJanuary 19, 1888January 6, 1900John Andrew DavidsonLiberalJanuary 10, 1900December 22, 1900Rodmond RoblinConservativeDecember 22, 1900October 11, 1911George LawrenceConservativeOctober 11, 1911May 2, 1915Valentine WinklerLiberalMay 15, 1915June 7, 1920George MalcolmLiberalSeptember 30, 1920June 6, 1922John WilliamsLiberalJune 6, 1922August 8, 1922Neil CameronProgressiveAugust 8, 1922December 3, 1923John BrackenProgressiveDecember 3, 1923January 12, 1925Albert PrefontaineProgressiveJanuary 12, 1925May 29, 1932Donald Gordon McKenzieLib–ProgressiveMay 27, 1932April 28, 1936John BrackenLib–ProgressiveApril 28, 1936September 21, 1936Douglas CampbellLib–ProgressiveDecember 21, 1936December 14, 1948Francis BellLib–ProgressiveDecember 14, 1948November 7, 1952Ronald RobertsonLib–ProgressiveNovember 7, 1952July 6, 1956Charles ShuttleworthLib–ProgressiveJuly 6, 1956June 30, 1958Errick WillisPCJune 30, 1958August 7, 1959Minister of Agriculture and ConservationGeorge HuttonPCAugust 7, 1959June 30, 1966Minister of AgricultureHarry EnnsPCJuly 22, 1967September 24, 1968James Douglas WattPCSeptember 24, 1968July 15, 1969Sam UskiwNew DemocraticJuly 15, 1969October 24, 1977James DowneyPCOctober 24, 1977November 30, 1981Bill UruskiNew DemocraticNovember 30, 1981September 21, 1987Leonard HarapiakNew DemocraticSeptember 21, 1987May 9, 1988Glen FindlayPCMay 9, 1988September 10, 1993Harry EnnsPCSeptember 10, 1993October 5, 1999Minister of Agriculture and FoodRosann WowchukNew DemocraticOctober 5, 1999November 4, 2003Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural InitiativesRosann WowchukNew DemocraticNovember 4, 2003November 3, 2009Stan StruthersNew DemocraticNovember 3, 2009January 13, 2012Ron KostyshynNew DemocraticJanuary 13, 2012October 18, 2013Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural DevelopmentRon KostyshynNew DemocraticOctober 18, 2013May 3, 2016Minister of AgricultureRalph EichlerPCMay 3, 2016October 23, 2019Minister of Agriculture and Resource DevelopmentBlaine PedersenPCOctober 23, 2019July 15, 2021Ralph EichlerPCJuly 15, 2021January 18, 2022Minister of AgricultureDerek JohnsonPCJanuary 18, 2022October 18, 2023Ron KostyshynNew DemocraticOctober 18, 2023present
References
External links Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives