Promising future touted at economic forum

Southern Alberta Newspapers Photo by Collin Gallant TRADE FORUM: MLA Shane Getson, a parliamentary secretary for the Ministry of Transportation, discusses economic corridors during the Local to Global Trade forum in Medicine Hat in April.

By Collin Gallant
Southern Alberta Newspapers

Eastern Alberta is poised to take advantage of geopolitical trends – a new drive for food security and defence spending, as well as changing trade and logistics networks – if it acts together, delegates to a Local to Global trade forum in Medicine Hat were told April 24.

The conference at the Medicine Hat Lodge was sponsored by three larger regional economic development groups along the Saskatchewan border.

For more than a decade they have promoted transportation access and land availability as selling points on a potential route from the U.S. to Fort McMurray.

Now, the same north-south route could link defence industries in Medicine Hat to military bases in northern Alberta, while agri-food investments could be drawn further east to Medicine Hat as well.

“The opportunities have never been better,” said MLA Grant Hunter, of Taber-Warner, who has promoted that regions’ “Premier Food Corridor,” and has even been involved in talks with municipalities regarding a regional water and development strategy along Highway 3.

He said that as the U.S. takes a hard stance on tariffs, trade networks are becoming more complicated.

That’s caused huge concern for Canadian companies, but major international companies are looking at options outside the U.S. market, Hunter says.

“Canada’s always been open for business, considered a good global partner, and Alberta (too),” said Hunter. “We have a lot of resources that people are looking for. We’re right next door (to the U.S. market), have 44 million people and the second largest country on Earth.”

The three-day conference, sponsored by the Palliser Economic Partnership, the Battle River Alliance and the Northern Alberta Hub group, concluded April 25 with 75 municipalities attending.

Four MLAs, including Cypress-Medicine Hat’s Justin Wright, took part in discussions on April 24.

Utilities and Affordability Minister Nathan Neudorf was scheduled to speak April 25 as the event wrapped up.

The event also formally re-announces the “Eastern Alberta Trade Corridor” concept, which had seemingly stalled before Premier Danielle Smith began re-promoting the idea in her home riding last year.

It suggests transportation projects focused on drawing business activity to the vast expanses located east of the Calgary to Edmonton corridor.

“We’re always looking at getting more goods to markets, and we’re having a great conversation about the end-goal,” said Wright. “The EATC would be a huge win, a hardened corridor with better infrastructure right up to CFB Cold Lake, and an opportunity in this region.”

A north-south defence and aviation corridor would link local drone developers and CFB Suffield to Edmonton and northern Alberta.

Going west, the province, Wright and Smith have promoted staged Highway 3 twinning as a gateway to extend agricultural development near Taber and Lethbridge to Medicine Hat and its connection to Highway 1 as an easy jumping point across Canada.

“The whole world is leaning into food security,” said Shane Jaffers, a trade development strategist with the provincial government during his presentation. “It’s garnering real traction and we’re seeing significant investments in Alberta.”

That is coupled with site selection focused on sustainable farm practices and ease of location to transport lines, he said.

Medicine Hat city councillor Cassi Hider sits on the PEP board and said the city will benefit from “having some great people and great minds, and especially some MLAs, come and talk about the future of trade, production and builders.”

“There’s going to be challenges after our (federal) election and the new leadership in the United States – it’s a way to be proactive in terms of our trade corridors,” she said. “We’re fortunate enough to have the opportunity in Medicine Hat to host it.”

On April 23, presenters also discussed work on rail options to international export ports on Hudson’s Bay and in Alaska.

PEP officials also told Southern Alberta Newspapers they are already planning an ag-focused trade junket to international trade shows in Japan in 2026.