HELENA, Mont. (October 26, 2023) – The Montana Stockgrowers Association (MSGA) in partnership with four other Montana agricultural organizations requested federal support for improving access and hours of operations along the Alberta border. Currently, there are six border crossings but only one, Coutts/Sweetgrass, is open 24 hours per day.
The letter stated, “Due to limited hours of service and deficiency of facilities and infrastructure, border crossings serve as a primary bottleneck, constraining north-south traffic and trade. As a result, businesses are either missing opportunities to move their products and services or are faced with a difficult decision to use other, more costly routes.”
It further went on to explain, “the limited hours of service create hardships for our citizens who rely on the border crossing for work, access to essential services, and parts and other harvest needs.”
The letter encouraged additional access to border crossings via increased staffing and expanded hours. The group recommended the Wild Horse Port of Entry on the border between Montana and Alberta be open 24-hours a day. In addition, the coalition requested the hours at day use ports be lengthened by an additional four hours—meaning ports be open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. as opposed to 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. MSGA believes solutions like these would alleviate the burden placed on producers by the restrictive hours of operation at various ports.
MSGA continues to work to ensure barriers for agricultural commerce continue to be removed and access becomes less restrictive between Canada and Montana.
The Montana Stockgrowers Association is a grassroots membership organization and is the trusted voice of cattle ranchers. With over 135 years of history, MSGA advocates and ensures cattle ranching remains relevant, safe and a sustainable way of life for generations to come.
CONTACT:
Keni Reese
Director of Marketing & Communications
406-442-3420
To view more MSGA news, visit https://mtbeef.org/news/
