Editing Bas-Saint-Laurent (section)

=== Primary sector ===
==== Agriculture and food industry ====
[[File:Saint louis du ha ha.jpg|thumb|right|[[Saint-Louis-du-Ha! Ha!]]]]
The land area devoted to agriculture in the region covered {{convert|3515|km2|abbr=on}} in 2005, which is around 15.6% of its land area and contributed to more than 6% of its gross domestic product. This industry is mainly located in the plain following the banks of the river and in the foothills of the valleys of Témiscouata and Matapédia.{{sfn|Portrait régional|2010|pp=72–73}}

In 2007, the dairy production had the largest share among all regional agricultural productions with 50% of the revenue, according to the [[Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Quebec)|Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food]]. In this industry, a reinforcement of the activities can be observed with a reduction of the number of independent companies but with a global growth of 12% of the milk quotas between 1997 and 2007. The region takes first place in [[sheep farming]], with 32% of all lambs produced in Quebec in 2007. Bas-Saint-Laurent also practices [[beef cattle]] farming and [[pig farming]].<ref name="PABSL_1-2">{{cite book |title=Portrait agroalimentaire du Bas-Saint-Laurent |date=2008 |publisher=Ministère de l'Agriculture, des Pêcheries et de l'alimentation |location=Quebec |isbn=978-2-550-52812-8 |pages=1–2 |url=http://collections.banq.qc.ca/ark:/52327/bs1973621 |access-date=5 January 2019}}</ref>{{sfn|MAPAQ|2008|p=1-2}}

The [[maple syrup]] industry is in growth, as the cuts increased from 3.7 to 6.3 million between 1997 and 2007. The industry producing small fruits like the [[strawberry]], the [[raspberry]], the [[blueberry]] is stagnant, and the land area devoted to the growth of [[cereal]] grew by 10%, while the one devoted to the [[market garden]] industry shrunk.<ref name="PABSL_3">{{cite book |title=Portrait agroalimentaire du Bas-Saint-Laurent |date=2008 |publisher=Ministère de l'Agriculture, des Pêcheries et de l'alimentation |location=Quebec |isbn=978-2-550-52812-8 |page=3 |url=http://collections.banq.qc.ca/ark:/52327/bs1973621 |access-date=5 January 2019}}</ref>

==== Forestry industry ====

The forestry industry of Bas-Saint-Laurent took a hard hit during the American housing market crisis and the ensuing decrease in new projects, as these hit a roof of 500 000 in 2009. Even as new housing projects start to reappear and factories start producing more once again, the industry still continues to turn itself to non traditional markets and tries to sell smaller-diameter softwood logs.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Carl |first1=Thériault |title=Industrie forestière : Timide reprise dans le Bas-Saint-Laurent |url=http://www.lapresse.ca/le-soleil/affaires/les-regions/201104/27/01-4394017-industrie-forestiere-timide-reprise-dans-le-bas-st-laurent.php |access-date=17 March 2013 |publisher=Le Soleil |date=27 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923235539/http://www.lapresse.ca/le-soleil/affaires/les-regions/201104/27/01-4394017-industrie-forestiere-timide-reprise-dans-le-bas-st-laurent.php |archive-date=23 September 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==== Peat industry ====
The [[peat]] industry of Bas-Saint-Laurent extracts around 45% of the peat production of Quebec and builds specialized transformation tools de tourbe. There are around twenty companies in this industry that employ 1 500 and export 80% of their. Lately, this industry has made a great effort in converging with the agroenvironnemental industry, in fields like [[Biofilter|biofiltration]], [[compost]]ing, agriculture and horticulture<ref>{{cite web |title=Région Bas-Saint-Laurent : valorisation de la tourbe et des technologies agroenvironnementales |url=https://www.economie.gouv.qc.ca/fr/ministere/salle-de-presse/communiques-de-presse/communique-de-presse/?no_cache=1&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=4111 |website=Ministère des Finances et de l'Économie |publisher=[[Government of Quebec]] |access-date=7 January 2019}}</ref>

Around 2002, a number of initiatives were taken by the producers of the industry and the government of Quebec to develop the industry. The producers managed to perform a [[life-cycle assessment]] of the peat and experiment new processes to rehabilitate commercially exploited bogs.<ref>{{cite news |last1=CBC |title=Bas-Saint-Laurent : l'industrie de la tourbe en tête de peloton |url=https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/546597/tourbe-bas-saint-laurent-creneau |access-date=7 January 2019 |date=19 January 2002|author1-link=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation }}</ref>