How to Improve CWB Payments

[parsley]

One way to put more money into farmers' pockets is to make sure more money flows from the CWB pooling accounts into farmers' purses. Here are a dirty dozen to prompt you to come up with more ideas:

1. Disband the CWB Weather Department and staff. Switch to Gove't of Canada Weather, for example.

2. Cut Contracting Costs (reports, studies, navel-gazing) by 10%

3. Cut staff by 10%(this includes the weather staff)

4. Cut all CWB China office costs by 10%. They have not performed.

5. Cut contributions to Candaian Grain Commision by 10%.

6. Cut funding for students at U of S by 10%.

7. Zero bonuses for Department Heads and Executive for 2011. They have performed dismally.

8. 2% decrease in per diems for directors and management. They have not performed well for farmers.

9. Re-negotiate the Handling agreement with accredited elevators who buy grain and reduce the % paid to them by 1% for the next contact signong, with NO increase for upcoming year.

10. Reduce the % of commission the overseas agents pocket for shipping grain into different countries by 1%.

11. Post all CWB information online, to reduce the staff who answer access to information queries. It's wasteful.

12. ALL CWB entertainmnet budgets should be cut by 50%. Farmers are not having any fun.

AV'ers will have other suggestions

[silverback]

Combine to customer parties (for those select few) included in entertainment costs. Wasteful.

Ministry of Propaganda cut in half.

[wmoebis]

All dockage profits paid back to farmers. Including frieght when cleaned at primary.

Penalty for wrong grade on shipments be paid to CWB. Not pooled and paid back to companies.

Blending at primary be more transparent and paid to CWB.

[jdepape]

Encourage more competition between elevators through more tendering.

Tenders are limited to 20% of CWB program - as a acknowledgment that the companies that have elevators and terminals have more total margin to discount and therefore dominate the tenders, leaving the smaller companies non-competitive.

Solution: tender for country elevator services and terminal services separately. This way, the small guys in the country can compete more effectively with the big guys.

Terminals would tender separately.

Could raise the amount tendered to well over 50% - which it was supposed to be in the first place.

The CWB reports if makes about $40 million in tendering and terminal agreements. Could go to well over $150 million.

[jdepape]

Shorter pool periods - one for each futures contract.

Dec pool: deliveries from Aug 1 to Oct 31
Mar pool: deliveries from Nov 1 to Jan 31
May pool: deliveries from Feb 1 to Mar 31
Jul pool: deliveries from Apr 1 to May 30
Sep pool: deliveries from Jun 1 to Jul 31

Final payments distributed prior to the end of the following pool period. Ex: Dec pool final paid before Jan 31.

[jdepape]

Close down the Ottawa office.
The CWB has its own Minister - why does it need a team of lobbyists as well?

[charliep]

Begin the process of changing the CWB corporate structure and governace to a business model based on its core activities. Would suggest a new generation cooperative backed by an equity base. Need to go there over time to do things like cash pricing, multiple pooling periods, dividing the current big class of wheat ex durum into smaller pools for alternative wheats or even straight cash pricing for these classes (the CWB has effectively done this for feed barley). May even involve the CWB having ownership of physical assets.

Off topic. Just weird thoughts.

[charliep]

More weird thoughts. Reveiw the myriad of organizations providing services (regulatory, marketing, research, extension, etc., etc., etc) to cereal crops with the idea of stream lining, removing duplication, adding clarity to roles, looking for efficiencies and improving supply chain communication. Perhaps even getting the whole supply chain pulling in the same direction/speaking with one voice.

[bucket]

Just get rid of the whole flipping mess.

Maybe the durum open market would end up on ICE futures markets in Winnipeg.

Use the MGEX to price our grain similar to canola and everyone has cash. That way canola peas lentils and flax don't get discounted by having the no "cash flow cwb" in the picture.

Do us all a favour and hope this archaic albatross is put out of our misery.

[furrowtickler]

Best sugestion of the year bucket

[hlg]

Nice thought, but won`t happen soon.. Why does it take 6 to 8 weeks or longer for the Feds to approve price increases with our own money?? If they`re not going to kill it then start to support it..

[Burbert]

Get rid of the appointed commissars that the Feds have, spying on the CWB. If this is truly a farmer run org, lets run it or drive it into the ground. We have lottsa smarties out here in the real world, like Angriville they'll give plenty of advice cause they got computers and are willin and able to market whereever and whenever! Sell only to the highest bidder at the highest price, sosoos we git the biggest profit, no dockage, no discounts, no shipping expenses etc. Lets act like Amerikins and arm ourselves too! We all know knowledge is power, soos we gotta be winners wit this new set up. Trash everythin else!