Take my ball and go home: CWB style

[jdepape]

wmoebis - you're absolutely right.

I think that we may see a transition period where things like government guarantees are treated differently than they are now before they are gone completely and so will need some legislated structure.

[bucket]

The only act cargill or viterra need is to **** their customers once and see what happens.

The Patterson, P&H, Richardsons, etc will be waiting for the business.

Its not too hard to understand, is it?

[jdepape]

bucket - don't forget the other companies that will show up. They too will be happy to pick up some business.

Who knows - maybe even one will want to operate Churchill in partnership with the CWB.

[dave4441]

Groundspeed hit the nail on the head and summarized this whole mess.

"They say the single desk can't compete, that tells me they dont pay what they should be paying us and dont want to".

If the CWB says they can not compete, for growers grain as some sort of co-op, then why do we want the CWB to remain in place. Who is willing to sell to them at a lower price is waht they are saying. They are telling us they are a high cost inefficient method of trading grain. I thought this was an efficient way for the farmer to get the most money? If it is, and they beleived that, then they can compete. Yet they say they can not compete. End of discussion.

[bucket]

Alliance grain, who currently deals in lentils, would be an obvious fit to buy smaller lots of wheat and durum and ship them with their lentil or chickpeas.

There is an opportunity for a new player for the marketing of our wheat and durum?

That market, that most cwb supporters don't know, isn't even serviced by the cwb because the cwb thinks it is too small.

But alliance can and probably will make it work.

[dave4441]

I was in Morocco and had a importer of cdn durum wheat tell me that he could not get the board to return his phone call. He only imports 80,000 MT of durum wheat from Canada per year. Minster Ritz was standing next to me at the time. 80000 MT is not a small buyer. I think the CWB found it easier to let CDN companies market it direct into US for them.

Incendently, the buyer used about 20000 MT of local product and required 80000 MT of CDN product to meet the quality spec he required for re export into EU. Yet he voiced concern about current service. There is huge opp for people, or even a new CWB to service smaller operations. THis is how a grain market runs out of product, selling bits and pieces into exsisting and new markets. We may not know the real demand for CDN cereal products becuase the board has disallowed the free market to perform.

[bucket]

There was a web site called alibab.com I stumbled across a while back. Durum buyers all over the place. The cwb laughed when i mentioned that as a resource. The sales were not big enough for them to care.

A forty tonne container of durum and a 40 tonne container of lentils this year could be worth the same money. SOmeone is going to look at that as an opportunity to buy durum.

And honestly, if you look at the production of lentils and the production of durum - they are both specialty crops. The cwb fails to recognize this.

Meanwhile the cwb will still be having its pissing match.

[checking]

To keep from failing or sinking; bear the weight of; hold up; sustain.

As I see it, wmoebis, you have two options. Either "get over it", or contact your director and tell him you have this amount of projected wheat and barley tonnage you want the Board to market for you after August 2012. It's called support. See for yourself if the CWB has any interest in handling this for you. Have you done this, or are you still grieving, angry, or in the denial stage?

[wmoebis]

I am sure some are way ahead. Have cleaners in place ready to ship commercially clean/export ready. Have Ccans lined up and are in negotiations with national and international mills. Little guys may have to find nich markets on thier own and I think it is in best interests to have a plan in place BEFORE anouncements are made and alternatives in case of the unexpected.

This does not seem to be Ritz's idea of good management. He just says we are getting rid of the CWB, with no plan in place or a single idea of what to do. Now he is trying to make everyone else look bad for his lack of planning.

All I said checking, was that if this is the kind of direction we are getting from this gov't why do we need them in there at all? Getting rid of the CWB is fine, first repeal the CWB ACT and FIRE Minister and the gov't appointed directors. Willing farmers can keep the directors that are there or elect new ones.

If 40-60-80% of farmers want to market through a marketing board and higher a elevator company to handle the grain, they sure don't need the gov't making laws to tell them how to do it. Unless it is going to cover every grain merchant and marketer.

If the new 'Canadian Western Wheat Board' were to get even 40% of the wheat signed up I am sure they could work out a deal with anyone of the grain companies to handle it. Heck maybe even a little competition.

Like everyone else including the CWB, just waiting to see what Ritz has up his sleeve before we can negotiate with the industry with cards in our hand.

Typical gov't of any stripes. Just like the CROW throw it out with no definate plan in place and no idea of what is wanted or how all other players may react.

[jdepape]

which would you rather?

1. Have the government (Ritz) dictate exactly what a voluntary CWB will do and look like?

or

2. Have your directors figure out what is best in their view and present the best ideas?