Call this Meeting to Order

[cowman]

New business: as a farmer I'am sick of the CWB interfering in the free market choice of my product.

Would someone on Agri-ville.com please make a motion, moving that the CWB free Western Canadian Farmers from single desk selling and allowing a free market for all grain and oilseeds both domestically and export.

Then lets have a seconder and then and all in favour list.

[parsley]

I move that the Canadian Wheat Board automatically issue export licenses to those Designated Area farmers applying for one.

Parsley

[TOM4CWB]

Kernel and Parsley;

Since the original intent of the CWB Act was that farmers not delivering graded grain to a elevator were to be outside the authority of the CWB Act, I certainly would second Parsley's motion.

By the way Kernel, what made you suggest such a radical unpatriotic idea??? did someone or something the CWB did put a burr under your saddle???

[TOM4CWB]

Put it this way tom4cwb: If you were to hire me to sell all your grain for you next year with no insentive other than you paying me wages and there was little chance I would be fired. I would get rid of your grain with very little though on whether I could have gotten you a better price for it or not. I was just hired to sell your grain. Their no finanical insentive for me to do better for you.

I do believe that farmers can do better individually marketing their own grain. In Ontario the free market system seems to be working very well. In Western Canada most farmers are moving to pulse crops, canola, CPS wheats or anything else that does not envolve doing business with the board.

It has been said that wheat is easy to grow and hard to market but I don't believe that. We produce a very high quality wheat in Canada and I don't think it is that hard to create a market for quality. Besides the CWB is selling it away to cheat. I would like to try and go broke on my own initiative rather than listen to the CWB lies when the truth would have satisfied most people. Lies are called politics in our free world.

Lets get government as far away from our business as we can.

[TOM4CWB]

Oh by the way edible field peas have gone from $4.00/bus to $8.50. Wheat is in very tight supply also and the CWB is happy at a give away of $5.00/bus. when there is penlty of evidence that a higher price is obtainable.

Go figure why I want an open market.

[charliep]

I assume open for discussion.

Why simply export licences? Would your new world include a system of selling wheat/barley to domestic human consumption markets outside the pooling system.

Kernel - I assume greens. Have heard $8/bu for greens but not yellows.

[TOM4CWB]

Charlie,

Why Just an Export License?

1.Section 32 of the CWB Act:

Wheat for Interprovincial and Export trade

32. (1) The Corporation shall undertake the marketing of wheat produced in the designated area in interprovincial and export trade and for that purpose shall

(a)buy all wheat produced in the designated area and offered by a producer for sale and delivery to the Corporation at an elevator, in a railway car or at any other place in accordance with this Act and the regulations and orders of the Corporation;

NOW IT IS CLEAR the CWB’s Authority is over grain that has been “Offered” to them.

If a farmer chooses to market their grain by themselves, without having it use an elevator or railway car in Canada, and chooses not to grade that grain with a Canada Grain Act grade, then this grain when sold does not effect the CWB’s marketing.

Why?

The CWB claims that Canadian quality of CGC graded grain is special and different.

If the CWB’s claim is true, and I choose not to use Canadian grades, then my grain is subtracted from the pool of “Special Canadian Graded Grain” and allows the CWB complete control and freedom to control the marketing of Canadian graded grain, infact there is a smaller pool of grain and the price should increase when supply decreases.

The CWB single desk is maintained; the CWB can still "extract a premium" if this myth is true, and the CWB Act has not been broken or offended if the CWB offers the export license.


2.Domestic grain; Charlie the only way the CWB can extract a premium from domestic grain markets is if exports can be restricted, and they are not restricted.

Now Charlie, as Kernel has pointed out, and as the Canola market and other open market products like Canary Seed have proven, farmers can extract a premium simply by being disciplined sellers.


If farmers feel a fair price is being offered in these markets, then they sell. If they feel the price is not high enough, then they do not sell.

SIMPLE…

The CWB does not know what farmer’s think of what they are doing when they sell our grain, and as the “monopoly” prevents us from giving a signal to them, by withholding our grain through the freedom to choose, then there is not one ounce or gram of accountability.

Free export licenses will allow the market to arbitrage, both for export and domestically.

And that is what we are looking for, isn’t it Charlie?

But, the CANADIAN Elevator CO’s and Railways would never stand for a system that avoided them… as they would loose business…

So the fact is that the CWB “Monopoly” is simply protection for Canadian railways and elevator companies, disguised and d****d is a endless amount of academic vegetation that confuses those who would need fair arbitrage and fair pricing in our grain marketing system.

Charlie, we aren’t asking for much, really only our right to live in a free and democratic society… would that be OK Charlie?

[parsley]

Good Morning,

You're right charliep, domestic licensing should enjoy no-buyback licenses.

In the Act, all the elevators and the mills etc. are designated as "works for the general advantage of Canada". Until the Act changes, all companies and processors are held ransom by the CWB, Tom4cwb. They do as the Board says or they don't buy or sell or move wheat/barley within Canda. Period. And the Board uses their authority like a big stick. Freely and widely. They intimidate companies and mills. They 'get even' . They act as the bully on the block. Every corporation has their Wheat Board horror story.


Farmer held grain , on the other hand, according to the Act, is not designated as there for the general advantage of Canada . Anything less would have been expropriation, and the Canadian Government did not dare expropriate all the wheat and barley in Canada. What has happened is that it is the CWB itself, not the Act, which has been deciding in the back rooms, who gets licenses and who doesn't. The staff are making decisions that sometimes are not according to what the Act says . The staff are issuing and denying licenes based on where you live, and the Act does not say this. I'll venture a guess that they issue licenses if they think they will get taken to court for denial, but they deny licensesif they think they can bluff. For a long time, the Board has been passing off the idea that the buyback is a legal requirement to getting a licenese, but that is hogwash. It isn't a requirement. The staff are out of control, and the Directors are unaware of the legal implications. And there are many, including class actions..

The most important priority for farmers, is to free up export licensing, though. Once farmers can export and they are not held hostage to the government system , it will free up the rest of the system. As a farmer, if I don't like the domestic market, I can move on to the export market. It's called free enterprise.

Of course, the alternative is to do what we are doing, and that is to supply Canada's committments with cheap grain, and arrest and jail anyone who protests. (Jim Ness from Alberta took one bag across and he's up for possible jail. Perhaps WheatBoarders would prefer to hang him and get it over with.)

Would anyone like to ammend the motion to include domestic licenses as well ?

Parsley

[TOM4CWB]

Charlie;

Sorry, on point 2:

2. Domestic grain; Charlie the only way the CWB can extract a premium from domestic grain markets is if "exports" can be restricted, and they are not restricted. I made a mistake and meant IMPORTS.

NAFTA and WTO agreements STOP the CWB from restricting imports.

So the lowest price grain will always flow into Canada, if the quality is there.

We have the worst of both worlds, we can't send the signal to our marketer to restrict sales, yet anyone else in the world can compete against us and undercut farmers in the "designated area"

I find it interesting that Thalpenny has to stoop to bringing in the pricing of substandard quality European grain prices to justify low CWB price expectations!!!

THat should tell us a BIG story, shouldn't it Charlie???

[TOM4CWB]

Thalpenny posted Aug 19, 2002 10:36

"Tom4cwb, as you know, you are comparing spot prices to an estimate of pool returns over a 12-15 month marketing period. This estimate doesn't reflect only the US market, but all markets."

So lower price competition from other countries is caused by obvious substandard quality grain, by Thalpenny’s own admissions. It is obvious the “Monopoly” doesn’t help here.

Canada has a special highest quality product, yet the price is lowered by lower quality producers.

If the reason for the CWB's existance is to extract the best price, and I believe the best price for me is right now, doesn't the CWB have an obligation to offer me that opportunity to sell my wheat?

WHY must I take a substndard lower price through a 15month pool, If I don't want to be a speculator???

[TOM4CWB]

Look at the list of largest importers of wheat in the world - countries like Brazil, Iran, Egypt. And we only want to talk about exporting grain to the largest exporting nation, the US.

So what cash price do you think will be quoted at Vcr? I suspect that it will be the lowest value where buyers and sellers come together. Because buyers know that Canada will need to export 80% of our production. So they know we will eventually be price takers to clear the system.

That's the way I see it.

Tom

[TOM4CWB]

Does this mean you are not seconding the motion?


Parsley

[TOM4CWB]

Halpenny does anyone get fired at the CWB.

Tom4cwb upon the above discussion would you and parsley like to reword your motion to include a free domestic market also. Before we call for a vote.

I know this is probably out of order but we want to get it right. Remember the lies we are told.

[TOM4CWB]

Yes charliep greens $8.00 and yellows $7.00 but you know me always on the optimistic side of things.

[TOM4CWB]

Here goes Kernel,

I move that the Canadian Wheat Board issue export and interprovincial licenses to those Designated Area farmers applying for one.

(No need for changing the Act as this motion is within the boundaries of the CWB Act as it is presently written.)

Parsley