Two questions

[craig]

Anyone have these answers ? Has anyone ever done a comparative analysis comparing grain prices between U.S. and Canada looking at from the perspective of open and board crops. In other words do canola, peas, oats trade at similar levels or are we discounted similar to board grains? Other question. Since we are always arquing over farmer support for open market barley, has anyone ever compared amount of barley production with in CWB districts and used that as a gauge?

[SASKFARMER3]

I know Canola is Same in Velva ND as Harrowby on most Days.
Oats is the same usually on both sides of the border. Flax is usually Identical and Peas are the same. Barley Usually higher in USA and Feed also higher. HRS and Durum Higher on most occasions in the USA. Our price at Vancouver are usually equal to price dumped in the pit in ND.

[TOM4CWB]

cRAIG,

A very good example of CWB distortion is the 'B' CWB feed barley pool last crop year (in spring of 2007).

In a corn market that traded well over $4/bu... the CWB netted back to the 'designated area' about $110/t or $2.39/bu.

To make themselves look good.... they added $$50.17/t from... get this:

19. OTHER INCOME (CWB A N N U A L R E P O R T 2 0 0 6 - 0 7 Page 91)

The most significant item in other income is the recovery of freight charges.
The Corporation’s agents deduct freight from producers at the time of grain purchase based on the point of delivery.
If the agents do not incur these freight costs on the movement of the grain, the freight recoveries are returned to the Corporation for distribution to all pool participants.

Other income also includes Freight Adjustment Factor (FAF) recoveries. FAF is deducted from producers by the Corporation’s agents and remitted to the Corporation.
Producers pay the lesser of rail freight to Vancouver or rail freight to Thunder Bay plus FAF.
The FAF deductions are to cover a portion of the costs of moving grain to the east coast that are in addition to the rail freight costs of going to Thunder Bay."

How on earth did the CWB justify paying $50.17/t out of these adjustments!

Then... the CWB added $$55.61/t of net interest earnings from barley sales decades ago...

When I asked (In Provost on the 11th) where the CWB sold the 20,000t... that made up the 'B' pool... I was told it was to premium markets like Japan.

They would not answer directly... I suppose... because that would be 'commercially sensitive'!

EXCUSE me Craig for being perturbed... but this was a totally dishonest statement... or the CWB gives our grain away to Japan... which would make everything the claims... to be a bad joke!!!

Opps... this must be commercially sensitive' info... I guess I won't collect $500 and need to go directly to JAIL!

[TOM4CWB]

Dear Craig,

The distortion on grain markets in the 'designated area' couldn't be larger than they are today.

Much of the Spring 'feed wheat' being traded today in western Canada... is milling wheat with a falling # over 330.

It is worth well over $15.00/bu in the Northern Tier of the USA today. ANd the AB Ag site today quotes the elevator offering price at Lethbridge... being at $6.25/bu.

We are missing close to $10/bu... on this produce.

Corn was trading over $6/bu on the futures today.

The distortions the CWB creates... have NEVER been greater than they are today... and Commercial 'designated area' grain growers continue to pay and pay.

CWB... fix this mess... or get out of the way!

[TOM4CWB]

USDA Portland Daily Grain 03/13 15:08
JO_GR110
Portland, OR Thu Mar 13, 2008 USDA Market News



Bids for 11.5 percent protein US 1 Hard Red Winter Wheat and 14
percent protein US 1 Dark Northern Spring Wheat for March Portland
delivery were not well tested as exporters were not issuing bids for
nearby delivery. There was an increase in country selling, for April and
May delivery, for both hard red winter wheat and dark northern spring
wheat to meet exporter demands.

DTN Quoted the National Hard Red Spring Index today @ $15.7287/bu.

[chaffmeister]

The $50.17 per tonne thrown into the B pool was from "a prior year claim settled in the CWB's favour".

Who knows what it was for but we not what it was NOT for. It had nothing to do with marketing the barley in Pool B.

The return in Pool B (before the add-ons Tom talks about) was actually $157.63 instore Vancouver. Not trying to correct you, Tom, but using the CWB's average backoffs, it works back to Alberta at about $100/tonne.

During the same time, the lowest farmgate price in Montana was $149/t.

Instead of the "premium" market in Japan, the CWB would have been better off selling the barley into Montana. Or even to an exporter in Portland - and let them sell it to Japan.

Premium markets in Japan. Yeah, right.
While you're at it, tell me the one about the three bears...