A Discussion Paper on the Use of Variety Eligibility Declarations

[boone]

Ration-Al; yes IGFarben was broken up into 12 sub companies by the Allied forces at the end of WWII bayer was part of the area managed by England the rest are diversified as well.

[Ration-Al]

Boone,

What I heard was that Bayer was already diversified into many daugher companies many of whom were doing business in the USA. Prior to WWII these American divisions which previously had very German sounding names were renamed so as not to be recognizable as German entities. These businesses continued to operate right through WWII and beyond doing quite well as a result of the war. Some go so far as to insinuate that these business entities may have provided financial support to the Hitler regime leading up to the war.

Are you aware of any supporting evidence of these allegations?

[boone]

Ration-Al the last time I heard they were quite recently being forced to pay reperations to holocaust victims for being basically worked to sickness and death, as forced labour from concentration camps. Which is quite ironic as one of the largest peace time associations that evolved was with Bunge of Argentina for making of chemicals. ( the Bunge grain handling firm was owned by two old and wealthy families. The Borns and Hirschs'with the latter and maybe the former being Jewish).

[boone]

ration-al; just to be sure for the record this last line wasn't an anti semetic statement it was truly in regards to the intanglement of multinationals, and you never no the why and the where of business. It certainly wasn't pro/or anti anything, but you would have to know me I guess.

[TOM4CWB]

Boone;

Spent some time talking with the CGC today... if the CGC would concentrate on creating a dependable commodity for domestic and export marketing... which is the mandate the Canada Grain Act specifies... we would gain much!

Specific milling specs should be met... and if AC Barrie meets those specs and Superb won't, the Superb should be down graded.

I am afraid the we are still depending on the big blender effect to create quality... which is fine if the intake of grain is quality based... instead of genetically based.

Weather is the biggest problem in creating milling problems... ALESEN was just fine for CWRS milling in the #1 and #2 grades. SO just exactly why is it being deregistered... when we despirately need a fusarium resistant CWRS wheat?

If there is a problem in the 3CWRS... fine... put a restriction on the registration that requires a falling number be done... on intake at the primary elevator... like every other purchaser in the world requires! If a flour colour test needs to be done, then do that too! THis is not rocket science... too bad we are swept up in a system that says is quality based... yet won't even test for primary qualities when grading a farmers grain!

[boone]

Tom4cwb; I get a sense we are very close to new technology that will enable us to do some of the things you are talking about here, I was thinking about what you said in regards to being readied for GMO wheat with affidavit system. I believe this could work if we would be financially responsible for what we grow. So I buy seed from you and test it at a cost. It has GMO wheat in it so I sue you, next you go back to your supplier and sue him, but at the end of the day would Monsanto be responsible for their genetic pollution? I doubt it. Does our customer care who is responsible? NO. That is why we have to stand together to send this back to the lab for as long as it takes to satisfy the consumer side of this equation. They keep throwing out fusarium as reason enough to pursue. I say it would be a better thing to switch from wheat till we solved that problem than to permanently destroy our opportunities. This is a hard red spring grain farmer talking here. I am just visiting 30-50 years, these decisions are timeless.

[charliep]

Just a note as new varieties come on board, the visual distinquishability is becoming more difficult. Some of the new CPS varieties (as suggested to me) are pushing the boundaries now with hard red spring wheat. Even in the non GMO world, there will be increasing needs to look at other alternatives than strictly visual to segregate wheat.

The next step will be to identify quality characturistics better and develop better mechanisms for moving them through the grain handling system to customers who are willing to pay the necessary premiums.

Long and short. How does the grain handling system move from blending to value segretation.

[TOM4CWB]

Charlie;

This is not rocket science.

The US does it... without variety declarations.

Japan, supposedly the pickyest buyer in the world, buys close to half of their wheat from the US... by spec.

We do IP contracts, if a buyer wants a specific variety, then contract production from Certified seed. SIMPLE.

Swearing a declaration... that cannot be backed legally unless certified seed is planted... is pointless.

Any farmer can grow certified seed himself... this also is not rocket science!

I see Canario Canary seed is in this bind!

Canario had over 50% of the Canary Seed that was planted... but the farmers have brown bagged it for too long... and now they have a blend of semi-hairless Canary.

What is so bad about planting Certified Seed, The EU requires it... to get farm programs... are we so undiciplined that we won't even plant independantly verified good planting seed?

[boone]

Tom4cwb; nothing is wrong except the cost. The seed growers out here tell me they send a dollar a bushel back to ag canada or whomever owns the PBR. It is a barrier to certified seed.

[charliep]

Boone

The question comes to how new variety development should be paid for? Government responsibility/shared by society? Returns paid to breeders which reflect their risk/develement cost? Returns to breeders/companies based on the value they bring the farm comunittee?