Farmers Not Fooled by CWB’s Cash Pricing Scheme
By Gerry Ritz,
Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board
Finding out what farmers expect is as simple as asking what they want and then delivering on it. The Government of Canada is doing just that. The majority of Western Canadian barley farmers have demanded marketing choice and this Government has heard them. We are working hard to deliver the changes they need for their farms to prosper.
It’s unfortunate that the CWB refuses to cooperate. They are failing to meet farmers’ expectations, failing to publicly consult with Western farmers and failing to honour the wishes of the majority of Western Canadian barley farmers who are demanding marketing choice. Is there really any wonder why both industry and producer groups have rejected the CWB’s proposed cash pricing program? This scheme is nothing more than a diversion while still allowing the Board to retain a centrally-controlled monopoly.
Farmers have clearly indicated a growing desire to have marketing choice and no bureaucratic program can replace this. Western Canadian farmers are not fooled and will not settle for less.
Make no mistake, farmers have been comparing the barley prices across the border. When our producers see the prices that their American neighbors are getting for their product on the open market as compared with what the pool is offering them, it’s obvious that they are losing money every day. It’s time the Board starts facing this reality and working towards some real solutions.
Major farming groups and the industries have invited the CWB to come to the negotiating table and hammer out real options for marketing choice. This is long overdue and I urge the Board to finally start taking the mandate handed to them by farmers seriously by coming up with workable options for choice in the marketplace.
By Gerry Ritz,
Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board
Finding out what farmers expect is as simple as asking what they want and then delivering on it. The Government of Canada is doing just that. The majority of Western Canadian barley farmers have demanded marketing choice and this Government has heard them. We are working hard to deliver the changes they need for their farms to prosper.
It’s unfortunate that the CWB refuses to cooperate. They are failing to meet farmers’ expectations, failing to publicly consult with Western farmers and failing to honour the wishes of the majority of Western Canadian barley farmers who are demanding marketing choice. Is there really any wonder why both industry and producer groups have rejected the CWB’s proposed cash pricing program? This scheme is nothing more than a diversion while still allowing the Board to retain a centrally-controlled monopoly.
Farmers have clearly indicated a growing desire to have marketing choice and no bureaucratic program can replace this. Western Canadian farmers are not fooled and will not settle for less.
Make no mistake, farmers have been comparing the barley prices across the border. When our producers see the prices that their American neighbors are getting for their product on the open market as compared with what the pool is offering them, it’s obvious that they are losing money every day. It’s time the Board starts facing this reality and working towards some real solutions.
Major farming groups and the industries have invited the CWB to come to the negotiating table and hammer out real options for marketing choice. This is long overdue and I urge the Board to finally start taking the mandate handed to them by farmers seriously by coming up with workable options for choice in the marketplace.
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