Churchill premiums???

[bucket]

Great idea. The cwb rocket scientists have done again. Now if I understand this correctly - if you are in the churchill catchment area you get a premium for your grain.

Here is my question - I consider myself to be in the US catchment area - where is my premium??

Also when the cwb master efficiency experts shipped grain to Churchill and then shipped it back to Vancouver who got the premium - seems that one got split up for all producers (the bill for the extra freight).

Lets stop the segregation and discrimination!!!

[Kodiak]

Let me figure this out.

The CWB is going to pay me a 'premium' of $6 or $7 to store wheat for them until July so they can save a bit of freight. And between now and July the inverse in the market is $60.....

Oh well, I guess that's what the pool accounts are for. They can cover up a lot of things.

Aren't we fortunate to have such wise and market savvy marketers looking after our affairs. I would have never thought of such an innovative approach for achieving premiums.

[bucket]

Also today they undercut the US on a sale to Iraq.

The US has no wheat left to sell and the buffoons undercut them.

IDIOTIC!!

Vader how is that liberal campaign coming along. Maybe you ought to start paying more attention to those interests that pay your salary at the present time.

[silverback]

Perhaps if one becomes a candidate, they might get a little bonus - just like a certain premier in some french speaking province?

[cris]

I think any grain that goes though Churchill is a bonus. It send less grain though the congested ports and is a hell of a lot closer than the St. Lawrence. If that port stays viable it may help with arbitrage in the fertilizer markets. In the past feed peas have gone out that way and paid better than graded peas.

[bucket]

Fair comment cris.

Here is the problem. When the cwb ships grain back to Vancouver from churchill who pays the freight bill.

You see, I don't see the consistency in the cwb thought process. Pay a premium to a few and then the expense to everybody else when they pull stunts like that. The guys that get the premium, don't get backcharged the freight to the west coast to have their grain sold.

The whole point of the cwb is to pooool these so called savings and redistribute the so called wealth to the peasants.

I am just asking for my share of the so called savings.

[cris]

I somewhat agree with your statement in the part where the board had to redirect the boat to get it filled. That should not happen and the grain companies who won't ship to Churchill should bear the costs. If a grain companies ship to only their terminals it leaves Churchill out.
The other part is that someone in Edmonton won't want to pay my freight rate all year around. We pay most of our freight to the west coast and a little to churchill. The fact of the matter is the closer to the port you are the better off you are. All business principals apply.

[Vader]

The CWB regularly puts grain into export position without advance knowledge of specific sales. The decision is revisited annualy and takes into account many factors including the quoted storage fees from the terminal facilities. There must be some balance between the cost of putting this grain into position weighed against the probability of making sales or losing them in situations where time is of the essence.

This was the situation with the grain that was in storage in Churchill. It was simply a normal part of doing business on behalf of all of the farmers in Western Canada.

In the year in question the quality of the Canadian crop was such that there were difficulties in assuring the stocks required to service the Japanese market. A cost benefit analysis was undertaken which showed a positive business case for the movment of stocks from Churchill to Vancouver. The CWB undertook this initiative to blend lower quality wheat with the high quality wheat from Churchill in order to meet the sales requirements for the Japanese customer. Thereby the CWB earned additional money for the farmers of Western Canada.

[bucket]

Vader

Then show the farmers the busines plan for this in detail.

How long was the grain in Churchill?Who got the storage payments? How much did the rail freight cost to Vancouver? What was the blend patern used?

Then tell us the same story for the wheat from Montreal.

I, as a farmer, would like to know these costs.

And you as a director should disclose them - these are regular costs and would not impact any secret pricing.

[Vader]

There was a positive business case for shipping grain both from Churchill and from Montreal. It had nothing to do with how long the grain was in storage prior to being moved nor who storage payments were being made to. The rail cost to Vancouver would have been factored in and the benefit would be a direct result of the amount of grain that could be upgraded by blending.

Your questions would indicate that you doubt the explanation given. There were 15 board members who were present and who were similarly convinced that this was the right thing to do. The Board is not there to micromanage everything that the staff does. That is why there is staff. That is the job they are paid to do.

I suppose you can demand to be convinced of every single thing that the CWB does. That is your right. My job is to consider if these are legitimate questions and if so I can take them forward through one of the committees for their consideration. Likewise you can send you requests through proper channels.

I will not attempt to justify or answer every single question posed here. My judgement is that many of them are intended to gather information to do harm to the CWB and many are frivolous.

I am under no obligation whatsoever to answer questions posed here. I will post whatever I feel is relevant and in the best interest of the CWB.

[bucket]

Vader

I have asked through the appropriate channels and the same response (its like you guys have a song sheet).

Its "trust us". Well I don't.

Tell us how much storage was paid on that grain and did giving our grain away for $6 pay the extra freight and storage.

Now you can double speak and say the grain was sold for $10 and the farmers of western canada never seen an additional dime of it.

Vader just put the facts out there. Don't say "trust me" because if you can't tell, no one does!!!