Here's a new one

[bucket]

farmaholic

Maybe we could get positions as government relations for the newly created "One Voice for Farmer" group. lol.

Just finished listening to the railways at the committee meeting today.

Its criminal the way they talk. Babies.

[agstar77]

There seems to be a destructive streak in farming. We don't just want change we want destruction. Get rid GRIP , get rid of the CROW get rid of all those excess railines and elevators, get rid of the CWB, sell the co-ops. It's fine to get rid of everything but if you don't have a plan to improve things it is suicide. Farmers need to be for something.

[farmaholic]

Was that at a meeting in Humboldt?

[parsley]

Can you summarize, bucket?

[bucket]

Hoback and Zimmer went after the CP and CN quite well.

Those railroaders were double talking pretty well.

[farmaholic]

agstar77. We are something, we are literally the
backbone of the Western Canadian Ag Industry.

[bucket]

Now they are talking about moving grain early to Thunder bay. ****ing morons are still going to be shorting Vancouver and the ships waiting.

The railways figure they are doing a good job, and its the weather that's giving them grief. Polar Vortex.

Commercial principles in the states for railways.

They want to get rid of the revenue cap. They won't outright say it but that is what they want.


Force majeure would have protected their asses anyway.

[farmaholic]

Bucket. If there are no real alternatives to the
duopoly, no penalties for poor performance, no
real increases in capacity, removing the revenue
cap only to have to compete commercially for
static capacity won't bode well for grain shippers.
We don't have the luxury of passing that extra cost
on.

What has happened to our commodity prices is
criminal. This isn't the result of a free and open
market. Some words that come to mind;
incompetence, collusion, extortion, racketeering.

Is canola at the domestic crushers priced so low
because they don't have movement of their
products and they don't have true competition from
exports because we can't get it on boats anyway.
More than a ripple affect, kind of like a tsunami.

This whole fiasco will go down in Western
Canadian history as the single largest shift in
capital from Grain Producer to Privately(Family)
Owned Inland Terminals. Careful what you ask
for.......

[ado089]

You would really think that anyone with
half a brain in their head could set
aside any differences they have to sound
out a common concern for the issue at
hand. Unfortunately there are enough who
think they can gain from this situation
out there to distract the politicians
from what needs to get done. There are
many problems in agriculture in Canada
with a range of people to blame but
right now there is only one crisis and
effects us all and for that there is
only one place to lay blame.

[Hopperbin]

Fertilizer maker Mosaic sees huge N. America transport snags
Feb 11 (Reuters) - U.S.-based fertilizer company Mosaic Co , which operates potash mines in western Canada and phosphate facilities in the United States, is facing unprecedented transportation backlogs in North America, Chief Executive Officer Jim Prokopanko said on Tuesday.

Frigid temperatures and heavy snow have hampered railway movement of commodities, he said on a conference call with analysts to discuss quarterly results.

[wmoebis]

What are they implying?

That fert. prices are going up because of
trans problems?

What is wrong with this picture?

[bucket]

Of course they are, because we export fertilizer doesn't mean it has to make sense.

I have retailers tell me the price is based out of new orleans, but I say we have a plant in our backyard. Doesn't matter.

Anything to gouge the shit out you.

You have to wonder if governments purposely allow this and why?

[Hopperbin]

They are saying they have transportation issues. We are in the same boat as they are. They don't have a revenue cap. We are not the only ones with transportation issues with the railroads.

[mbdog]

to be clear, the rail/transportation system needs to be resolved/improved/opened up/altered to provide certainty for economic development/investment confidence. Why would anyone, individual, corporate or foreign invest a nickel in Canada?

What gets noticed is one voice organizations with economic influence.

Believe me, I fought to kill the CWB, but The CWB, as it exists today, still provides the pools of economic influence (people and grain), but is not bound or hidden by macro government agenda/ideology.

While the CWB wasn't worth saving before, perhaps they are now, as a reborn CGC (Canadian Grains Co-operative)??? that can truly be a unified voice/marketing arm/investment instrument for producers. Not sure of the real, intended, or planned political outcome of the CWB is by government, but the CWB wasn't a threat to government as long as the illusion was maintained. I'm just saying.

They bought a ship I remember, not sure what assets they own, and argueably there may be political will to transform it, as they have been given 5 years, and a sensitive government ear to do so. There is also the complicated question of cwb money and farmers dollars sitting in la-la land, post CWB.
Does this simply disappear into the 5 year sunset clause or is this seed money?

A restructured, privately and publically owned, performance oriented, and tradeable CWB, with a true mandate to work for, and be accountable to, farmers is possibly right there under our noses.

....What!!! **** off and let me go back to sleep.

[bucket]

For that to happen, there is still some
housekeeping to do.