Farm groups quiet

[Oliver88]

I have been taking note of farm groups lately.

SARM, APAS and WCWGA and others have both been critical of the budgets and carbon taxes.
WCWGA have been critical of CGC $100 million over charging of fees.
SARM voted 93% in favour of more property rights for farmers.
Pulse Growers and a few others publicly opposed a carbon tax.


NFU opposes farmers property rights and has spoken out regarding the SARM proposal siding with the criminals. (Disappointing)

[vvalk]

I have been taking note of farm groups lately.

SARM, APAS and WCWGA and others have both been critical of the budgets and carbon taxes.
WCWGA have been critical of CGC $100 million over charging of fees.
SARM voted 93% in favour of more property rights for farmers.
Pulse Growers and a few others publicly opposed a carbon tax.


NFU opposes farmers property rights and has spoken out regarding the SARM proposal siding with the criminals. (Disappointing)

Really easy to check. I invite anyone to the WCWGA website and check out the press releases. You can see for yourself what we have or have not responded too. CArbon tax, CGC, CGC grading, budgets, transportation, op eds in countless newspapers could go on and on. All with 1 staff member, a volunteer board and voluntary paid memberships.

[Integrity_Farmer]

Below is taken from the CWBA web site that compares Crop Insurance premiums in Manitoba and Saskatchewan GREAT CANADIAN GRAIN ROBBERY CWBAFACTS.CA
This was from 2015 you will note that a farmer in Saskatchewan was paying about $11.00 an acre more for Crop Insurance than a Manitoba farmer for identical coverage. This year farmer premiums increase dramatically. Where is this money going?
It should be noted that with premier Pallister now in charge in Manitoba premiums are now increasing dramatically as well.
THERE NEEDS TO BE A Full INVESTIGATION OF SASK CROP INSURANCE Where is the money going???
You will also note that the CWBA predicted that if Harper was reelected the plan was to end Crop Insurance This was in the works because the talk in Ottawa with farm organizations was "shouldn't the farmer be allowed to buy insurance". Ritz was quite open about this.
Crop Insurance is a federal Provincial program where premiums are agreed to by provinces and the federal government.
TAXING CROP INSURANCE IS CLEARLY A VIOLATION OF THE ACT AND AGREEMENT BETWEEN FARMERS PROVINCES AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
I am not aware of any other province taxing their farmers crop insurance and hail insurance

FROM CWBA The End of Crop Insurance
Agriculture Minister Ritz is on record as saying farmers should buy their own crop insurance. Currently crop insurance premiums are split between the farmer, their Provincial and the Federal governments. We believe that the Harper conservatives want to privatize crop insurance.

Here are two crop insurance contracts from SK and MB for 80% coverage of 50/50 canola and RS wheat and excess moisture insurance:

$/acre Sk Farmer Sask Gov. & Ottawa Total
$20.16 $27.84 $48.00

$/acre Mb Farmer Mb Gov. & Ottawa Total
$11.68 $16.12 $27.80

Do you trust Ritz and Harper to keep using government money to support your crop insurance costs? Can you afford forty-eight thousand dollars or more in private crop insurance for every thousand acres you farm?

Ritz and Harper have already drastically changed the margin calculations for Agri-Stability to make it more difficult to trigger pay outs. The government contribution to Agri-Invest has also been slashed.

[Quadtrack]

Is it wrong for check off farm groups to not comment on various general farm policies and reserve their comment for ones that directly affect their crop? For example, should sask wheat be spending our checkoof to try and resurrect the wheat board?(they are by the way) Or should pulse be spending money to research a position on drainage? (A divisive issue if ever was one)
Seems to make sense that groups stick to policy that directly impact what they are responsible for, collaborate on larger issues (like grain transport ) and leave political issues to member based where individual can decide if they want to belong or not.

It does take money to present well thought they researched policy positions.

Disagree?

[bucket]

Pulse money should be spent on a permanent solution to the fumigation issue....this 6 month extension for 10 years isn't checkoff money working for us.

Sask wheat ....I have no idea wtf they are doing.... but more classifications for wheat is plain idiotic....the system isn't set up for that.

[foragefarmer]

You would figure that those farm organizations would have more influence on MPs, MLAs as many of them were former members of those organizations. Maguire, Menzies, and Wishart, just a few names that come to mind! They may have had good intentions but are whipped in line with the rest of them

Putting out press releases after the fact is re-active not pro-active, governments are going to do what they want, farm organization can't prevent it from happening. Best save your membership dues! Just look at Agristablity and Agrinvest both gutted, press releases did squat!

[vvalk]

You would figure that those farm organizations would have more influence on MPs, MLAs as many of them were former members of those organizations. Maguire, Menzies, and Wishart, just a few names that come to mind! They may have had good intentions but are whipped in line with the rest of them

Putting out press releases after the fact is re-active not pro-active, governments are going to do what they want, farm organization can't prevent it from happening. Best save your membership dues! Just look at Agristablity and Agrinvest both gutted, press releases did squat!

Yup be proactive. Let's do press releases or lobby Govt on a millions issues that they might be thinking of. Should have know they were thinking of charging pst on cropnknsurance or that they would take cash based tax accounting away. If I knew the future trust me I wouldn't be farming

[vvalk]

You would figure that those farm organizations would have more influence on MPs, MLAs as many of them were former members of those organizations. Maguire, Menzies, and Wishart, just a few names that come to mind! They may have had good intentions but are whipped in line with the rest of them

Putting out press releases after the fact is re-active not pro-active, governments are going to do what they want, farm organization can't prevent it from happening. Best save your membership dues! Just look at Agristablity and Agrinvest both gutted, press releases did squat!

And. By the way the WG have been the only group fighting how we grade USA grain coming into this country. A huge issue for the Americans and since I guess we can predict the future I can see the border slamming shut if we don't fix it. They have every excuse to do it

[Quadtrack]

Pulse has been actively trying for permanent solution to the fumigation issue for years. The most recent package designed to enable that was delivered to India govt in Dec with near daily interaction since. Ever try pushing a rope?
And sask wheat was not even consulted or allowed input on the wheat class issue cause they refuse to join the national organization in fear of having to sit next to a grain company rep and defend farmers rights and views. Sask wheat should be shut down as they only follow the NFU playbook.
But that wasn't the question-should a levy authorized group comment on issues past their crop?

[Rareearth]

Tough questions, "where should producer dollars go? "

What's the higher priority:
- teach, lobby, promot Ag as a healthy, planet saving activity, to general public?
Or
- improve crop diversity, production economics, political policy domestic and abroad?

It seems the supply managed groups are way more actives in these areas, but they don't compete internationally where the game isn't and will never be fair- it's comparable to military weapons

[foragefarmer]

"And. By the way the WG have been the only group fighting how we grade USA grain coming into this country. A huge issue for the Americans and since I guess we can predict the future I can see the border slamming shut if we don't fix it. They have every excuse to do it "

Lack of details!

[Klause]

The highest class American wheat coming to Canada can have is feed.


Meanwhile Canadian producers are getting paid for DNS south of the border. ND and Mt grow the same quality we do and as such should be able to sell grade wheat for the grade the variety was developed at the quality level it is. A DNS should be able to be sold as a 1/2cw instead it has to be sold as feed here.