Voluntary CWB?

[parsley]

wmoebis,

You say:

"They have to pay me what I would have recieved through the CWB. This keeps them from selling for less than than the CWB. (good for me) they can't use my grain as a lost leader".

Wow. You worry about the possibility of getting a price less than the CWB price. (I assume the CWB prices satisifies your $$ needs).

Conversely, I worry about finding a price higher than the CWB pays. (We can't exist on CWB prices)

What about those who get MORE than the Board pays? I know Farmer X very well, and he just sent a load of barley to the USA . Approx $9.00 per bushel. Bypassed Board marketing and pooling. No buyback. Complete with export license. Did it hurt anyone in the DA? I would think bottom-line farmers would be relieved to see that grain move out of an already grossly overloaded system As agstar says, "under true market conditions the deepest pockets win", and in this case, the farmer got paid by the deepest pockets. He wins. Nobody loses. Why would the Board not allow the license to export?


Here's the conundrum. If Farmer X had to buy his own grain back through the Board's marketing arm, and pay the difference between the initial price and the market price, all the money would be going into the pooling accounts, which Farmer X cannnot access, as he doesn't even have a permit book. The Board didn't spend any time marketing his grain. No pooling expenses. The buyer paid all the freight. Only the licensing is a cost to the Board, and it is a Federal Governnment expense, anyhow.


While sshieils claims "Voluntary CWB not an option for grain marketing ", I have observed that voluntary marketing happens all the time. Every load of feed that is sold to a feed mill , not only bypasses Board marketing, but it bypasses Board pooling. That's voluntary marketing, sshieils . Every time a registered seed grower sends a load of wheat, and bypasses Board marketing and Board pooling, that is voluntary marketing, sshieils. Voluntary marketing is alive and functioning, and so far, the sky has not fallen, has it ?

Meantime, the system quietly unclogs without your even realizing it!

Parsley

[wmoebis]

parsley
If you read my post (me means all prairie farmers)
No I am not satisfied with the world price of grains. However I am satisfied that the CWB is getting as much on the world market as possable and are marketing with my best interests at heart. They don't have share holders (per say) that they have to be financially responsable to. Only ME.
Yes I am worried about getting less than what the CWB is getting for me right now. I am worried that if the big grain companies were to take control, that no matter what the world price of grain is I would not get my share as they have share holders to keep happy first.

[parsley]

The only 'shareholder' the CWB must listen to, respond to, answer to, account to, is the Minister of the Canadian Wheat Board. That's the law of the land.

Not the farmer, not the grain companies, not the B of Directors. Not you, wmoebis.

Just the Minister.

The CWB answers to the Government.

You'll be pleased the CWB are able to give away your hard-earned money to political parties.

Better get a good nights sleep so you can get an early start in the morning. The CWB will need some extra cash for the election.

Parsley

[wmoebis]

I totaly agree with you. The differance is. If I didn't believe in the concept of the CWB I would not continue to go public trying to distroy it for others who have other opinions and feel it works for them. There are options. I could just quit growing board grains. If everyone did this there would be no need for the board. Problem solved. The minister and board would listen to us.

There is suggestions that there is this big market out there for $9.00 barley why not sell into that and to heck with the pool? Then what the CWB did would not matter in the least. Let the rest of us be envious. We would all start flooding that market and how long would it hold up.

The CWB is totaly voluntary. If you don't want to sell board grains don't grow them.

Unfortunately, when some people become frustrated because of a lack of control over their life, they attack others and try to make their own actions justifiable when they're not. This is seen often in young children who haven't learned how to function well with others, but is scary when exhibited by adults.

[silverback]

That is one of the stupidist post's I have read in a long time.

Instead of saying to those that question the value of the CWB "go ahead, take your grain out of the pool, that will just leave more room for me", you say "either pool your grain with me or you can just grow something else". Unbelievable. Do you hear yourself when you type? Proofread what you just said and tell us that that is the way a reasonable person would respond in a "democratic" country.

Let's use your arguments in other situations then, how about we tell the oil/gas companies that they cannot sell on the open market anymore and if they don't like it, don't produce it, even though it is worth more to someone else than it is to the government monopoly who decides how much it is worth, when it can be delivered, and when they will pay for it.

There are people, companies, and governments in this world that are turning wheat into different food products (and other uses). They are willing to pay for it. They do not grow it. It is in their best interest to keep the supply coming in, and when the supply gets short, the price goes up. Pretty simple hey? How in the hell can it be wrong to try and find the people that want to buy it by myself? Did you ever think they might come to looking for something that only you can grow well?

Nobody knows if the CWB is working or not. Nobody gets to see the books. How can anybody just blindly trust something that has no accountabiliy to anyone except the federal gov't?? Maybe they are the best marketers in the whole world, but maybe they are the worst. Who would ever know? Why are you so afraid of letting people find their own way in this world?

[TOM4CWB]

Silverback;

COme on now... where is your Christmas Spirit!

Cut the poor guy some slack!

THE passion and emotion with which this topic creates is simply mind bending!

You would think our eternal salvation was at stake!

Peace be with all of us!

[parsley]

Elie Betito's response to a disenchanted gun owner was, "take your NRA, GUN LOVING ASS BACK TO THE U.S. WHERE YOU BELONG,E.BETITO"

(I am quoting from:

http://www.smalldeadanimals.com/

under the heading "Don't Bring An Email to a Blog Fight")

Your response plays a similar chord, and I've heard it echoed by Board supporters over and over.

Don't grow grain. Move to the USA. Quit farming. Shut up and live on $0.39 initial payments.

Major CWB changes can and must occur, as soon as:

1. Farmers recognize that the CWB needs improvement;

2.Farmers must make a solid committment to make change;

3.Farmers will commit to co-operate.

Listen to yourself wmoebis. You are still at #1 That is why I frightened you so much.

Parsley

[wmoebis]

I do believe changes are needed. I am commited to change. In a positive manor.
I have never seen a final grain cheque from any other country to know exactialy what farmers are getting in their pockets from their markets. If anyone can post a copy from USA, Aussie land or any other it would be interesting. Grain of equal value with the same milling qualities etc.
Some of the changes I see needed are on my grain cheque. The handling charges, freight and the wasted money in the system that we all pay for.
Grain companies are making profits on the backs of producers. Check out AU site. We are held captive to a transportation system that is run by a bunch of high paid union people. These people are service providers supplying services that comes directaly out of our pockets.
When one sector of the whole system breaks down we continue to pay the rest to sit on their butts and wait for ratification. Say the long shoreman go on strike for months, no grain moving we still pay inspection to go to work to sit there, plus all others in the system. Then inspection goes on strike and we pay eveyone else to sit there or work at half pace. These issues take years for us to pay off. The day the strike is over the employees get thier money life goes on but we suffer catching up bills and interst that effects us for a long time.
The money that is paid for services that are never preformed. Money that is deducted from me for services that may or may not be prefomed. My money that sits in corporate accounts drawing intrest that could be siting in my account for me to use untill the work is done and I am satisfied. Sell grain to Cargil Calgary then it is sold to ADM 3 blocks away I paid frieght to Vancover where is that money sitting drawing interest?
Go to the oil patch and order service and let them not show up for weeks, see what happens. Yet we can order a train and they come when they feel like and still they charge us a rediculous price. We have paid the frieght sometimes months before that grain moves. Prepaid freight and this kind of service.
Yes we need change, my personal experiance with free marketing has been devastating for me. I had my whole barley crop stolen by a hog barn, I seeded lentils at 18cents combined them at 9cents and are in the bin at 6cents. You bet I'm a little gun shy to free marketing. $9 barley sounds good if you get paid but 2.50 sounds better if you don't.

[parsley]

wmoebis,

We simply don't pay handling charges or freight. Or waste money on demmurage. Or spend $$ on grading that isn't relevant to our buyer. Port cleaning bills at Vancouver aren't on my debit sheet.

We often deal directly with the end user, but we do use companies at times, if they provide a service we need. Usually, their service is excellent, professional, and worth the money. Many of them have invaluable services.

CN provides containers and is excellent to do business with. Timely. We sometimes depend upon Cargill, using some of their equipment. They are very accomodating. UGG has tremendous knowledge, and is used as a resource.

Payment from our buyers goes directly into our bank accounts. 30 days. Sometimes cash up front.

The load of grain that we sent through the border last week was accompanied by our numbered bar code enabling the trucker to whiz through US Customs. You can do it online.

It's a quickly changing world, one where worrying about equality, (getting paid the same as what your neighbor gets ) is the least of your worries; whereas, serving the customer is our top priority. (charliep has many times, tried to hammer this idea home, the idea of 'what does the customer want?'.)

I consider these were positive changes in our farming operation. Busy, but effective. I don't consider we have a
"lack of control over..life", as you accuse, but I certainly read your frustration and sense of helplessness in your last post.

You say, "free marketing has been devastating for me," while my experience has been exactly the opposite. Change has been our best ally.

Can we learn from each other, wmoebis? More important, what have we learned from each other ?

Parsley