Farmcorp

[ianben]

Hi Adam
Thanks for the reply
I agree with your definition of happiness and the fact that farmers love to moan.
I too love to farm, and agree your last paragragh is the only way to survive at present.
It is the millions of independant decsions that is part of the problem
I know the market is over supplied in all comodities but do I reduce production.
No! As an individual in order to survive
I have to produce more.
Modern 21st century marketing always means I can see a profit in using fert. chem. or buying some new machine.
So we all go for all out production and rely on Mother Nature or government to regulate us.

I do not agree we are unique.
Other businesses have problems with the
weather. I have given examples before and they manage them.

You say we cannot guarantee anything, from one year to the next, and I must agree with that. I know we will never control nature and should not even try.

But if FARMERS stored grain in times of plenty, it is just like oil it does not deteriorate some good seeds where found in the pyramids.
Until they had say one whole years production in the bin.
Then we could guarantee supply.Also we would have an insurance for those nasty freeks of nature.
We would be able to turn the taps on or off by aiming to REPLACE what we had sold.
I think if you look at the way modern businesses work you will see this is how they operate.
Look at our suppliers.
They hardly ever run short a chemical even if we only use a lot once every 5yrs.
I dont believe it should cost us. We just need to trust one another and realise we can all benifit from modern 21st century marketing.
Regards Ian

[chas]

Adam: You know I'm one happy farmer. There is no better way to live it. I agree with your last paragraph on the way it is and that hasn't been all bad or we would not be here discussing farming. But I also live by my first paragraph where thought and action might create a better farming world.
Parsley: you are always enlighting me on past history. I don't like government interference or subsidizes because it goes against my good farm management capabilities but I do beleive in cooperation with other farmers to create a better price. Don't complain or be negative with the system we have without a vision to where we should be going. Talk to me about something other than how good the prices are in the USA.
Your dandelion wine taster and chicken herder Chas.

[TOM4CWB]

Chas,

I don't think there is anything magic about US prices!

However, the US is the most stable, reliable, cost concious, rewarding market on the planet because they understand value and respect the ownership of property.

I hope that we will learn a few things from the US, cause if we learn respect for each other and being responsible for our own destiny, then we will be a much richer community out west here!

Good to see you still have spirit and don't give up easy Chas!

[parsley]

This account of theFarmcorp meeting is what was told to me, Ianben. I'm making good my promise, but boy was this a merry-go-round to get this information!

There was a Farmcorp Meeting held in Moosomin, Saskatchewan the end of March, in the Elk's Hall. Farmcorp wants to basically set up and operate like OPEC. They want to have included farmers from the main wheat producing countries....Argentina, Australia, Canada, Usa and Europe (Germany and England mainly). They want 70Million tonnes signed up so they can force the price of wheat up. Essentially, witholding at the farmgate.

No government involvement. only farmer-owned. They are asking for $6.50 American for wheat based at port in Mexico. That translates into $10.00 Canadian. Mark Seradin(spelling?) is the Marketing Director and made the presentation. He is trying to change the "Peasant Farm Syndrome" that is ingrained in farmers...the attitude that we have to 'take what they give us'.

They are offering shares in Farmcorp. All Class A shares are all sold. But they are offering Class B shares. They are voting shares and you buy minimum $200.00 worth of shares...Canadian .

Farmcorp gets $0.05/bushel out of all grain.....all towards administraion expenses. They have a target of 10 Million bushels.
Wheat is the only commodity.

Farmers in Montans have been quite receptive to it. France said go and get your own farmers on side first. They will hit Argentina and Australia next.

The folks attending thought the idea has some potential. There was a very poor turnout.

That's it
Parsley