RALPHIE G., TREES AND WHEAT

[TOM4CWB]

What do Ralph Goodale, trees and wheat have in common?

Unfortunately for western Canada, far too much!

Ralph Goodale last week told “designated area” wheat growers that they should start growing trees.

Now lets have a look at what this means.

The US just slapped a 19% tariff on softwood lumber, and guess who has millions of acres of softwood lumber?

The “designated area” of course!

The people of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba have some of the most productive forests in the world, and they are even owned co-operatively by our provincial governments.

Now why is Ralphie G. saying grow trees?

I think it is the politically correct thing to say these days, with green house gasses and all.

Ralph Goodale is also the Minister Responsible for trees.(Natural Resourses)

Now in Alberta woodlots are not even considered farming, good idea to get rid of more of us whining farmers, turn us into commercial woodlot owners so we can compete with cheap “subsidised” softwood lumber derived from our government owned woodlots.

Now if softwood lumber was handled sooooo well, a 19% US tariff, and our Minister Responsible did nothing to stop the American pillaging of our forests, what hope do we have in stopping the upcoming ITC wheat investigation?

Why did the Canadian Governments not make a deal to politically solve this softwood lumber problem? Wouldn’t it have been better to have put 19% more in our provincial treasuries, and not give it to the US Government?

Now what will happen with wheat?

The CWB is acting like they own “designated area” wheat and barley from the field to the plate, and the US rightly believes that the CWB (Canadian Government) controls the prices of these grain products.

The Canadian Government expropriates our Wheat and barley at 60-75% of market value, and then uses the residual unpaid balance in a “pool” slush fund to subsidise sales into the US or International Marketplace with no accountable process to the “designated area” grain growers who grew this grain.

With farmers complaining every day that we are not even getting the cost of production for our wheat and barley, will the US ITC not be on high moral ground if they slap a tariff on our wheat and barley?

I sure hope our Minister Responsible for the CWB is showing more leadership in the Wheat ITC investigation than he did in the softwood lumber dispute!!!

And then he has the audacity, after he was just responsible for doing nothing to resolve the softwood lumber issue, to tell us to grow something else he is responsible for wrecking?

Does he really think we are stupid?

What chance do we have of resolving our wheat trade issues with the US with this Minister who is not being responsible for anything?

I feel like a tree that had a pack of dogs pass by!!!

[trentk]

Tom, I agree with you regarding the absurd statements released by Ralph and also by our Van Clief.

I am really getting mixed signal on what to grow on my farm near Eatonia. I started out growing the CWB grains, couldn't cash-flow the operation despite working off the farm full-time and with great subsidization from my parents. Two years of that and I added pulse crops. The farm started cash-flowing itself. Imagine that. Year three. No board grains period. Not a bushel of durum grown in durum country; but everything but CWB grains. Since then I have experimented with HRSW and Durum but have now excluded them from the rotation. Summerfallow is also virtually excluded from the operation also much to the dismay of V.C. I would have probably been out of farming 4 years without my stubble crops, however, I must add it is really bitting me in the ass this year. This tree thing sounds interesting, so do dryland potatoes. I am pretty sure than I couldn't grow a tree or spud here to save my life. However, than being said maybe the CWB would take over the potatoe and lumber marketing for us and continue leading us the promise land.

Not much makes me more upset when I here of US corn coming into Canada competing with my Barley and Triticale. If the border is open I believe it should be open both ways not only one.

I won't discount any of the employees of the CWB as I have many friends working there. These people are some of the most intelligent people I know and have great respect for them. But the system does not work for the majority of producers especially ones starting out from scratch like myself. The restrictions the CWB imposes on new entrances into the grain industry is incredible.

I firmly believe that unless the system changes the grain industry will be finished. Another 10 years of the status quo and you can stick fork in the grain industry because it is done.

Trent

[ianben]

Hi Tom
This is such a small world now!!

We have had a program for taking arable land for trees for the last 5/6 years.

Definatly a vote winner and gets rid of whining farmers.

Even politicians monitor each others ideas.

Been quite an uptake locally.
We can either plant the trees on our own land and are helped for the first few years.
Or sell the land to the Mersey forest, a bit like your prov. government I suppose, and they plant and own the trees and also allow public access.

Both schemmes are being taken up.
One neighbour has planted 150acres on his own and plans to turn the rest of his farm into a golf course. Others retiring or leaving the industry have taken the money, I suppose it helps stabilize the land market.

Someone said farmers are only land speculators anyway.

Unless we stop competing and try to organize OURSELVES, we must jump through the hoops our governments provide.

Perhaps you had better cancel that tractor and buy a chain saw!!!!

Regards Ian

[TOM4CWB]

Trent,

I am in agreement with what you say.

A person has to consider that these notions being floated are more than suttle hints, stop complaining, or get out of growing grain.

Talk about killing the goose that lays the golden egg.

With out a stable grain industry, the Industialised Agriculture sector as a whole is not sustainable.

But I guess Canada is rich enough that we can just buy our grain somewhere else.

I agree there are hard working people at the CWB, that has never been my problem.

My problem is that the CWB system itself is really flawed, and things CWB workers may be doing in good faith, are actually counter productive to being tied in and closer to my customer.

Further the CWB legislation does not make working for "designated area" grain farmers its focus.

Controling stocks inside Canada, which is part of selling grain in an "orderly manner" is the reason for the CWB.

Nothing I have said means that the CWB staff are not doing what the legislation tells them to do, especially in the way Ralphie G. and Jeanie C. want things run.

Ian,

I have no problem in principal with planting trees, I rather like them myself.

As a food producer trying to feed a hungry world, this is a very frustrating way to live.

Everyone wants to eat, and expect their food to be at the grocery store when they go to pick it up.

I suspect no one that really "maters" in the political scheme will ever starve, so obviously farmers are expendable?

[Muttley]

Diversify that's what the powers to be have been telling farmers to do for years. We started growing lentils,peas,canola,etc. Then look what happens everybody grows the product and the price is not as great do to the amount available.
Maybe some farmers are able to grow some trees but to have somebody like Ralph suggest this, shows complete stupidy on his part.
I'm sure that if farmers take his advice and diversify more by planting trees the gov't will try and take control and tell us that we can't sell them here or there and when we want to.
I can promise you one thing this farmer
will not be planting trees.