Delegation On to Ottawa
(November 14, 2011) Today a delegation of 24 grain farmers and academics from across the west are travelling to Ottawa to meet with Senators, their staff, and others to inform them how proposed legislation to remove farmer control of the Canadian Wheat Board and eliminate its single desk marketing authority will affect them and their communities. The group will also stand with their elected CWB Directors at a news conference scheduled for the morning of November 15th.
“I’m very pleased we have a delegation with a wide range of experience, age, and farm backgrounds” said Bill Gehl, chairperson of the Canadian Wheat Board Alliance. “We have farmers here who represent everything from feed barley producers who seldom have permit books, to farmers who invested in producer car loading and short line railways, and mega-farm operations raising durum and wheat. They all want to make sure the Senators understand the negative implications of this piece of legislation for their farming operations.”
Gehl pointed out several young farmers and academics are also a part of the delegation. “These people are our future and they know from experience and study that our Wheat Board is still critical for maintaining western Canada’s niche position as the globe’s producer of the highest quality grain in the world.”
Gehl noted many Senators may not be aware of the implications for urban Canadians and local food quality if the proposed legislation is passed. “We already know processors make use of the lowest cost foreign feed stocks and supplements for cattle feeding, and it is clear the same thing will happen with human food once our Wheat Board is no longer there to ensure domestic processors have equitable access to our high quality wheat and barley.”
Gehl went on to say “we have a delegation which can provide an on-the-ground perspective untainted by the biases of private grain brokers who see this as an opportunity to make more commissions, and Astroturf groups like the Grain Growers of Canada who claim more members than there are grain farmers in western Canada.”
Gehl concluded by observing “we have a farmer controlled democracy at our Canadian Wheat Board. We will be asking the Senators to hear from farmers across the west by conducting hearings of the Senate Standing Committee on Agriculture and Forestry into this legislation which will over-throw our elected CWB Directors and give our $6 billion dollar a year organization to the five giant multinational corporations which control the rest of the planet’s grain.”
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Harper wasting taxpayer money promoting nationalization of CWB
(Regina) The Canadian Wheat Board Alliance estimates a full colour leaflet featuring two men and a boy promoting Harper’s decision to destroy our Canadian Wheat Board cost tax payers over $100,000.00. The heavy cardstock leaflet delivered across western Canada promoted Conservative legislation which would remove democratic control of wheat and barley sales from Canadian farmers and give it to the five giant foreign corporations which control the balance of the planet’s grain.
According to Canada Post rates, postage alone would be $80,000.00. This is in addition to an undetermined amount for printing and handling.
“Government publications that promote a political position are called “propaganda” and tax payers should not have to fund them,” said Bill Gehl, chairperson of the Canadian Wheat Board Alliance. “This action is especially hypocritical when the Harper Conservatives are attacking our elected CWB Directors for defending our farmers’ economic interests by trying to stop what amounts to the nationalization and seizure of our grain marketing corporation, the Canadian Wheat Board.”
The bilingual card with the Government of Canada logo prominently displayed left the impression it was an official information circular. However it only repeated discredited slogans from defeated candidates for Directorships on the Canadian Wheat Board. Calling the 800 number on the bottom of the leaflet last week elicited confusion from staff and eventually a referral to another number for Agriculture Canada.
Gehl went on to note that “propaganda publications do much more than misuse and waste tax payer money. They damage the credibility of the government itself by politicizing the civil service. This damages its ability to provide objective information which hurts all Canadians.”
Gehl concluded by saying “this leaflet is certainly a concise listing of the myths about our Wheat Board promoted by Canada’s foreign trade rivals, but these are all things which farmers have heard before and clearly rejected by voting to keep our CWB in a plebiscite this summer. Mr. Harper’s bullying tactics should give all Canadians cause for concern well beyond the waste of taxpayer money on propaganda efforts” Gehl concluded.
Good riddance to non-performing Directors
November 4, 2011 – News Release
I was pleasantly surprised to see both Henry Vos and Jeff Nielson resign from their Wheat Board Directorships” Bill Gehl, chairperson of the Canadian Wheat Board Alliance said. “It was always puzzling that they ran for a Board position on a platform of giving away our CWB’s principle asset, the single desk and could still have a clear conscience about signing their oath of office. It is rather like a board member of the grain handling company Viterra contending the company should give away its chain of grain elevators.“
Opponents of the single desk have consistently made CWB Directors elections into referenda on keeping the single desk and farmers have rejected them 80% of the time. For example, according to the Myers Norris Penny vote count, Mr. Vos won by only 31 votes last year. This summer almost two-thirds of grain farmers voted in a plebiscite to keep the single desk.
Gehl went on to observe “an intelligent and principled critic of any organization is the best friend that organization can have, and over the years the farmer elected directors have responded to concerns by implementing pricing and payment options which allow business flexibility to farmers while still preserving the single desk.”
“The resignation of the two directors makes it appear they were simply there to destroy our CWB’s reputation and they were already on record as being opposed to its principle asset, the single desk. Perhaps they hope Mr. Harper will do their dirty work for them so they can evade personal responsibility for the consequences. It seems obvious they did not discharge their fiduciary duties to the farmers who own and fund our Wheat Board, so good riddance to them” Gehl said.
He concluded by saying “last night Mr. Harper’s rubber stamp Commons Legislative Committee moved the process along without addressing any of the substantial concerns about destroying our CWB. They have endorsed what amounts to the nationalization of a farmer owned, financed, and directed corporation, and the negative repercussions will resonate in the west for decades to come. We support the farmer-elected directors of the Canadian Wheat Board and their defence of our farmer-owned company against this seizure by the Federal Government. Unlike the two directors who resigned, they are fulfilling their fiduciary duties to our organization.”
End of Wheat Board means end of local food
(Winnipeg, Oct. 31, 2011) Speaking to several hundred farmers and others who attended a rally in front of the Canadian Wheat Board building in downtown Winnipeg on Friday, Bill Gehl, a Saskatchewan farmer and chairperson of the non-partisan farm group the Canadian Wheat Board Alliance (CWBA) said “local food advocates should be concerned about the end of the Canadian Wheat Board.”
Gehl went on to explain “today Canadians can be confident that the grain in all the bread, pasta, and most of the beer they consume is still grown by Canadian farmers. However, if Harper succeeds in killing our Wheat Board, private corporations will then control our basic food stocks and will simply buy the cheapest grain they can from any source.”
A board member of the Western Grains Research Foundation, Mr. Gehl was speaking from his experience growing durum wheat for pasta and hard red spring wheats for bread. “With the Wheat Board millers and other food processors must come to our farmer-run Board to source Canadian grain” Gehl explained.
Wheat Board respects customer opposition to genetically modified grain
“Our Wheat Board has built its reputation on providing the highest quality grain to customer specifications. That is why the introduction of genetically modified wheat into western Canada was halted a few years ago. Our customers in Canada and around the world told us they did not want it. We know that with the end of the Australian Wheat Board two years ago, agro-chemical companies are now actively promoting genetically modified bread wheat to Australian grain farmers.”
Equitable treatment for smaller domestic processors lost
“Our Board also has a policy of treating all processors equitably so smaller domestic processors are not disadvantaged by their size. Without the Board smaller processors will be forced to seek the cheapest grains to offset size differentials and the ability of their larger competitors to obtain lower bulk pricing from private grain brokers. This means lower prices for farmers and lower quality for consumers.”
The human feedlot: lowest quality grain for human consumption without the Wheat Board
“In Canada we have already seen how this works with non-board animal feed grains. Whenever the domestic price of Canadian feed grain moves up, the big cattle feedlots start to import waste feed stocks of distiller’s grain including genetically modified corn from elsewhere. Without the Wheat Board human food processors will be free to import lower quality grains from the United States and Eurasia which are not subject to our high quality standards and blend them with local grain. These foreign grains are not grown from our own publically funded and developed varieties and many of them are grown in the heavily polluted lands surrounding the Chernobyl nuclear plant in the heart of Eurasia’s wheat belt. A lot of Europe’s grain is cheap because it is heavily infested with fungal diseases. In fact a lot of Canadian durum wheat now goes into Europe to blend off fusarium infected local durum. Without the Wheat Board this trade could well be reversed.”
Quality control becomes meaningless
Gehl warned: “our quality control system becomes meaningless when commercial interests are free to source grain from anywhere in the world to blend into our food stuffs. We have already seen how fragile our food system is when people were dying from contaminated meat a few years ago and our Minister of Agriculture made jokes about it.” Gehl concluded by saying: “aside from giving farmers a greater share of the food dollar, our Wheat Board puts good locally grown food on the table for all Canadians.”
Farmers support CWB legal action
(Regina) The Farmers of the CWBA support the legal action by the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) to stop the Harper administration’s illegal theft of their organization and the illegal expropriation of the benefits provided by our CWB to western farmers.
“We are very pleased our elected directors are taking their duties to us seriously and defending our democratic right to manage our own marketing system,” Bill Gehl, chair person of the Canadian Wheat Board Alliance said. “The majority of grain farmers see Minister Ritz’s legislation to kill our Board as an illegal procedure designed to take away our legal right to have a vote on any changes to our Board and we are all very pleased our Wheat Board is taking legal action.”
Gehl went on to say “Not only is this an illegal procedure, it amounts to a violation of our property rights by illegally expropriating the extra dollars the Wheat Board generates and returns to farmers. Everyone understands the importance of brands and trademarks in marketing. Yet Ritz’s draconian legislation also expropriates the brand value of the high quality grains we have developed and which have little value to us without the sophisticated marketing system which delivers that high quality to customers and returns the value to farmers. This aspect of our Canadian Wheat Board marketing system is unique in the world and creates our market niche of serving high end, high value customers and having farm producers, rather than company shareholders, receive the extra revenue.”
“For urban people if Ritz succeeds in killing our Wheat Board, they can no longer have confidence that the grain in all the bread, pasta, and most of the beer they consume is grown by Canadian farmers under strict quality controlled conditions. The private corporations to which Ritz intends to give control of our basic food stocks will have no economic incentives to capitalize on using our high quality grains in Canadian food processing.”
Ken Larsen, a CWBA member from Alberta, observed “over-throwing a democratically elected farmer-Board of Directors after it has been endorsed by a farmer plebiscite and replacing them with government appointees is a giant step away from basic democratic principles. This part of the legislation establishes a terrible precedent with grim implications for all Canadians.”
Farmers support Commons motion to recognize their democratic rights
(Regina) “I’m sure the majority of farmers would support the motion proposed by the Member for Churchill, Niki Ashton, in the House of Commons today calling for the Government to let farmers decide the fate of the Canadian Wheat Board and other marketing boards,” remarked Bill Gehl, chairperson of the Canadian Wheat Board Alliance, a non-partisan group of farmers from across the prairies.
“This is really about the basic democratic principle that the people affected by a decision should have a democratic say in that decision and that is what this motion recognizes” observed Gehl.
“The law says we should have a vote and this summer farmers held a plebiscite which showed the majority want to keep our Wheat Board, yet Ottawa is not listening. I hope all members of Parliament will support this motion to give us back our democratic rights” Gehl concluded.
Ms. Ashton’s motion reads:
That, in the opinion of the House, farmers have a democratic right to determine the future of their own supply management tools and marketing boards; and recognizing this right, the House calls on the government to set aside its legislation abolishing the Canada Wheat Board (CWB) single desk and to conduct a full and free vote by all current members of the CWB to determine their wishes, and calls on the government to agree to honour the outcome of that democratic process.
FARMERS STAND IN FRONT OF HARPER’S TRAIN
Friends of the Canadian Wheat Board
Farmer Elected CWB Director stands for democracy
Farmer members of the Battle River Railway Cooperative take time out from loading producer cars to send a message to Ottawa
Saskatchewan farmers rally
(Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and Alliance, Alberta)
Today farmers in Saskatchewan and Alberta stood in front of Harper’s train to kill the Canadian Wheat Board.
Farmers loading producer grain cars on the farmer owned Battle River Railway in central Alberta held up “Stop Harper” signs and “Respect Farmers, Respect our Vote” signs to indicate their displeasure with Ottawa’s plans to end the single desk of the Canadian Wheat Board.
Howard Vincett, a Galahad, Alberta farmer and a Board member of the new generation cooperative observed “there is no question our cooperative will be badly hurt by the end of the Wheat Board. Our community has invested almost 10 million dollars and countless hours of work and all that is now going to be lost without the Wheat Board. Harper needs to respect our farmer vote to keep the Wheat Board and withdraw this legislation.”
Sask Rally to the tracks
In Colonsay, Saskatchewan, just south of Saskatoon, Bill Gehl, chairperson of the Canadian Wheat Board Alliance joined several dozen farmers to echo the concerns expressed in Alberta. “This legislation will not put one extra dime in the pockets of western Canadian grain farmers, but it will destroy the short line railways, farmer owned terminals and producer car loading facilities we have spent the past twenty years building.”
A message for Ottawa from Alberta
“Terry Boehm, president of the National Farmers Union went on to say “the fact Minister Ritz is admitting that public money will have to be spent to keep the port of Churchill alive if the CWB is destroyed certainly shows that this is simply an act of vandalism against western Canada’s farmers in the name of ideology.”
Saskatchewan farmers take a stand
In Manitoba, Andrew Dennis, a member of the Friends of the Canadian Wheat Board which has launched legal action said “the invoking of closure in Parliament reinforces our belief that Harper’s legislation is illegal and we are confident the courts will find in our favour.”
Bill Gehl concluded by saying “Harper and Ritz are simply wrong to say they have a mandate to end the Wheat Board. We are the majority and in every Wheat Board Directors election and plebiscite held for farmers the message has been the same. Keep your hands off our Wheat Board. We need the help of all Canadians to oppose this attack on farmers and the democratic process.”
Alberta farmers say "Stop Harper" - respect our vote
Loading producer cars
Click on thumbnails for larger views
Saskatchewan farmers march to rally point
ATTEND AN IMPORTANT PROTEST OCTOBER 21
Friends of the Canadian Wheat Board
CALL TO ACTION October 19, 2011
BUILD A GROWING RESISTANCE TO HARPER’S ATTACK ON THE CWB:
ATTEND AN IMPORTANT PROTEST FRIDAY, OCTOBER 21
Please plan to attend a demonstration in support of a strong CWB, and in opposition to the high-handed, anti-democratic actions of the Harper government.
The demonstration will take place:
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2011
11:00 AM
At a rail crossing South of Highway 16,
Just East of the Town of Colonsay.
Farmers are asked to meet in Terry Boehm’s yard before 10:30. Phone the organizers below for directions to the yard.
NFU President Terry Boehm will host a lunch and social after the event.
The NFU, Friends of the CWB and the CWB Alliance urge all farmers who support a strong, effective Wheat Board to attend and to help build a growing resistance that can counter the Harper government’s efforts to destroy the CWB.
Friday’s protest near Colonsay will be the first in a series of expanding actions that will take place across the prairies. Please watch for additional notices of actions in Manitoba and Alberta.
And please contact friends, family, and neighbours and ask them to participate in this action and to watch for future actions in their area.
For more information, please contact:
Terry Boehm, NFU President: (306) 255 – 2880
Bill Gehl, Canadian Wheat Board Alliance: (306) 537 – 3899
Kevin Wipf, NFU Executive Director: (306) 652 – 9465
Darrin Qualman, Acting Organizer: (306) 652 – 9465
Ottawa cancelling democracy and walking over farmers
(Regina) Yesterday Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz tabled Legislation which includes dismissing the farmer-elected Board of Directors of the Canadian Wheat Board. “Our membership is completely disgusted with the Harper administration’s actions” stated Bill Gehl, chairperson of the Canadian Wheat Board Alliance.
“Prime Minister Harper has now said twice that he would ‘walk over’ or drive over farmers who want to keep our Wheat Board. It appears his administration is starting with our elected representatives” Gehl observed.
“Those directors are farmers who are directly and transparently elected by their neighbours to run our Wheat Board. We benefit from the Board and we pay its costs. No matter how you spin it, this is a step away from democracy and the rule of law” warned Gehl.
“It is very troubling that Minister Ritz and Prime Minister Harper have chosen to ignore the consistent democratic votes by farmers in favour of keeping the Wheat Board’s single desk. Farmers have always chosen to work together democratically and their votes should be respected” said Gehl.
“Even more ominous are rumours the Harper administration intends to avoid Agriculture Committee hearings and fast track this bill through the unusual use of a Legislative Committee hearing process. This is inappropriate because it will restrict Parliament’s right to examine this Legislation and to hear from those most affected: the farmers of western Canada” explained Gehl.
“People around the world know it is simply wrong for a government to remove hard-won democratic rights from its citizens. Cancelling democracy for western Canadian farmers to end our Wheat Board is a bullying tactic of the worst sort. We are asking for the help of all Canadians to oppose this attack on farmers and the democratic process” concluded Gehl.
Harper and Ritz are users and abusers of western voters
(Regina) The farmers of the Canadian Wheat Board Alliance condemn the Harper Government’s introduction of legislation to kill the Canadian Wheat Board.
“The introduction of this legislation is built on a collection of myths by an undemocratic and bullying administration,” said Bill Gehl, chairperson of the CWBA.
At a widely quoted election forum in Minnedosa, Manitoba, Minister Ritz said his party “respects the vote” of farmers who support the single desk and suggested there would not be any attempt to dismantle the Canadian Wheat Board unless a majority of producers vote for it. Ritz went on to say “until farmers make that change, I’m not prepared to work arbitrarily. They are absolutely right to believe in democracy. I do, too.”
“Minister Ritz knows very well that farmers took him at his word on the Wheat Board issue, and he and Mr. Harper used farmers’ trust to stab us in the back” Gehl said.
Gehl went on to observe that “Minister Ritz has moved from misleading farmers to abusing the voters of western Canada by claiming the Federal election results gave him the mandate to end the CWB. Since farmers are only 2% of the population spread over 57 western ridings, claiming the Conservative Party has a mandate from farmers to change the Canadian Wheat Board is ridiculous and I think most urban voters agree that farmers should decide this issue, not Ottawa.”
Gehl went on to say “the farmer plebiscite held this summer shows that nearly two thirds of farmers support our Wheat Board’s single desk marketing system and Minister Ritz has reinforced his contempt for democracy by ignoring our vote” Gehl said.
“I know the majority of farmers oppose the legislation. It is time for the Harper government to stop abusing farmers, withdraw this legislation, and leave us alone to run our Wheat Board” concluded Gehl.
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Video link
