Railways want farmers to put the free in their enterprise – again
(November 26, 2016) The latest news is the railways want somebody, anybody, to give them new grain hopper cars. Prairie farmers with unimpaired memories may be forgiven for having a sense of been there, done that. In recent days Cargill has been touring some western farmers around its Vancouver terminal. They’ve been fed a steady drip of anxiety about how old the hopper car fleet is and...
Read More2015 – The year we cut off ideology
(January 13, 2016) Over the past year Canadians cut off a number of things, most notable of which were neo-conservative governments in Ottawa and Alberta. For some the shell shock has hardly worn off. 2015 also marks four years since the Harper administration created mighty and lasting grudges on the prairies by killing the Canadian Wheat Board in an undemocratic and legally dubious process. At...
Read MoreOttawa has farm groups chasing their own tails
by admin on Oct 14, 2014 in News Release
NEWS RELEASE October 14, 2014 Ottawa has farm groups chasing their own tails with transportation consultations (Pelly, Saskatchewan) Ottawa’s latest consultation on grain transportation appears to have farm groups chasing their own tails while ignoring the real culprits in the grain marketing debacle observed Kyle Korneychuk spokesperson for the non-partisan Canadian Wheat Board...
Read MoreSupreme Court rules in favour of shippers
but farmers still captive (July 22, 2014) On the face of it the recent Supreme Court of Canada ruling that shippers have the right to appeal to the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) on things like fuel surcharges imposed by railways on existing contracts might seem like good news for farmers. An Ottawa based transportation lawyer is quoted as saying the decision upholds the 2008 Canada...
Read MoreRitz still sees positives while farmers lose money
“The Canadian Wheat Board is dead but CWB, its government-owned, open-market successor, is still a lightning rod for controversy.” – Manitoba Cooperator Last week Minister Ritz was quoted in the Manitoba Cooperator claiming killing the single desk Canadian Wheat Board is having a positive impact across the prairies. He is starting to sound like one of those 1960’s “Chatty...
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