Grading of all Wheat the Great Canadian SCAM!!!

[lnewman]

Good topic SF3. It's a mess here in Southern AB . We have no movement. The #2 I delivered 3
weeks ago is now a feed. Elevator managers are at there wits end, they have no direction from
the CWB on grading or movement. It's like a secret. All the managers can do is call it all feed.
What worries me most if we get a pro choice board of directors, the gov't won't back it. 20
years ago I received my first CWB cheque, I thought 5 -10 year max and they will be gone.
Now I think we are no closer today than 20 years ago. Screw the CWB.

[Daylate]

And if you think your business is affected on the % board grains you grow and isn't a big consern to you, think again, competition is competition. Not just directly because in our rotation were planting less board grain and more oilseed and pulse but also in shipment.
these vessels sitting that the farmers are paying for is back logging ports with cars, side rails and within 4 weeks i have been told by inland and port terminals today that its going to cripple movement of all grains through country elevators.
Remember the crush plants only have to be competitive with export value, if our glorified bin and auger system that we call elevator company's cant ship they wont be offering attractive basis'. and either will crushers.
Our system is s$#t.
After 75 years you think the CWB would have a better handle on shipping. I always thought they should keep their hands out of marketing and at the most organize on shipments and movement, but now i hope the CWB will be only a memory for me.
Message to all voters in District 7, if you have not woken up in a cold sweat within the last year wondering if it was to soon or to late, too much or not enough, to shallow,or to deep, to hot or to cold, to WET or to dry then stay the f$%k off the voters list

[mbratrud]

I can’t say I disagree with the theme here but some of the comments directed towards industry people is a bit slanderous

Read the Great Grain Robbery and you will be reminded why the CGC is relevant. Has it gotten a bit carried away absolutely? Lets change their mandate not get rid of them.

[SASKFARMER3]

Here is what I ended up doing. Signed on for A with our #3 then called all my feed according to gospel of the CWB a three and signed up. If they cant get their shit together I start taking trucks down to US either as very dirty Canola or something. Clean on farm down their and make some money for a change. Hey have to look after number one not CWB. They screwed us in 2004 with grades but that year it was the buy back and Grain companys taking grain to USA. $1.79 in Canora and turn into $5 in ND and Minnesota pay the CWB a little check wink wink.

[mbratrud]

Daylate, There is no way our transportation issues might have started off on the wrong foot due to the harvest from hell is there? Call me the devils advocate... Just an observation.

If we must work within in a regulated Grain There are many things flawed about the CWB and anyone who knows me including those in the CWB, know there are 2 things I really hate about our grain system in Canada.

1. Wheat grading, although I understand the theory that we want to sell high quality wheat into special markets for a premium. I think more often we just end up competing with DNS and we don’t get the premium we intended. So for the most part I am not convinced that we see value for our grading system.
2. Is price pooling, it sends poor pricing signals, is a poor indicator of what the market wants thus creating issues with transportation. Mostly it creates a lack of accountability.
These two issues are responsible for many of the issues in this thread in my mind.

One of the things I do believe the CWB helps with is shipping costs, orderly transportation, and without price pooling there SHOULD be value in a single desk.
Get rid of the price pooling, and tweak our grading system and I think we would make a major step forward in responding to market conditions.
I would be curious to know what percentage of Wheat sales actually extract a premium due to our grading system, vs what just ends up in the mainstream competing against Dark Northern Spring. My guess the premium Markets could be satisfied though IP contracts that could have more stringent grading parameters.
Oh well that’s my verbal vomit for the day.

On a happy note this weather is awesome!

[charliep]

You are right the fall has not been easy but the CWB had a lot of old crop inventory in the system.

My favorite expression from my old days at a grain company is "never sell out of an empty wagon" - was reference to a grain trader who sold flax in a short market to the displeasure of his boss.

The CWB needed to ensure what is in the grain handling system matchs up with their sales as they cross between crop years. The idea of plugging the system with stuff that ain't moving doesn't cut it anymore - even when crossing over crop years. Either leave grain on farms that is slow movement or a have a program that sees it sold and moved out to customers within a reasonable amount of time. To highlight, the issue with wheat is multiple classes, grades and protein.

[ado089]

mbratrud,

We're living the great grain roberry this year. I've yet to see a sample of wheat that won't make fine flour. I will bet my bottom dollar 70-80% of wheat is bought as 3 or lower and 70-80% is either milled domesticaly or leaves the country on a 2 or higer boat. It's not slander if it's true, it's a fact.

[parsley]

"mbratrud,
"value in a single desk."

Would you care to elaborate on this little phrase? Pars

[mbratrud]

Ahhh I’ve waded into haven’t I... Pars If I am the only guy in town with an autographed Wayne Gretzkey Rookie Card It should be worth more when I go to sell it than if there were 100 guys trying to sell the same thing. Now before you draw any conclusions about my market philosophy I have emphasised the word should. As a Free Marketer I would love the opportunity to be the only store in town. I just want to manage the store.

Conservatives had there chance to Change the powers of the CWB in 2 years ago right after Dion lost the last election and they didn’t. So who are we crying too really????

Short of a revolution that simply would turn out a couple thousand disorganized farmers, which look like special interest thugs that get thrown in jail. What can we do besides, pushing along the changes that make the system we have more effective until the day when Choice is embraced by the majority. (Words a Canadian should not have to say)

I guess my challenge to everyone is not just sling mud and spew out comments that are unfounded. Approach this differently. Put concrete solutions forward that are impenetrable and hard to argue and don’t just try to sell your message to other farmers we need to show the 35 million other Canadians that we have this system in Canada that fly’s in the face of everything we stand for.

I guess my point comes down to by simply just blaming the CWB for everything without substance to it undermines a legitimate movement.

I remember a comment an older farmer who has been a cornerstone of the Weyburn Inland Terminal said to me a few years ago. I was trying to convince a few CWB directors at a meeting that pretended that I had their ear, that the pooling system had to go and they needed to make major changes or they faced certain demise, at the hands of MY Conservative Government. This man who I respect deeply told me that I was very naive to assume that a promises made by politicians were ever going to be kept, and that change was not that simple and required work and constructive ideas. About 4 years later I realized he was right. It has to be a movement not a politician or a CWB director candidates promises. A movement starts when a message gets out that people can understand and it makes sense, and it’s something they can get behind. For change to happen with regards to the Board people have to be convinced there is a solution on the other side. Not simply what we have today isn’t working so let’s blow it up and hope for the best.

Humm.. Maybe I should change my nickname to Mr. Cynical. I guess these comments will eliminate the chance of me speaking at any more CWB events for FREE.

I know there are 1 or 2 guys out there anyway that agree with me.

[parsley]

Reading your obervations... yes, well.

It's rather like the 34 year old man from rural China who worked on our farm, and pointed to my electric stove and said, "What is this box, it it very unusual?" and I thought, "Where does one begin?"

To make any kind of meaningful change acceptable requires solid reasoning based upon a sound principle.

The basic principle that growing numbers of farmers believe in, that makes them want to change the CWB, is that ZERO farmers should be jailed for trying to sell what they grow.

Not just dairy monopoly, or fish monopoly, or wheat monopoly, but ANY single desk cannot be legitamized morally, by jailing ANY of the wealth-producers.


Those who try to sell economics as the basic principle for pushing change, (which is merely to capture a few more bucks), will entice few enthusiastic followers.

Is Farmer OneEye quite prepared to let the single desk concept chug along, as long as he gets a little more money, or some additional concession. He is for sale?

"If I am the only guy in town with an autographed Wayne Gretzkey Rookie Card It should be worth more when I go to sell it than if there were 100 guys trying to sell the same thing."

...I started to respond, but concluded the statement had not earned a reply.


The CWB elections are attracting asbout as much farmer excitement as a conference on Mens' PMS would muster:

Some the CWB directors advocate supply management, with them being one of the elite suppliers, and they will throw your mother and your father and your sister and your brother in jail for that opportunity. Nice partners, huh?

Some of the CWB directors "look the other way" as long as they get their per diems. Nice warbles, huh?

"Some of the Director farmers will concede to "tweaking" the CWB, bragging about a tiny concession to shutup the likes of bucket or fransisco, who know what the real issue is..... Marketing freedom. You'll send those directors re-election money, mbratrud?

A few of the new boys running for office are the slime who do not have the kahoonas to state what their principles are. They pretend they are choice marketers, but they don't want to say so, because they are willing to DECIEVE to win. They are not who they seem. Which means, they wouldn't know a bloody principle if they fell on it in broad daylight.

Re-read and re-read and re-read your comments for a few weeks, mbratrud, and with a little luck, you'll revise your view. Pars

[mbratrud]

Pars,

Humm... Foxes dressed like chickens huh?

Please show us the way to achieve change Pars. Lay out the road map! How can this be accomplished?

Oh ohh the task just got harder our government made another major shift to the left today.

You read my words again Pars over the next couple weeks. I don't expect you to change your mind, but you will maybe understand my point better.

I think we want the same things ultimately but choose to approach it different. I am willing to compromise and try new things in the interest of moving the ball forward, because frankly kicking and screaming isn't working.