Alberta Agriculture Meetings - "Capturing Wheat and Barley Market Opportunities"

[Burbert]

Yeah and the Crow was a good thing too.
Its destruction lead to many, many, many
more value added ops here in Comedia.
REALITY CHECK NONE. HTP elevators and 100
car spots were the next leap ta help
framers. REALITY CHECK NO HELP FOR
FRAMERS. Now the freedom to market grain
act. REALITY CHECK, this time framers
will really, really, really get their
monies worth...... LOL

[FarmRanger]

Compare the size of the crushing industry in western Canada to what it was before the end of the crow. Tripled, or more.

At the same time there has been no new durum processing pasta plants, no expansion of wheat milling in western Canada.

Now what could the difference have been between canola and wheat? Try asking the farmers who tryed to make a value added durum processing facility for <s>their own durum,</s> scratch that, the CWB's legislated durum.

[bucket]

wilagro

Here is some questions for you. The cwb is currently allowing farmers to cancel their durum contracts on the 11/12 crop year.

A. What does that tell you?

B. Why didn't the cwb roll them into new contracts with the new cwb and ensure the volume? They must have had the sales as they accepted 100% for the current crop year.

[charliep]

A focus of the meetings will be to get farmers to focus their efforts and decision making on the future - not the past. The way wheat and barley will be marketed to domestic food processors and export markets is changing August 1. The CWB alternative will still be there with farmer use of their services and value to the whole supply chain the ultimate determination of their survival. The CWB has a strong relationship with customers and a loyal farm base.

[charliep]

The CWB has experimented with many programs including shorter pooling periods (feed barley), cash plus (malt barley), all the producers payment options (wheat/durum), cash pricing with profits deposited in the contingency fund (feed barley). What they need initially is a mechanism to get farms to commit grain to them.

Wilagro - Your coulda, shoulda, woulda might have been governance, financing and business structure. Still room to do things here. It might also be an organization with elements of the canola council and pulse canada.

[craig]

Could be wrong but meetings slated for
areas that had a stronger board support.
Lacking meetings along the central
corridor. we do need to be thinking about
changes happening.

[charliep]

The team organizing tried to find central locations that allowed most farmers access with a 90 minute drive to one of the meetings. Pushing along the highway 21 corrider accomplished this better than staying along highway 2. At the end of the day, a decision that was made.