WTO

[TOM4CWB]

Canada rejects EU offer;

"Canada is very disappointed in the EU proposal and feels significantly more is needed to move the negotiations forward," Trade Minister Jim Peterson and Ag Minister Andy Mitchell said in a statement. "It does not go nearly far enough with regards to providing market access and reducing trade distorting subsidies, while going much too far on state trading enterprises."

Suck it up boys... this is much better than for us than what we have now!

Charlie... what do you and yours think of this offer?

[charliep]

Will leave for discussion.

Only comments is that Canada has to bring something to the negotiating table to be relevant to the process. What is important is what is being offered in private/done versus what is being said.

What should Canada be willing to offer in the process?

[agstar77]

Canada has given up everything it can afford to give and received very little in return. EC and U.S. negotiators are just going through the motions, no one is really serious in wanting to reduce subsidies. They really don't care. They won't care until there is some major food crisis where europeans or americans are starving. Until we come to terms with this we are wasting our efforts to appease them. You might as well be Chamberlain appeasing Germany before the second world war, you will be just as successful. Much as I hate to say it, we will have to limit our production, perhaps by land banks or conservation reserves, until a major crisis occurs. Right now ag aid programs are only allowing farmers to slowly die producing food below cost for fat consumers.

[shelka]

As long as farmers buy inputs at retail prices and sell product at wholesale prices, the industry is doomed to fail in the long run. Producers of ag commodities can't pass along increases in inputs like other sectors.

[wd9]

shelka, would producers be better off utilizing a margin as opposed to the markets as we have now?

[wd9]

Well at least take a stab at it...