Thoughts?

[blackpowder]

Found this quote.
The sooner farmers stop repeating the same actions and expecting different results, and hire professionals, the sooner agriculture will be recognized as its own entity rather than just “predominantly white males” with “greater than average incomes.” ?

I have vaguely suggested this concept in the past.
Compare dollars spent/produced by various industries and competitors.
and compare who is doing the lobbying.
I'm not doing the work but I believe we are very much behind others.
Modernization can't occur without a different outlook.
I can hear the uproar over any increase in fees if needed.
But consider the loss to the industry from accepting the century old status quo.
Nutrien chose Longview WA for it's infrastructure capacity. (somewhat related)
Thinking China loves our lack of sales reporting, kinda like USSR did in '72.
My close relate owns a successful govt liaison firm. He chuckles at agriculture.
Consider what happened to the Pools when ran by retired farmers without corporate management experience.

I feel we have been trained to bitch and blame instead of see and think.
I'm not discounting any current groups, but suggesting we need a better plan entirely.
We have little political weight due to our govt system and our location.
US growers groups might be an inaccurate comparison as they have a Senate, while our Dairy people have Quebec.
If only we knew how much LaFarge, Irving and SNC Lavalin to name a few, have really spent.
Is it high time to pull our head out? The young's beliefs will have roots in what we tell them.

[goalieguy847]

So heres the main problem.

Every single farmer would slit the other guys throat for a half section of number 1 dirt for 40$/ acre rent.

We may be the MOST unagreeable...fractured...neighbour hating group of people that Ive ever met.


We cant even agree which color combine is best ( hint.. theyre all awesome in their own right)
let alone on ag policy.

Plus.. In thinking this over... we are all individuals where MOST other large industries are alot more monopolized and do not have the member numbers that a " 1 farm group" would have.


Seriously.
Farmers effing haaaaaattteee eachother and its sad because we could be so so soooo powerful.
But instead.. greed and yield ( not profit per acre) have taken over the mental psyche of most farmers ( especcciiiaaalllyy those under 50)
i see it. You see it. We all see it.


If you Put 10 farmers in a room they would argue over the best way to climb a ladder.

Sad. But true.
Thats why lobbying for ag doesnt work. .

I mean really... tell me that the NFU doesnt have some GOOD policies. Are they not the largest ag lobbying group in canada???
but the vast majority of guys hate them because they support ( ed) policies to combat climate change ...but their stance on seed saving and farmer owned genetics is pretty... excellent.

Too many member... too many different crops... too many different areas.

I cant think of another lobbying group that would have our membership numbers ... or even come close really. ( other than unions)

[cropgrower]

Farmers individually are outstanding business people , as a group standing together to improve their lot they are a disaster

[farmaholic]

Being a white male is not a prerequisite to farming.
There are no barriers to entry other than needing a lot of capital... borrow some, leverage assets, etc. Build.
Most people would recoil from the risk and amount of capital needed to farm. Does that mean all white male farmers are rich? No, probably a false preconceived notion.
Some farms are generations old so there could be a level of stability and security. Are other privately held businesses or corporations shown the same disdain?

Re increase in fees to support a better lobby or hire professional lobbyists. How many check-off dollars are refunded(zero from Sask Pulse as they're nonrefundable). Anecdotal(?) comments about meetings in sandy resorts and people more interested in photo ops.
Maybe there doesn't have to be more fees collected but rather reallocated to a more meaningful lobby, maybe a professional type.

Oh yeah, and don't rely on Industry "partners", like the railways, WGEA, Fertilzer Canada, CropLife Canada to look after YOUR best interests, because your best interests aren't their best interests....

....Although, some of those entities wouldn't exist without "us".

[farmaholic]

Farmers individually are outstanding business people , as a group standing together to improve their lot they are a disaster

As pointed out, likely because they compete with each other.

[furrowtickler]

So heres the main problem.

Every single farmer would slit the other guys throat for a half section of number 1 dirt for 40$/ acre rent.

We may be the MOST unagreeable...fractured...neighbour hating group of people that Ive ever met.


We cant even agree which color combine is best ( hint.. theyre all awesome in their own right)
let alone on ag policy.

Plus.. In thinking this over... we are all individuals where MOST other large industries are alot more monopolized and do not have the member numbers that a " 1 farm group" would have.


Seriously.
Farmers effing haaaaaattteee eachother and its sad because we could be so so soooo powerful.
But instead.. greed and yield ( not profit per acre) have taken over the mental psyche of most farmers ( especcciiiaaalllyy those under 50)
i see it. You see it. We all see it.


If you Put 10 farmers in a room they would argue over the best way to climb a ladder.

Sad. But true.
Thats why lobbying for ag doesnt work. .

I mean really... tell me that the NFU doesnt have some GOOD policies. Are they not the largest ag lobbying group in canada???
but the vast majority of guys hate them because they support ( ed) policies to combat climate change ...but their stance on seed saving and farmer owned genetics is pretty... excellent.

Too many member... too many different crops... too many different areas.

I cant think of another lobbying group that would have our membership numbers ... or even come close really. ( other than unions)

You unfortunately live in a different world than here.
50% true but not 100% remotely
that is a very chuck like post, generalization of all as far as your haaaaate comments. Very overboard.
NFU is dismissed for their one main pillar of “single desk for all grains and oilseeds” , that will be forever a fairy tale , as most NFU members are hobby farms , so 100% different mentality than the vast amount of land farmed .
Do they have some good ideas , yep they do but they feel they must enforce those ideals onto all
The problem is that they strongly believe it’s their ideals that should master all farms …. That’s a fact and that’s the issue they are blind upon
They can do their thing , good on them and no one will try to tell them how they should operate, that’s their thing , but they insist that others are wrong , and can’t just let them be … that’s the problem.
No one outside the NFU is trying or demanding they change what they do. Good on them for doing their thing , leave the rest of the farms alone and let them raise families and farms the best they seem fit .

[goalieguy847]

But thats the point. The nfu probably has the most members.. canada wide of any farm group.
maybe others ARE wrong.
and maybe they arent.


You prOved my point in that farmers are too widespread...too individualistic..and too varied in what each farm values and how they are setup.

The quota farms all pull in the same direction. Thats why they have the pull that they do.

Grain farmers are scattered and compete against eachother.

See; rent circa 5 yrs ago!

Sure the steel industry competes against eachother to a point.. but there arent 400 k companies. There would be 10.. 20. At most that have any clout.. easy to make the most of your lobbying dollars when you are all pulling in the same direction.. and you can all fit at the same table at applebees.

[Hamloc]

So heres the main problem.

Every single farmer would slit the other guys throat for a half section of number 1 dirt for 40$/ acre rent.

We may be the MOST unagreeable...fractured...neighbour hating group of people that Ive ever met.


We cant even agree which color combine is best ( hint.. theyre all awesome in their own right)
let alone on ag policy.

Plus.. In thinking this over... we are all individuals where MOST other large industries are alot more monopolized and do not have the member numbers that a " 1 farm group" would have.


Seriously.
Farmers effing haaaaaattteee eachother and its sad because we could be so so soooo powerful.
But instead.. greed and yield ( not profit per acre) have taken over the mental psyche of most farmers ( especcciiiaaalllyy those under 50)
i see it. You see it. We all see it.


If you Put 10 farmers in a room they would argue over the best way to climb a ladder.

Sad. But true.
Thats why lobbying for ag doesnt work. .

I mean really... tell me that the NFU doesnt have some GOOD policies. Are they not the largest ag lobbying group in canada???
but the vast majority of guys hate them because they support ( ed) policies to combat climate change ...but their stance on seed saving and farmer owned genetics is pretty... excellent.

Too many member... too many different crops... too many different areas.

I cant think of another lobbying group that would have our membership numbers ... or even come close really. ( other than unions)

The unfortunate reality GG is there is a finite amount of land. This certainly creates intense competition for access. This inflates both land and rent. And increases the pressure to succeed to survive. Also makes every neighbour to some extent your adversary. I agree it is unfortunate. I think compared to 20-30 years ago it has changed. Today many larger operations try to come in and scoop land, this does create bad feelings.

[Old Cowzilla]

Sounds like these steel companies are getting $500million in loans not bailouts. Kinda the same thing they offer farmers when the poop hits the fan.

[ajl]

The major driver in ag during the past 60 years has been inflation due to perpetual money printing. Those with a large land base are in a privileged position to enlarge it. This has driven hyper farm consolidation. What needs to happen is to get rid of central banking and let interest rates trade in the free market. Asset bubbles will deflate and land would trade based on who had enough savings. This would eliminate cut throat competition and restore community in rural areas.

Algoma steel ain't never ever going to pay back that loan so it is a lot like a bailout. Western taxpayers just bought electric arc furnaces for ontariowe something that Regina had a long time ago.