Vol. 141, No. 16 — April 21, 2007
Regulations Amending the Canadian Wheat Board Regulations
Statutory authority
Canadian Wheat Board Act
Sponsoring department
Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food
REGULATORY IMPACT
ANALYSIS STATEMENT
(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)
Description
The Canadian Wheat Board Act (the Act) provides for the constitution and powers of The Canadian Wheat Board (CWB). The CWB is a shared-governance corporation with the object of marketing in an orderly manner, in interprovincial and export trade, grain grown in Canada.
Part III of the Act allows the CWB to pool wheat and provides for federal government guarantees of initial payments paid to producers. Part IV of the Act gives the CWB the exclusive authority over the regulation of interprovincial and export trade in wheat subject to the Regulations. Subsection 47(1) in Part V of the Act provides that Part III and/or Part IV may be extended to barley by regulation.
The CWB's monopoly powers over interprovincial and export trade (single desk powers) in relation to barley, along with its ability to establish pools for barley, were created via section 9 of the Canadian Wheat Board Regulations (the Regulations), which extend Part III and Part IV of the Act to barley.
The proposed amendments to the Regulations would continue to extend Part III to barley. This would allow the CWB to continue to operate barley pools for those farmers who want to continue to sell their barley through the CWB. The Government would continue to guarantee the CWB's borrowings and initial payments.
Part IV would no longer be extended to barley under the proposed amendments to the Regulations. This would remove barley and barley products produced in Canada from the CWB's single desk powers, which would enable barley producers to sell their barley directly to any domestic or foreign buyer, including to the CWB.
Making these regulatory changes is the culmination of a multi-faceted, policy-making process. This has included meetings with stakeholder groups, work by a technical task force, discussions with CWB's board of directors, and a plebiscite of barley producers in the CWB designated area. The majority of barley producers in the CWB designated area that voted in the recent barley plebiscite voted for marketing choice for barley.
These amendments to the Regulations would implement marketing choice for barley effective August 1, 2007.
Alternatives
An alternative to implementing marketing choice for barley via regulatory amendment would be to amend the Act to achieve these changes. Amendments to the Act are not necessary, since the single desk powers of the CWB in relation to barley were created by regulation and can be removed through amendments to the Regulations. In addition, the alternative of proceeding by way of legislation would result in an unnecessarily long period of market uncertainty. That alternative is not considered to be viable at this time. The Government intends for the amendments to be in force for the 2007-2008 crop year in order to provide clarity to the industry and to promote market certainty.
Benefits and costs
The amendments to the Regulations would enable barley producers to sell their barley directly to any domestic or foreign buyer including the CWB. Canadian processors of barley would be able to provide more accurate and timely market signals to barley producers. This approach would provide clarity and market certainty for barley farmers and the Canadian grain industry.
The CWB may not receive sufficient barley deliveries from producers who decide to continue to market their barley through the CWB after August 1, 2007, to enable it to honour sales contracts which have already been signed. Some companies with signed purchase contracts, for whom the CWB is unable to supply the contracted barley, may have to pay higher prices to obtain barley from grain companies or directly from farmers, as barley prices have increased recently.
Canadian processors of barley would no longer be required to obtain licences from the CWB to market their barley products in interprovincial and export trade.
Compliance and enforcement
These amendments would remove restrictions on barley marketing that are currently imposed by the Regulations. There is no compliance and enforcement issue.
Consultation
On July 27, 2006, the Government hosted a roundtable discussion about options for implementing this commitment. Participants included David Anderson, Parliamentary Secretary for the Canadian Wheat Board, farm organizations and other industry representatives, individual grain producers, academics, Members of Parliament and government officials (as well as observers from the provincial governments of British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba).
On September 19, 2006, a task force was struck to recommend options to implement marketing choice for western wheat and barley and to address other issues raised at the July 27 marketing choice roundtable meeting. The task force consisted of experts in grain marketing from the private and public sectors. Its objective was to address technical and transition issues for the Canadian grain industry related to the change to an environment where farmers would be able to sell wheat and barley to any domestic or foreign buyer, including a transformed CWB. The task force recommended a four-stage transition from a CWB with monopoly powers to a marketing choice environment: preparing for change, forming the new CWB, launching the transformed CWB with transition measures and post transition.
In March 2007, the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food held a plebiscite to obtain barley producers' preferences for marketing barley. Sixty-two percent of the farmers who voted in the barley plebiscite preferred the removal of the CWB's monopoly.
The proposed amendments to the Regulations are published in the Canada Gazette, Part I, for a 30-day public comment period before they are considered for final approval by the Governor-in-Council. Although extensive consultation with all affected groups has already taken place, publishing this proposal provides producers, industry groups, the Canadian public and other interested parties with an opportunity to comment on the details of the proposal.
Contact
Comments on the proposed amendments to the Regulations should be sent to Harold A. Hedley, Special Advisor, Canadian Wheat Board, Sectoral Policy Directorate, Strategic Policy Branch, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Sir John Carling Building, 930 Carling Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0C5, 613-759-6534 (telephone), 613-759-7476 (fax), hedleyh@agr.gc.ca (email).
PROPOSED REGULATORY TEXT
Notice is hereby given that the Governor in Council, pursuant to sections 46(see footnote a), 47 (see footnote b) and 61 of the Canadian Wheat Board Act, proposes to make the annexed Regulations Amending the Canadian Wheat Board Regulations.
Interested persons may make representations concerning the proposed Regulations within 30 days after the date of publication of this notice. All such representations must cite the Canada Gazette, Part I, and the date of publication of this notice, and be addressed to Harold A. Hedley, Special Advisor, Canadian Wheat Board, Sectoral Policy Directorate, Strategic Policy Branch, Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Sir John Carling Building, 930 Carling Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0C5 (tel.: 613-759-6534; fax: 613-759-7476; e-mail: hedleyh@agr.gc.ca).
Ottawa, April 19, 2007
MARY O'NEILL
Assistant Clerk of the Privy Council
REGULATIONS AMENDING THE CANADIAN WHEAT
BOARD REGULATIONS
AMENDMENTS
1. The definition "feed grain" in section 2 of the Canadian Wheat Board Regulations (see footnote 1) is replaced by the following:
"feed grain" means wheat of the grade No. 3 Canada Western Red Spring or wheat of any equivalent or lower level of excellence; (grains de provende)
2. Section 9 of the Regulations is replaced by the following:
9. Part III of the Act is extended to barley.
3. Sections 14 to 14.2 of the Regulations are replaced by the following:
14. The Corporation may grant a licence for the export, or for the sale or purchase for delivery outside Canada, of wheat or wheat products if
(a) the export, sale or purchase does not adversely affect the marketing by the Corporation, in interprovincial or export trade, of wheat grown in Canada; and
(b) the applicant pays to the Corporation a sum of money that, in the Corporation's opinion, represents the pecuniary benefit enuring to the applicant pursuant to the granting of the licence, arising solely by reason of the prohibition of the export of that wheat or those wheat products without a licence, and the then existing differences between the prices of that wheat or those wheat products inside and outside Canada.
14.1 The Corporation may grant a licence for the transportation from one province to another, or for the sale or delivery anywhere in Canada, of wheat or wheat products, but no fee shall be charged for the licence.
14.2 Any person who exports wheat or wheat products from Canada shall, at the time of exportation, give to a customs officer at the customs office that is at the point of exit specified on the export licence
(a) the original export licence for that wheat or wheat product, and a copy of it; or
(b) in the case of an export licence for multiple shipments of that wheat or wheat product,
(i) at the time of every shipment except the final shipment, two copies of the export licence, and
(ii) at the time of the final shipment, the original export licence and a copy of it.
4. Sections 15.2 and 16 of the Regulations are replaced by the following:
15.2 Permission is granted to any person to import into Canada wheat and wheat products that are entitled to the benefit of the Mexico Tariff of Schedule I to the Customs Tariff and that are owned by a person other than the Corporation.
INTERPROVINCIAL TRANSPORTATION AND SALE
OF WHEAT AND WHEAT PRODUCTS
16. (1) Permission is granted to any person who is not a public carrier and who resides or carries on business in Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Alberta to transport or cause to be transported interprovincially within the area that comprises those provinces
(a) wheat that is not described by a grade name or by reference to a sample taken pursuant to the Canada Grain Act; or
(b) any wheat products.
(2) Permission is granted to any licensee, as defined in section 2 of the Canada Grain Act, to sell and buy feed grain or wheat products that are situated in Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Alberta for delivery for consumption by livestock or poultry at any place in Canada elsewhere than in the province of purchase, and to transport or cause to be transported the feed grain or wheat products to that place.
5. Sections 19 and 20 of the Regulations are repealed.
COMING INTO FORCE
6. These Regulations come into force on August 1, 2007.
[16-1-o]
Footnote a
S.C. 1998, c. 17, ss. 24 and 28
Footnote b
S.C. 1995, c. 31, s. 4
Footnote 1
C.R.C., c. 397
Regulations Amending the Canadian Wheat Board Regulations
Statutory authority
Canadian Wheat Board Act
Sponsoring department
Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food
REGULATORY IMPACT
ANALYSIS STATEMENT
(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)
Description
The Canadian Wheat Board Act (the Act) provides for the constitution and powers of The Canadian Wheat Board (CWB). The CWB is a shared-governance corporation with the object of marketing in an orderly manner, in interprovincial and export trade, grain grown in Canada.
Part III of the Act allows the CWB to pool wheat and provides for federal government guarantees of initial payments paid to producers. Part IV of the Act gives the CWB the exclusive authority over the regulation of interprovincial and export trade in wheat subject to the Regulations. Subsection 47(1) in Part V of the Act provides that Part III and/or Part IV may be extended to barley by regulation.
The CWB's monopoly powers over interprovincial and export trade (single desk powers) in relation to barley, along with its ability to establish pools for barley, were created via section 9 of the Canadian Wheat Board Regulations (the Regulations), which extend Part III and Part IV of the Act to barley.
The proposed amendments to the Regulations would continue to extend Part III to barley. This would allow the CWB to continue to operate barley pools for those farmers who want to continue to sell their barley through the CWB. The Government would continue to guarantee the CWB's borrowings and initial payments.
Part IV would no longer be extended to barley under the proposed amendments to the Regulations. This would remove barley and barley products produced in Canada from the CWB's single desk powers, which would enable barley producers to sell their barley directly to any domestic or foreign buyer, including to the CWB.
Making these regulatory changes is the culmination of a multi-faceted, policy-making process. This has included meetings with stakeholder groups, work by a technical task force, discussions with CWB's board of directors, and a plebiscite of barley producers in the CWB designated area. The majority of barley producers in the CWB designated area that voted in the recent barley plebiscite voted for marketing choice for barley.
These amendments to the Regulations would implement marketing choice for barley effective August 1, 2007.
Alternatives
An alternative to implementing marketing choice for barley via regulatory amendment would be to amend the Act to achieve these changes. Amendments to the Act are not necessary, since the single desk powers of the CWB in relation to barley were created by regulation and can be removed through amendments to the Regulations. In addition, the alternative of proceeding by way of legislation would result in an unnecessarily long period of market uncertainty. That alternative is not considered to be viable at this time. The Government intends for the amendments to be in force for the 2007-2008 crop year in order to provide clarity to the industry and to promote market certainty.
Benefits and costs
The amendments to the Regulations would enable barley producers to sell their barley directly to any domestic or foreign buyer including the CWB. Canadian processors of barley would be able to provide more accurate and timely market signals to barley producers. This approach would provide clarity and market certainty for barley farmers and the Canadian grain industry.
The CWB may not receive sufficient barley deliveries from producers who decide to continue to market their barley through the CWB after August 1, 2007, to enable it to honour sales contracts which have already been signed. Some companies with signed purchase contracts, for whom the CWB is unable to supply the contracted barley, may have to pay higher prices to obtain barley from grain companies or directly from farmers, as barley prices have increased recently.
Canadian processors of barley would no longer be required to obtain licences from the CWB to market their barley products in interprovincial and export trade.
Compliance and enforcement
These amendments would remove restrictions on barley marketing that are currently imposed by the Regulations. There is no compliance and enforcement issue.
Consultation
On July 27, 2006, the Government hosted a roundtable discussion about options for implementing this commitment. Participants included David Anderson, Parliamentary Secretary for the Canadian Wheat Board, farm organizations and other industry representatives, individual grain producers, academics, Members of Parliament and government officials (as well as observers from the provincial governments of British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba).
On September 19, 2006, a task force was struck to recommend options to implement marketing choice for western wheat and barley and to address other issues raised at the July 27 marketing choice roundtable meeting. The task force consisted of experts in grain marketing from the private and public sectors. Its objective was to address technical and transition issues for the Canadian grain industry related to the change to an environment where farmers would be able to sell wheat and barley to any domestic or foreign buyer, including a transformed CWB. The task force recommended a four-stage transition from a CWB with monopoly powers to a marketing choice environment: preparing for change, forming the new CWB, launching the transformed CWB with transition measures and post transition.
In March 2007, the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food held a plebiscite to obtain barley producers' preferences for marketing barley. Sixty-two percent of the farmers who voted in the barley plebiscite preferred the removal of the CWB's monopoly.
The proposed amendments to the Regulations are published in the Canada Gazette, Part I, for a 30-day public comment period before they are considered for final approval by the Governor-in-Council. Although extensive consultation with all affected groups has already taken place, publishing this proposal provides producers, industry groups, the Canadian public and other interested parties with an opportunity to comment on the details of the proposal.
Contact
Comments on the proposed amendments to the Regulations should be sent to Harold A. Hedley, Special Advisor, Canadian Wheat Board, Sectoral Policy Directorate, Strategic Policy Branch, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Sir John Carling Building, 930 Carling Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0C5, 613-759-6534 (telephone), 613-759-7476 (fax), hedleyh@agr.gc.ca (email).
PROPOSED REGULATORY TEXT
Notice is hereby given that the Governor in Council, pursuant to sections 46(see footnote a), 47 (see footnote b) and 61 of the Canadian Wheat Board Act, proposes to make the annexed Regulations Amending the Canadian Wheat Board Regulations.
Interested persons may make representations concerning the proposed Regulations within 30 days after the date of publication of this notice. All such representations must cite the Canada Gazette, Part I, and the date of publication of this notice, and be addressed to Harold A. Hedley, Special Advisor, Canadian Wheat Board, Sectoral Policy Directorate, Strategic Policy Branch, Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Sir John Carling Building, 930 Carling Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0C5 (tel.: 613-759-6534; fax: 613-759-7476; e-mail: hedleyh@agr.gc.ca).
Ottawa, April 19, 2007
MARY O'NEILL
Assistant Clerk of the Privy Council
REGULATIONS AMENDING THE CANADIAN WHEAT
BOARD REGULATIONS
AMENDMENTS
1. The definition "feed grain" in section 2 of the Canadian Wheat Board Regulations (see footnote 1) is replaced by the following:
"feed grain" means wheat of the grade No. 3 Canada Western Red Spring or wheat of any equivalent or lower level of excellence; (grains de provende)
2. Section 9 of the Regulations is replaced by the following:
9. Part III of the Act is extended to barley.
3. Sections 14 to 14.2 of the Regulations are replaced by the following:
14. The Corporation may grant a licence for the export, or for the sale or purchase for delivery outside Canada, of wheat or wheat products if
(a) the export, sale or purchase does not adversely affect the marketing by the Corporation, in interprovincial or export trade, of wheat grown in Canada; and
(b) the applicant pays to the Corporation a sum of money that, in the Corporation's opinion, represents the pecuniary benefit enuring to the applicant pursuant to the granting of the licence, arising solely by reason of the prohibition of the export of that wheat or those wheat products without a licence, and the then existing differences between the prices of that wheat or those wheat products inside and outside Canada.
14.1 The Corporation may grant a licence for the transportation from one province to another, or for the sale or delivery anywhere in Canada, of wheat or wheat products, but no fee shall be charged for the licence.
14.2 Any person who exports wheat or wheat products from Canada shall, at the time of exportation, give to a customs officer at the customs office that is at the point of exit specified on the export licence
(a) the original export licence for that wheat or wheat product, and a copy of it; or
(b) in the case of an export licence for multiple shipments of that wheat or wheat product,
(i) at the time of every shipment except the final shipment, two copies of the export licence, and
(ii) at the time of the final shipment, the original export licence and a copy of it.
4. Sections 15.2 and 16 of the Regulations are replaced by the following:
15.2 Permission is granted to any person to import into Canada wheat and wheat products that are entitled to the benefit of the Mexico Tariff of Schedule I to the Customs Tariff and that are owned by a person other than the Corporation.
INTERPROVINCIAL TRANSPORTATION AND SALE
OF WHEAT AND WHEAT PRODUCTS
16. (1) Permission is granted to any person who is not a public carrier and who resides or carries on business in Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Alberta to transport or cause to be transported interprovincially within the area that comprises those provinces
(a) wheat that is not described by a grade name or by reference to a sample taken pursuant to the Canada Grain Act; or
(b) any wheat products.
(2) Permission is granted to any licensee, as defined in section 2 of the Canada Grain Act, to sell and buy feed grain or wheat products that are situated in Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Alberta for delivery for consumption by livestock or poultry at any place in Canada elsewhere than in the province of purchase, and to transport or cause to be transported the feed grain or wheat products to that place.
5. Sections 19 and 20 of the Regulations are repealed.
COMING INTO FORCE
6. These Regulations come into force on August 1, 2007.
[16-1-o]
Footnote a
S.C. 1998, c. 17, ss. 24 and 28
Footnote b
S.C. 1995, c. 31, s. 4
Footnote 1
C.R.C., c. 397
Comment