Legislation to end CWB Barley Monopoly to be Introduced In Parliament on Monday

Tomorrow, Federal Conservative Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz will introduce legislation to amend the Canadian Wheat Board Act to allow Prairie barley producers to choose whether they sell their barley on their own or through the wheat board.

I hope that this bill passes because for too long many farmers have been being systematically shortchanged by the CWB not paying them a fair price for their product. The CWB have never been able to give a satisfactory explanation to farmers in British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan as to why there is such a difference between barley prices that they are forced to accept from the CWB and barley prices on the open market. Some are complaining that they can get between $4.00 and $4.50 a bushel on the open market, while the CWB is only paying $3.00.

These farmers are assuming all the risks in the growing and harvesting of their own crops, so it is hard to see why should they not have the same right as barley farmers in the other Canadian provinces to sell their own products to whoever they want. Is it wrong for the Prairie barley producers to be allowed to seek maximum returns for the risks that they absorb and the hard labour that they must do in order to produce a successful harvest?

Is will be interesting to see whether the government makes this bill a confidence motion. The Federal Liberals and the NDP have for a long time opposed amending the Canadian Wheat Board Act to allow the Prairie barley farmers to have the choice of selling their products on the open market. Is it because they are so determined to maintain a bureaucracy that is bent on practicing 19th century economics in the 21st century to the detriment of the farmers that they are supposed to serve? If this bill becomes a confidence motion are the Liberals willing to fight an election over this issue? Stay tuned.

Tony