If Transport Canada declines another invitation to appear before the House of Commons’ agriculture committee, it will be subpoenaed to appear, according to Liberal Agriculture Critic Wayne Easter. “The fact of the matter is when a parliamentary committee invites a department to come before it they’re expected to come,” Easter told reporters Dec. 13 during
Easter Wants Transport Canada At Ag Committee
Revenue Cap Accounting Questioned
CN and CP won’t face penalties for exceeding their revenue caps in the crop year that ended July 31, even though farmers paid about $6 per tonne above those caps to ship their grain. The railways collectively were $5.4 million or 17 cents a tonne under the Canadian Transportation Agency’s (CTA) revenue cap of almost
CGC Seeks A Doubling Of Fees
The Canadian Grain Commission wants to more than double its service fees in anticipation that Ottawa will soon cut back support for the agency. Under the proposal, fees, which have been frozen since 1991, could average $1.80 a tonne, up from about 70 cents, said CGC spokesman Remi Gosselin. “We are getting 50 per cent
Farmers Willing To Pay More, Canadian Grain Commission Says
Canadian farmers generally support the Canadian Grain Commission and its quality assurance system, according to the preliminary results of a survey of 500 producers from across Canada. “I think it’s 94 per cent of them feel that the CGC’s quality assurance system helps uphold Canada’s reputation for consistent and reliable grain quality,” said agency spokesman
Lower-Quality Crop Prompts Creation Of New Standard Samples
Apoorer-quality western Canadian crop in 2010 has prompted new standard samples, standard prints and guide samples for wheat, peas, pea beans and lentils. They’re used to assist grain inspections grade grain, Randy Dennis, Canada’s chief grain inspector with the Canadian Grain Commission (CGC), said in a recent interview. “If there’s an opportunity to add a
CGC Continues Researching Machines To Help Grain Grading
Someday distinctly green kernels in canola and sprout damage in wheat may no longer be grading factors. The hope is instruments in elevators will be able to precisely measure the chlorophyll content in canola and the falling number in wheat. Those are the real degrading factors end-users are trying to uncover by counting distinctly green
Wheat, Oat, Soybean Acres Expected Higher In 2011
Soybeans, wheat and oats are the hot crops for 2011, say Manitoba seed growers. Barley, peas and sunflowers are not. “Soybeans were the darlings this year,” Oak Lake seed grower Eric McLean told fellow growers attending the Manitoba Seed Growers’ Association’s annual meeting here Dec. 8. “Peas unfortunately bore the brunt of the ugliness. There
Liberals Back Shippers On Rail Service
The federal Liberals have thrown their support behind rail shippers lobbying the federal government for regulations to “rebalance” their bargaining power with the railways. But it isn’t the Liberals shippers have to convince, it’s Prime Minister Stephen Harper. While shippers can point to the interim report on rail service that concludes substandard rail performance is
Singledesk Directors Still Hold Balance Of Power At CWB
Directors who support single-desk selling retain the balance of power at the Canadian Wheat Board. Four of the five directors elected Dec. 12 support single- desk marketing. Four of the five other farmer-elected directors elected two years ago in even-numbered districts also support the single desk. However, it’s widely believed the five government-appointed directors support
Thunder Bay To See More Grain Exports
Thunder Bay, once the world’s largest grain port, hasn’t even been Canada’s top grain port for years. But there’s hope on the horizon. Populations are growing faster in Africa, the Middle East and Latin America than anywhere else, Rick Steinke, the Canadian Wheat Board’s (CWB) vice-president of logistics told the Fields on Wheels conference in