In 1993, United Grain Growers was in transition to being a partly publicly traded company, and this ad in our Jan. 21 issue alerted members that they were entitled to common shares if they had hauled grain to UGG in the previous six years.
One of the headlines that issue was “More tough times possible,” and speaking to the KAP annual meeting the previous week, Agriculture Minister Glen Findlay and Premier Gary Filmon warned that the GRIP program was becoming unaffordable and would likely not continue after 1995. Findlay said farmers would have to get more income from the marketplace and advised diversifying into livestock and special crops.
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However, things were also difficult for hog producers and the U.S. trade representative was challenging a binational panel ruling that ordered a reduction in the countervailing duty on Canadian hog imports. The panel said the Canadian tripartite support program was not countervailable.
Findlay told the KAP meeting that the stubble smoke problems that plagued Winnipeg in October would not be allowed to happen again. Burning had been banned after smoke became so thick that alarms were triggered, and several people were hospitalized with breathing problems. A government/industry committee was meeting to draft regulations to control stubble burning, and was asking for public comment.
At the KAP meeting, Alan Ransom of Boissevain took over as president, succeeding Earl Geddes of Pilot Mound, who had served since 1988.
