Saskatchewan agriculture minister Lyle Stewart says the sale of CWB to an American and Saudi Arabian partnership is good for farmers.
“I think the new company will have substantial market reach,” he told reporters at the legislature April 16.
“Bunge in particular is the major investor in this company and they have worldwide market penetration, and I think this is another real viable marketing option for Saskatchewan farmers.”
He said it’s also good for CWB.
“It’s been a fledgling grain company trying to get its feet under it and frankly struggling to do so,” he said.
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Stewart said he had received only a few texts and emails from producers since the announcement of the $250 million sale of 50.1 percent of CWB to G3 Global Grain Group, and they were positive.
The other 49.9 percent of CWB will be kept in trust for farmers who deliver grain to the company.
Farmers who deliver will receive $5 per tonne in equity in the company, but G3 has the option to buy back the shares, at market value, after seven years.
Stewart said he thought seven years was generous and he reminded people not to confuse equity in this company with equity in the former Saskatchewan Wheat Pool.
“There never was any such thing as Canadian Wheat Board equity in the old compulsory days,” he said.
“Producers are guaranteed that they’ll be offered market value for their equity, and I think market value under this partnership will be substantially more than it would have been under a struggling Canadian Wheat Board.”
He said CWB had been looking to build assets in Saskatchewan and expects that will continue through G3.
NDP agriculture critic Cathy Sproule was less enthusiastic. She said the sale amounts to a handover, and giving farmers shares in a trust is not the same as equity.
She noted during question period that farmers have been losing money because of poor transportation the last couple of years, and adding another multinational marketer to the mix won’t fix that.
Contact karen.briere@producer.com
