Like Bilbo Baggins’ sudden disappearance from the Shire in J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, Ted Allen’s abrupt retirement as chair of Agricore United stunned many people.
But Allen told farmer-members of AU at their annual meeting that “it is time to go.”
Allen resigned from his position within hours of announcing his intentions at the close of the AU annual meeting. His voice quavered and he appeared to be struggling with powerful emotions as he paid tribute to the farmers who support AU.
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“I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for just being great people. I love you guys,” said Allen, who turns 62 on Feb. 14.
“It’s been a slice, you know that?”
Allen had heart surgery last year and admitted he was encouraged to retire by his wife, his parents and his children. He shared their feelings.
“You’re happy to be alive and you kind of want to smell the flowers and enjoy your family and your kids,” Allen said after the meeting.
Allen, who was first elected as a United Grain Growers director in 1973 and became its president in 1990, said he may sit on a couple of corporate boards in the future.
But he also wants to dedicate some of his time to doing good works for society.
“I’m interested in … seeing if there’s something I can do in relation to educating people who are incarcerated,” said Allen, formerly a teacher.
He paid tribute to his mentor, Mac Runciman, whom he said inspired him to see a bright future for farmers.
“Mac continues to be, in my mind, head and shoulders above many of his peers,” said Allen of the deceased former head of UGG.
He also praised Jean-Luc Pepin, the former federal transportation minister in the 1980s, whom he described as “one of Western Canada’s greatest mentors and advocates.”
But he said he was greatly disappointed by the political system.
“Politicians have certainly let down western Canadian farmers hugely on a number of files,” he said.
“They have had an unerring ability to find terrible solutions that just perpetuate problems and leave them for the next generation to deal with.”
But Allen said he thinks Agricore United is in good shape and will do well once a normal-sized crop appears.
“We are ahead of the curve where we have this platform where our costs per tonne are going to be as low or lower than anybody else’s.”
