The Canadian Wheat Board released the results of its annual producer survey this month.
To no one’s surprise, pro-and anti-board groups wasted little time using the results to support their views on single desk marketing and the need for a producer plebiscite.
The 2011 survey, which sought the views of 900 prairie grain farmers from Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, was conducted in early April at a cost of $56,000.
The survey had several findings:
• Sixty-seven percent of respondents are more optimistic about farming this year than they were last year.
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• Sixty-seven percent support the CWB.
• When offered a choice between two marketing scenarios for wheat, 59 percent would prefer the status quo over an open market if the open market did not include a voluntary CWB pooling option.
• When offered a choice between three marketing scenarios for wheat, about 58 percent would prefer either an open market or a dual market that included a voluntary CWB pooling option. Fortyone percent would prefer the status quo.
• Producer support for the board is lower in Alberta than it is in Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
• Young and large farmers are less likely than older , smaller farmers to support single desk marketing.
• Producer support for a single desk in barley is lower than producer support for a single desk in wheat.
Maureen Fitzhenry, manager of media relations for the wheat board, acknowledged that certain elements of the survey could be viewed as evidence that producer support for single desk marketing is declining.
At the same time, other parts of the survey appear to suggest strong support for the wheat board’s single desk marketing system.
“I guess that’s always the issue with statistics and surveys is that you can use (the results) in any number of ways,” she said.
For example, two-thirds of survey respondents said they support the wheat board, about the same level of support as last year.
Yet, when asked to choose between a single desk for wheat or an open market, 63 percent of this year’s respondents said they would prefer the single desk. Last year, 69 percent said they favoured the single desk.
Fitzhenry said the six percent decline falls within the statistical margin of error.
She also cautioned against reading too much into survey numbers.
“These things (producer attitudes) tend to be cyclical depending on external factors … related to grain prices, weather and grain movement.”
The Western Canadian Wheat Growers took a different read.
President Kevin Bender said the survey shows more producers are warming to the idea of marketing freedom.
“We were actually encouraged by the results because it shows an increase in the percentage of growers that want the option of marketing outside the wheat board,” Bender said.
The survey says…
Other producer responses from the 2011 survey include:
• About two-thirds of the farmers surveyed say they support or strongly support the Canadian Wheat Board. That includes 72 percent of respondents in Manitoba, 71 percent in Saskatchewan and 54 percent in Alberta.
• Large farmers are less likely than small farmers to support the single desk. Given the choice between the single desk or an open market, 55 percent of producers who farm 2,500 acres or more said they would prefer an open market. Of producers who farm less than 2,500 acres, about two-thirds prefer the single desk.
• Young farmers are less likely to support single desk marketing. Given the choice between the single desk for wheat, a dual market system or an open market without any CWB pooling, about 56 percent of farmers younger than 45 said they would prefer a dual market. Among farmers older than 65, 35 percent prefer a dual market and 57 percent prefer the single desk.
• Farmers from all provinces said they would prefer an open market for barley over the single desk. Support was strongest in Alberta, where 66 percent said they would prefer an open market for barley. In Saskatchewan, 43 percent favoured an open market and 42 percent favoured the single desk. In Manitoba, 44 percent favoured an open market and 39 percent favoured the single desk.
• Fifty-one percent said the wheat board does a good or excellent job marketing wheat, 28 percent said the board does a good or excellent job of marketing durum, 26 percent said the board does a good or excellent job of marketing malting barley and 20 percent said the board does a good or excellent job marketing feed barley.
• Seventy-three percent of respondents agreed that the CWB is doing a better job than it used to, but only 35 percent said their impression of the board is more favourable today than it was two years ago. Thirtythree percent feel they would make more money if the board did not exist.
• More than 80 percent of farmers surveyed said the CWB should place a very high priority on getting premium pricing for Canadian wheat, developing new markets for Canadian wheat and maintaining Canada’s reputation as a high quality producer and supplier of wheat.
• Young farmers, especially farmers younger than 45, are more likely to use the internet. Seventy percent have a high speed internet connection. Eighty-four percent of farmers younger than 45 have a high speed connection, compared to 74 percent of farmers between 45 and 64, and 42 percent of farmers older than 65.
• Smart phone use is highest among large and young farmers. Nineteen percent of farmers use a smart phone, including 37 percent of farmers younger than 45 and 34 percent of farmers who farm 2,500 acres or more.
