It appears that original registrants of pesticides in Canada have done an effective job of spreading a message that is patently untrue, contrary to market reality and flying in the face of what is happening in other countries. This is impeding Canadian farmers’ access to a whole array of lower cost generic pesticides such as […] Read more
Stories by Bob Friesen
Generic crop protection process costly
Canadian farmers have a competitive disadvantage compared to other producers, especially U.S. growers, because of a lack of generic crop protection pro-ducts. In fact, Canada is one of the worst countries in which to register generic products. Canadian farmers deserve better. The Pest Management Regulatory Agency has been criticized recently for not creating an environment […] Read more
Wrong message
In the Nov. 10 edition ofThe Western Producer,an article was headlined “FNA sees opportunity in demise of wheat board single desk.” That was not the message given by Farmers of North America at the House of Commons committee studying Bill C-18. FNA members have a self-imposed mandate to work together to improve farmer profitability and […] Read more
Success in agriculture means partnerships
There has been an annual farm profitability crisis for far too many years, and farmers need input supply companies to be part of a discussion to find solutions. All too often we witness input price s tracking grain prices, which means that any margin made from higher grain prices is required to pay for higher […] Read more
Speak up on the carbon credit issue
Credits will increase profitability, say Bob Friesen, chief executive officer of the Farmers of North America Strategic Agriculture Institute, and Greg Marshall, president of the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan. The Farmers of North America Strategic Agriculture Institute (FNA-STAG) and Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) recently completed a series of six meetings in Saskatchewan […] Read more
Farmers seek payment for innovation
A coalition of farmers who represent 50 to 60 percent of grain production in Canada have joined forces and formed a monopoly called Innovative Farmers.This group is showing ingenuity by being able to round up such a large group so quickly. Even though many are in the middle of seeding, they cleared their fields and […] Read more
Dear Santa: a wish list from farmers – Opinion
Friesen is president of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture. Dear Santa Claus, Well, another year has gone by and I am once again writing to you with a list of Christmas wishes from Canada’s farmers. In a lot of ways it’s been a pretty good year for us, as far as gifts were concerned. We […] Read more
Trade distortions must be cut – Opinion
Friesen is president of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture. Here’s a little experiment you can try. Get a tarp. Stretch it out tight, suspended between some wooden stakes. Throw some tennis balls on there. They’ll roll around on the tarp a bit, but they won’t weigh it down.Now drop a bowling ball in the middle […] Read more
CFA likes new ag funding plan – Opinion
Friesen is president of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture. On March 9, the government of Canada made an announcement that was of major importance for Canadian farmers. Some observers have questioned whether this announcement will have real impact for farmers. I would like to take this opportunity, as a farmer and a Canadian farm leader, […] Read more
Election must address agricultural issues – Opinion
Friesen is president of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture. It’s election time again. For Canadian farmers, this means we have an opportunity to redress the big flaw of the last election – the failure to address agriculture issues. Farmers – all farmers – are going to have to work very hard. We are going to […] Read more
