The European Union and the United States are putting up “wanted” posters all over the global village. They want the Canadian Wheat Board brought in, dead or alive.
It has wheat board chair Ken Ritter complaining that the board is being framed.
“In the face of the huge domestic supports and export subsidies that the European Union and U.S. provide, this is just ridiculous,” said Ritter.
Recently, Franz Fischler, the EU’s agriculture commissioner, and American trade negotiator Al Johnson have targeted the CWB, saying they want its monopoly powers restricted as part of any future world trade deal.
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The countries in the World Trade Organization are trying to develop a framework for negotiations by the end of July. World trade talks stalled after an attempt failed in September 2003 in Cancun, Mexico.
Fischler said during a visit to Winnipeg in June that the EU wants the wheat board to lose some of its powers and to give up its government-guaranteed financing of pool accounts.
He said the EU will not agree to abandon some of its subsidies and supports if it does not see sacrifices by other nations. Fischler said the wheat board is the only area of trade in which the EU wants Canada to make serious concessions.
U.S. trade negotiator Al Johnson has said state trading enterprises such as the CWB and the Australian Wheat Board must reform and accept “additional discipline.”
Ritter said he sees the European and American complaints about the wheat board as hypocritical and devious.
“Why are they ganging up on us?” he asked.
“What they’re trying to do right now is lump the CWB in with some of the huge EU and U.S. export subsidies.”
Some of these complaints might fade, he thinks.
“Sometimes there’s a lot of noise in these trade cases, then everyone backs off to a reasonable position.”
Ritter is counting on EU and U.S. arguments being undermined by their history as heavy subsidizers.
“The other members of the WTO do not see us in the light that the European Union and U.S. have painted us,” said Ritter.
