CAMROSE, Alta. – The Alberta government is considering getting into the grain marketing business to help farmers avoid the Canadian Wheat Board’s export monopoly.
Under the proposal, the province would buy grain from farmers for $1, transport it across the border and then sell it back to the farmer for the same price.
Premier Ralph Klein said it is just one of the options the government is looking at to help Alberta farmers sell their grain across the border. Agriculture minister Walter Paszkowski said the government has made “no decision” on whether it will go ahead with the plan to become the farmers’ marketer.
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“We respect the laws of this province and the laws of this country,” said Paszkowski during question period in the Alberta legislature.
“We have to, at the end of the day, allow our farmers the opportunity to be able to achieve the highest possible return that they can for the product that they produce. But breaking the law is not one of the options.”
Liberal agriculture critic Ken Nicol questioned Paszkowski on the cost of the proposal to the taxpayers for administration, transportation and legal fees. Paszkowski said there is no cost breakdown because it’s only one option.
Later, Nicol said while Paszkowski makes lots of noise, he has done little to promote the cause of dual marketing.
“He’s not being very proactive in doing stuff,” said Nicol, who suggested Paszkowski get the other prairie agriculture ministers on-side for a unified fight.
Rhea Yates, information officer with the Canadian Wheat Board, said the Alberta government is not above the law. The law wouldn’t be any different for the provincial government than individual farmers. To export grain, the provincial government would need an export grain permit, the same as farmers.
Yates said the board is getting mixed signals from Alberta. On one hand the provincial government is making noises about marketing producers’ grain and on the other hand the province says it won’t do anything illegal.
