Canadian grain farmers shouldn’t concern themselves with what Byron Dorgan has to say, says federal agriculture minister Lyle Vanclief.
Dorgan, a North Dakota senator, and long-time critic of Canadian grain shipments to the United States, has gained publicity in recent weeks by calling for the U.S. government to halt Canadian wheat imports and to use export subsidies to compete directly with Canada in foreign markets.
But Vanclief said in an interview last week that Dorgan’s threats and accusations are aimed more at his constituents than at Canada.
Read Also
Land crash warning rejected
A technical analyst believes that Saskatchewan land values could be due for a correction, but land owners and FCC say supply/demand fundamentals drive land prices – not mathematical models
“He’s always been very good at playing to the home crowd,” he said. “This is not the first time he’s made these types of strong statements.”
Based on a brief meeting with U.S. secretary of agriculture Dan Glickman in Ottawa last month, Vanclief said he is satisfied senior U.S. government officials don’t share Dorgan’s apparent enthusiasm for a confrontation with Canada over wheat trade.
“Glickman recognizes there are processes in place to deal with this and he certainly didn’t indicate he was about to take any other steps,” said Vanclief, adding Dorgan is really proposing that his government take actions that are illegal under international trade agreements.
If the Americans were to follow Dorgan’s advice and use Export Enhancement Program subsidies to export additional volumes of wheat into Canadian markets in South American and West Africa, that would simply create shortages in the U.S. domestic market and result in even more demand from U.S. processors for Canadian wheat and durum, he said.
“Is Dorgan planning on telling these American importers who want quality grain where they can or cannot source it?”
In the first 10 months of the current crop year, Canada exported 1.25 million tonnes of wheat to the U.S., double the total shipped during the same period last year. Durum exports totaled 295,200 tonnes (up from 139,300) while barley stood at 692,600 tonnes (642,500).
American wheat shipments to Canada are also up, although they remain insignificant. In the first five months of the current crop year 62,000 tonnes of U.S. wheat came into Canada, compared with 19,000 tonnes for all of the previous year.
“Yet we’re not rattling the same sabres back to the Americans because we know there’s always the ebb and flow depending on market conditions and market demands,” said Vanclief.
Dorgan and some U.S. farm groups are unhappy that Canadian shipments to the U.S. could match the 1.5 million tonne temporary cap that was placed on exports to the U.S. in 1994-95.
Americans not allowed
In a televised interview on CBC Newsworld last week, Dorgan said it’s not fair that while Canada can export wheat to the U.S., the reverse is not true.
But according to a Canadian Wheat Board official, if American farmers have the right documents, they would have no trouble shipping wheat north across the border.
“The rules are essentially the same going both ways,” said information officer Tracy Bryska.
U.S. wheat coming into Canada requires an end-use certificate indicating that it is going to a specific processing plant or feed lot, or for use as seed. Feed wheat must also be denatured, or colored. In addition, an import permit is required under the Plant Protection Act and a phytosanitary certificate must be obtained from the Canadian Grain Commission.
There is no cost for permits and they shouldn’t be a barrier to any legitimate cross-border trade, said Bryska, describing them as “quality control.”
Canadian wheat going into the U.S. also requires an end-use certificate. Canadian wheat must be binned separately in U.S. storage facilities and it must carry a guarantee that it is going to be consumed in the U.S. and not exported.
