Federal agriculture minister Gerry Ritz made a brief stop in Saskatoon this week to announce the formation of a new industry group that will identify and discuss issues related to grain logistics in Western Canada.
The crop logistics working group will comprise grain industry stakeholders including producer groups, shippers, grain elevator companies and railways.
The group will provide a forum for all players in the grain industry supply chain to exchange views, share information and address concerns arising from Western Canada’s transition to an open grain marketing environment.
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Representation in the group will be announced in the near future and is expected to include about 10 members.
Ritz announced the formation of the new group during a speech to members of the Inland Terminal Association of Canada Nov. 7.
“This group will be comprised of experts from across the entire (sector), including the grain elevator community, and will take a hard look at the key issues affecting the overall supply chain,” said Ritz.
The crop logistics group will also play a role in facilitating the Rail Freight Service Review process being conducted by Transport Canada.
The rail freight service review is aimed at creating a new commercial environment in which railways and shippers – including the grain industry – rely more heavily on commercial service agreements rather than government regulation.
Key to the new system is the development of a new template service agreement that will serve as a blueprint for business transactions between shippers and railway companies.
Another key element of the rail service review process will be the formation of a streamlined commercial dispute resolution process that allows aggrieved parties to raise concerns related to poor rail service or breach of contractual obligations by shippers.
Rail service has been an ongoing concern for the western Canadian grain industry, which has often complained of poor service related to the placement of hopper cars at inland locations and the timely movement of grain to port facilities.
Details of the dispute resolution process and the template service agreements will be worked out in the coming months, preferably before the elimination of single-desk grain marketing in Western Canada, said Ritz.
He also repeated assurances that the rights of producer car shipper and short-line railway associations will be protected in Western Canada’s new marketing and rail transportation environment.
“The bottom line is that we want to ensure that the agriculture sector is well positioned to play a more constructive role as the facilitation process unfolds.”
