The venerable name of Saskatchewan Wheat Pool is destined for the trash heap in the wake of its takeover of Agricore United. It stands to reason, since the new company encompasses more than Saskatchewan, handles many commodities in addition to wheat, and hasn’t been a pool for years.
And that means the high foreheads and the branding experts have been conscripted. Their mission: to choose a name for the company that befits its brawny new look and status.
Why should they have all the fun? Let’s take a stab at it ourselves.
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First off, let’s not saddle the agricultural world with yet another acronym the likes of SWP-AU. And though SWAUP has some possibilities given the many property swaps with Cargill and James Richardson International as part of the final deal, it lacks panache.
A number of names can be derived using letters from Saskatchewan Wheat Pool and Agricore United: SUPERCO; TOUCHWOOD; A GIANT DEAL; and even SNUGLEE RAT. There doesn’t seem to be a new name that uses all the letters. Perhaps we should look further.
In light of Pool CEO Mayo Schmidt’s employment history, CanAgra might be a consideration, though it’s uncomfortably similar to the American corporate giant for which Schmidt once laboured.
How about Phoenix? It’s kind of obvious, but has the virtue of recognizing recent Pool history. Or perhaps a Latin translation? Magnus mica vexillum, which means big grain company. Classy, but it won’t fit very well on the side of an elevator.
Maybe the job is best left to the high foreheads after all.
Which brings us to another piece of business, this one concerning one of our best known columnists.
Don Purich, who has written the law column for 18 years, has chosen to pursue other opportunities. Today he presents his final instalment on page 77.
Purich signed up in June 1989 and readers wasted no time in sending him their legal queries. He had his work cut out for him, given the wide WP readership and the differences in laws among the provinces.
In times when the law seems less accessible to the people, Purich was a respected guide. We’re grateful for the expertise he provided and we wish him well in his continued publishing endeavours.
We will miss Don, but fortunately we have been able to find a new writer for the law column starting next week. Richard Danyliuk has practiced law in Saskatoon since 1983, has taught at the University of Saskatchewan College of Law and last year was awarded the Queen’s Counsel designation. We welcome him to the fold.
