In the April 28 issue ofThe Western Producer,Greg Petryshyn of Foam Lake, Sask., ridicules comments made previously by Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) supporter Glen Tait. He has also claimed previous comments that I have made as being invalid, with absolutely no proof to back his claim.
Mr. Petryshyn has then made the claim that his comments are validated by an Australian farmer who says, “die hard pool participants had so many pool choices, so they can have their cake and eat it too”…
Read Also
Agriculture needs to prepare for government spending cuts
As government makes necessary cuts to spending, what can be reduced or restructured in the budgets for agriculture?
Mr. Petryshyn also repeats a previous comment, “in an open market many buyers and many sellers interact to find a point of equilibrium, a price where they transact.” This statement may actually be true.
A very important factor, which Mr. Petryshyn has omitted, is the continual surplus production of CWB marketed crops. Marketing experts (as mentioned in a previousWestern Producer),indicate that in most years there is an annual world surplus of 15 to 25 percent of crops, which compete with our exported wheat and barley crops.
This surplus is usually the result of the U.S. and European subsidies. This compares to a surplus of only zero to 10 percent in non-board crops, such as canola and flax.
Western farmers are already well aware of what the surplus production of feed barley does to the “equilibrium point” prices we receive on the open markets. Farmers, knowing that large surpluses exist, start selling the grain at lower prices in order to market the grain, lowering the “equilibrium point”.
This is felt the most by farmers in countries such as Canada, who are large producers, yet receive very small subsidies. The single desk marketing of wheat and barley prevents the grain companies from pitting farmers against each other, in order to sell malt barley and exported grain, in which there is usually a 15 to 25 percent surplus.
Fred G. Willis,Saltcoats, Sask.
