International Trade committee  Let me be more direct: it will not work. We tried it in Costa Rica, and it does not work. We are marketing our sugars. They are good producers of sugar, the sugar beets; we are the marketers of sugar, and we pay a fixed price to our growers. What we would have to sell to Colombia...we can't lose money on our stuff, or there's no reason to grow it.

International Trade committee  We are right now doing a study to see if we could produce ethanol from our sugar beets, or another alternative input that we would have to help our plant for 12 months a year, because sugar beets are only four to five months. We are doing a study right now. As a feedstock for ethanol, sugar beets are very expensive, as you probably know, but we are investigating that.

International Trade committee  Yes, it is. It's the only place we now produce Canadian sugar to talk about. That gives us access to a small U.S. quota of 10,000 tonnes. As you well know, this plant is probably the one most in jeopardy right now because it is the smallest plant. The problem we're having is that in a bad crop year--usually Vancouver has a swing capacity--could we afford to have only one plant in western Canada, that being the Taber sugar beet plant?

International Trade committee  Yes, Flexible Solutions, which just invested millions of dollars to produce a product there, and they will be starting early next year, I believe.

International Trade committee  Very much so. That's one of the new industries that came to southern Alberta that is very key for us also, for the sugar beet plant in Taber, Alberta. For them to lose their feedstock would be horrible, after all the investment they have made.

International Trade committee  In a normal year we would have about 35,000 to 37,000 acres of sugar beets. That will put back into the Taber community around $30 million to $35 million in income for these growers, so it's a very important crop. The one thing the beet growers like about this crop is that it's a resistant crop.

International Trade committee  Just as an example, as we said, in 2004-05, when they came in, basically they probably sold about 4,000 to 5,000 tonnes in Canada. The other thing is that they marketed probably 150,000 tonnes in western Canada, so we had to match prices in many instances in order to retain our market share and retain our market.

International Trade committee  As for job losses, they vary depending on the plan. When you look at Vancouver, as an example, you're talking about 160 employees, but the important thing is also the type of job. Those blue-collar jobs are fast disappearing, and there are fewer and fewer of those available. That's very important.

International Trade committee  Our gross revenues last year were about $425 million.

International Trade committee  It depends on which one...in Vancouver there are about 160 full-time employees. In Taber, Alberta, there are about 100 full-time employees, plus another 200 part-time employees during campaign season, during the slicing season. And let's not forget 350 beet growers--not only our employees but the economy of southern Alberta itself.

International Trade committee  No, we didn't shut down a refinery. We invested heavily in our marketing programs. Rogers' results, within our public results...it probably cost us between $5 million and $10 million less in margins to compete with them. Over 2004, 2005, and 2006, and then when the U.S. had their disaster with Hurricane Katrina, they moved some of the sugar there and exited the Canadian market at that time.

International Trade committee  Our industry?

International Trade committee  With the status quo with Colombia?

International Trade committee  With Lantic and Rogers full-time employees, we have approximately 800 employees.

International Trade committee  Well, it will not put the whole company out of business, but it will more than likely force us to make a decision as to how many plants we will operate in the future. As I said, right now, with limited volume opportunity, especially in western Canada as it is today, and with them more than likely being more competitive on the western side than on the eastern side because of the freight going across the Panama Canal, we would have to make a very tough decision as to what to do with our Vancouver or our Taber facility.