Welcome, committee, and good evening.
My name is Willem de Boer, and I'm a hog farmer from the east side of the island, Brudenell, P.E.I. I'm also chair of the P.E.I. Hog Commodity Marketing Board, which represents the interests of P.E.I. hog farmers. I'm joined today by Robert Harding, the board's executive director.
We have been actively involved in safety net issues on behalf of our producers for many years, and it is a pleasure to be here today to speak to you about our perspective on the agricultural policy framework.
Tonight we will focus our presentation on business risk management issues and competitiveness. To make it easier to listen to, Bob has less accent than I have, so he will do most of the talking.