Evidence of meeting #20 for Agriculture and Agri-Food in the 39th Parliament, 2nd session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was farmers.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Bezan
That is a point. It is about relevance to the study that we're undertaking right now.
I've had a few complaints from witnesses who have appeared. It diminishes our ability as a committee to do our work when we play partisanship. I know we're all partisan politicians--
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Bezan
--but when we make partisan comments and expose.... The witnesses are here to provide their best input and help us in conducting our studies. I do ask all members of this committee to keep the political rhetoric to a minimum so that our witnesses feel comfortable being at the table and sharing with us their positions on the relevant study that's before us right now.
Liberal
Wayne Easter Liberal Malpeque, PE
I'd just point out, Mr. Chair, that this is not partisanship. The fact is a legal challenge was put forward to the Speaker in the House over this. Mr. Qualman has a point in his brief about rebalancing market power. This goes to the issue of market power.
So you can answer that, Darrin.
I have a question for Mr. Orb on own-use imports. You didn't mention in your submission--or I didn't catch it if you did--if you have any examples of differences in prices, of what the savings were as a result of own-use imports. I agree, actually, with Brian's point earlier on GROU. It isn't working. Own-use imports seem to be.
What was the net benefit to Canadian farmers of own-use imports?
Member of the Board, Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities
Are you talking about the total program or just the chemical...?
Liberal
Wayne Easter Liberal Malpeque, PE
I mean on a product basis. If you're buying Roundup, what's the differential in price? What are chemical companies charging here versus what they would have to drop their prices to or what you could import at?
Member of the Board, Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities
I'm sorry, I don't have that information with me. I was looking at it, but I haven't got it here. We could get the information to you if it would help.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Bezan
I've asked that SARM submit that to the committee as quickly as possible.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Bezan
We'll have Mr. Qualman, and please keep your comments short, because Mr. Easter's time has just about expired.
Director of Research, National Farmers Union
Yes, very briefly, it is a question of power. The problem Canadian farmers are having is that they produce huge profits. The efficiency numbers are incredible. The production numbers are incredible. But the places where profits are made and the places where profits are captured are two different places. We make profits on our farm, but they're captured somewhere else. That's the story we're trying to tell in our brief--the power imbalance between input makers and farmers is such that the input makers get to capture all the profits that formerly went to our farms.
Mr. Easter's point is the right one. If the destruction of the Wheat Board and the Canadian Grain Commission and regulated transport and the seed system and the quality system through the end of KVD further disempowers farmers, that will have a direct effect on profit. Our profit will go down, and the profits of grain companies and other input manufacturers will go up. So it's absolutely a question of power, because that determines the allocation of profit within the system.
Conservative
Conservative
Carol Skelton Conservative Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, SK
To start off with, I'd like to thank each of you for coming today.
I will make a comment. I've had an awful lot of calls from farmers saying they would like to be out from under the Wheat Board and that they need KVD regulations changed to have marketing power so they can grow higher-producing crops on the prairies. That's my comment.
Mr. Wideman, I have a question. You talked about novel and alternate ingredients in your production. What kinds of ingredients are you talking about?
Executive Director, Animal Nutrition Association of Canada
Under the Feeds Act, every ingredient that is used in Canada must be approved by the CFIA for use in commercial feed production. There are a number of products that have been created within the confines of Canada using Canadian research that basically are bogged down waiting for regulatory approval so they can be used, and yet they are being used by competitors in the United States.
For example, there's a whole group of enzyme-based, probiotic-based products. There is no grouping under the Feeds Act for those products. In other words, they fall into a category that nobody ever imagined would exist. So the producers and the manufacturers of those products are struggling to get them registered. Our government looks at them and says, well, they're not a medication and they're not an antibiotic. But they treat them like that and require that they have that kind of research done on them, even though they're naturally occurring bacteria or enzymes.
Conservative
Carol Skelton Conservative Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, SK
Is it CFIA that's causing you this problem?
Executive Director, Animal Nutrition Association of Canada
It also falls into Health Canada's realm. For all these products there's a lot of debate about whose playground this is in.
Conservative
Carol Skelton Conservative Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, SK
Okay, so it's CFIA and Health Canada that accepts....
Conservative
Carol Skelton Conservative Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, SK
Mr. Orb, how many rural people in Saskatchewan does SARM represent?
Member of the Board, Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities
We represent all of rural Saskatchewan, basically, other than Saskatoon and Regina.
Conservative
Member of the Board, Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities
Is it the farmers you're talking about?
Member of the Board, Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities
It is about 50,000 farmers.
Conservative
Carol Skelton Conservative Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, SK
It is about 50,000.
Data indicate that pesticide and herbicide prices in 2007 lagged behind that of other input costs, like fertilizer and fuel and stuff. How important is the energy cost in the manufacturing of pesticides and herbicides, and do you think the prices are going to go up for pesticides and herbicides this year?