Evidence of meeting #67 for Agriculture and Agri-Food in the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was manitoba.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
Frank Valeriote Liberal Guelph, ON
Thank you, David. Thank you, Cal. I'm Frank Valeriote. I have a couple of questions.
I had the opportunity to read a report on the new fee structure for the Canadian Grain Commission. I ultimately don't support the findings and the conclusions of that report. I'll publicly tell you that, and I'll tell you why and what it stems from.
I read in the report that the government has decided to ascribe 9% to the public good in its fee structure and 91% to the private good; therefore, 91% of the cost should be absorbed by the industry, which, as I think we all know and as was admitted in the report, will ultimately be passed down to farmers.
In the United States they ascribe 37% to the public good and 63% to private good. In the United States they are ascribing four times as much to the public good, which reduces the pressure on farmers.
I've talked to stakeholders since I had an opportunity to look at that report, and they've expressed their concern to me about that issue. I wonder whether you can comment on it, in light of the fee structure, and say whether you're content with the 9%-91% division.
We can start with David.
Director, Western Feed Grain Development Co-op Ltd.
I am going to suggest that Cal is probably more.... While it affects us, he is probably more attuned to it.
President, Vandaele Seeds Ltd.
I'm not really well versed on the whole thing, to be honest with you. We don't have to do inward or outward inspections, so I'm not really up to speed on some of the issues. My involvement with the Canadian Grain Commission is that we're a licensed and bonded grain buyer with the Canadian Grain Commission.
We have to post a bond. There has been a lot of discussion in the Grain Commission about that subject. There is still an unlevel playing field, because as a grain buyer, I have to post a bond and do audited reports for the Grain Commission, whereas other buyers don't have to. If you're a cattle feed lot or a feed mill or if you buy canary seed, which is considered exempt, bonding isn't required, so there is—
Liberal
Frank Valeriote Liberal Guelph, ON
I'm sorry to interrupt you. I look forward to getting a continuation of your answer later, but I was trying to focus in on that very issue, and if you're not able to or you don't feel comfortable, that's fine and I respect that.
David, are you any more able, or would you prefer I ask a different question?
Director, Western Feed Grain Development Co-op Ltd.
Probably a different question would be—
Liberal
Frank Valeriote Liberal Guelph, ON
Okay.
David, you spoke of how, now that there are off-patent seeds, there's not a lot of competition that has arisen with respect to off-patent seeds.
I guess in my own mind I ascribe some of that to the fact that—in fact, I've learned this travelling across the country, as many of us have over a number of occasions—there's a decline in the amount of investment in public research. I'm wondering if you agree that may be a contributing factor.
As well, can you tell me, in your opinion, why there doesn't seem to be greater competition in off-patent seeds? Is it because of the amount of capital that would have to be invested? Do farmers naturally shy away from it? I don't know. Can you explain that further?
Director, Western Feed Grain Development Co-op Ltd.
I think so. There are probably two issues. I'd like to start with soybeans.
Soybeans are a relatively easy crop. It's not a hybrid crop, so we can make crosses reasonably easily, but we don't know if we can actually use the Roundup Ready 1 gene.Some people say we can, while other people say we need to get permission from Monsanto, and of course they'e not going to do it.
They've put in a lot of contractual laws that say as a farmer I could buy that seed, but I'm not allowed to use it for any other purpose, even though it may be off patent. Pioneer Hi-Bred has come up and said they have 260 patents on their soybeans and they're hiring ex-RCMP or ex-policemen to discover any misuse of their contract law, so people are afraid. You don't want to invest seven or 10 years in developing a trait with an off-patent gene, and then, even if you're right, if you're tied up in court because they have more legal expertise and a bigger legal budget, you've spent seven or 10 years doing nothing.
We need some clear rules on when something was off patent and how you take that germplasm the off-patent gene is in and incorporate it into your breeding program without fearing that you're going to be taken to court later on. We don't want to steal anything; we just want access to stuff that should be off patent and free.
The other thing is they use what they call evergreening. They add one patent to another patent, and then you can't separate that gene out of the mixture. There's no clear rule.
We've talked to CFIA, to the Seeds Act people, to companies that sell the seed, and of course they say you have to talk to Monsanto. I know why these companies are doing this, and if I were them I'd probably do the same thing, but I think for the public good and for competition in the market, we need some clearer rules on how we can use those things after they've already had the protection. I think fair is fair to some degree.
Conservative
Brian Storseth Conservative Westlock—St. Paul, AB
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Thank you to the witnesses for presenting today. It's nice to once again hear from good, hard-working people of Brandon.
I have a couple of questions for you, Cal, in regard to your former hockey career, but I understand the chair says that area is off limits, so I'll limit my questions to your comments.
You talked about the limited hours of service at the border crossing. Do you have any recommendations on things that the government could do to assist you in that? I understand you're in a bit of a different situation with your proximity to the U.S. border.
President, Vandaele Seeds Ltd.
Thank you. It's probably more of an issue for our company than an industry issue, but we sit at the door of Manitoba. To go to the nearest commercial crossing, we have to go out of our way 30 miles to the east and then back. If we're heading to the western U.S.A. with a load back, it's another 30 miles. Then, of course, you get into road restriction season.
It just seems logical that Highway 83 be a major trade corridor, an unrestricted highway running from Manitoba to Texas. We have this border crossing, but it's really of no value to us as a business. Even if it wasn't a 24-hour crossing, even if we had the ability to just use it for commercial shipments so that we could send the trucks that way, in our business it would be savings of tens of thousands of dollars a year.
Conservative
Brian Storseth Conservative Westlock—St. Paul, AB
Is the key there the access to the infrastructure as well?
President, Vandaele Seeds Ltd.
The infrastructure's good. It's a great highway. It's unrestricted. In load restriction season, once you cross the U.S. border, you're still on unrestricted highway. That's the issue. Especially in load restriction season, when we go to the ports of Dunseith or Boissevain, for example, as soon as you cross the border to head back west if you're heading with a load to Oregon, California, Wyoming, or any of the western states, you run into all these restricted highways, so you have to start taking turkey trails or finding unrestricted highways. It's a major business inconvenience.
Conservative
Brian Storseth Conservative Westlock—St. Paul, AB
You said you farm 10,000 acres. Did I get that correct?
Conservative
President, Vandaele Seeds Ltd.
Zero, but our company is in the organic business. We buy, process, and export organic grains as well.
Conservative
Brian Storseth Conservative Westlock—St. Paul, AB
Am I correct in assuming the reason you don't have organic acres in those 10,000 acres is a business decision?
President, Vandaele Seeds Ltd.
Yes. I think we have seen a trend whereby some of the smaller farms have migrated to the organic business to seek out higher premiums on their production and keep smaller farms more viable.
Conservative
Brian Storseth Conservative Westlock—St. Paul, AB
How viable would it be for you if there was zero tolerance out there, rather than low-level tolerance, which is what you're asking for? What would the effects be for you if there were zero tolerance with regard to canola and other aspects of your farm when it came to trade negotiations and potentially even some domestic laws?
President, Vandaele Seeds Ltd.
Yes. That's reality for us today. As we speak, we're trying to process flax at our seed plant, and almost every shipment of flaxseed we bring in from western Canadian farmers has trace amounts of canola in it, whether it's cross-contamination from bins and trucks or whether it's volunteer growth in the fields.
We know canola is GM material and we're trying to export to Europe, so, yes, it's the reality for us today. Low-level presence is the only way to deal with it.
Conservative
Brian Storseth Conservative Westlock—St. Paul, AB
Perfect. Thank you very much for your time and your presentation.
