Yes, the antics of the opposition on that committee.
We are committed to having western Canadian farmers have some understanding of what happened last year with the marketing problems that the Canadian Wheat Board had and the money that western Canadian farmers lost.
As the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food has said often, entrepreneurs need as many options as possible to market and sell their goods. This has never been more true than in today's economy.
We want farmers to have the freedom to choose whether to sell grain on the open market or through the Canadian Wheat Board. We believe that farmers deserve to have the ability to add value to their crops and capture more profits beyond the farm gate.
They also deserve to have the opportunity to seek out the best possible return for their own product, just as they can with canola, the pulse crops, cattle or any other number of farm products right across this country. They take all the risks, make all the investments and they should be able to have complete control of the marketing of their own products.
A Canadian Wheat Board monopoly on wheat was imposed by Parliament because of a variety of dynamics and reasons over 70 years ago. The barley monopoly is over 60 years old and today's market realities are vastly different. Today there are numerous new and growing exporters and export markets around the world.
We have moved away from the commodity procurement of the past where we just had bulk amounts of grain grown, bulk amounts sold and bulk amounts delivered to a situation in which a large number of mainly private buyers want to be able to select a range of quality attributes for particular market segments. This niche development is taking place everywhere.
In fact, the other day in the agriculture committee Dr. Brian Fowler talked about how many of the varieties that are being developed in Saskatoon and elsewhere in Saskatchewan cannot be used in Canada because of the Canadian Wheat Board marketing system. Our good friends in Montana and other American states get to benefit from the research that is done in our country because of our marketing system.
Buyers want high quality products which Canadians produce but they want them delivered at a certain time, in a certain way, in a manner that farmers are best able to meet. Farmers are looking for new value-added revenue streams and greater marketing flexibility. We are listening to farmers. We want them to succeed.
Currently by law, western Canadian grain growers do not have the same rights as other producers in this country about where to sell their products. They do not have the rights that they enjoy with their other crops.