Mr. Speaker, I have just received notice that Agrium's Carseland fertilizer facility has gone down due to mechanical failure. Agrium's Redwater, Alberta, nitrogen facility is expected to go down in mid-May, partway through spring seeding. Prices have already skyrocketed in the last few months, and it is not obvious why this has happened.
As well, grain companies across Canada have driven down the price they are paying farmers for their grains and oilseeds. This is not due to a drop in world prices, but has only been possible because of the slow grain movement by CN and CP.
There seems to be a common thread here. It seems to me that these types of cost increases for farm inputs are only possible because of a lack of competition, and the lower grain prices are only possible because of a lack of competition in that sector. This is always hard to prove, but I doubt we would see these issues, which are so difficult for farmers to deal with, if there were more competition. Any further reduction in competition should not be allowed, at least until companies prove they can do the job.