Agriculture committee  One of the issues of declaration goes back to the Canada Seeds Act. Under it, you can't name a variety unless it's certified. That's one of the changes that would have to happen. Under the Seeds Act, you cannot name a pedigree variety as its own, or even say it's anything like th

Agriculture committee  It's performance-based.

Agriculture committee  You mentioned that growers have to provide a grade for their product upon delivery. Is that what you said?

Agriculture committee  There are differences, I believe, in accountability. At the moment it is very difficult to find accountability. In saying that, I think one of the big differences between your market and ours is that we're shipping, as a rule, large volumes of grain, especially in the case of whe

Agriculture committee  I have just one specific example, and Conrad maybe is the person to comment. When the Canadian wheat was grading number three and receiving a very low price, that same product could go across the border and be sold into the U.S. system at a higher value.

Agriculture committee  Okay. There were some major studies done. I think the most proof in the pudding that this can operate is the case of Ontario; it's the system they use. It's not only used in Ontario; it's used in many jurisdictions in the U.S.

Agriculture committee  Thank you for your question. Previously there was an option for a grower to deliver to an unlicensed company at their own risk, and some people recommend that this indeed be part of the new system. Right now the risk insurance for a farmer is covered by a system of bonds. This m

Agriculture committee  We deal every day with a non-CGC grader, with SGS. They follow the Canada Grain Act standards. Indeed, we've conducted our business...because if you're not licensed and bonded, you cannot access CGC grades. SGS is a world-recognized grading house. Indeed, they may be one; there m

Agriculture committee  Most of my shipments to Montreal are in containers. Most of my shipments to Thunder Bay are feed. I could only comment on Vancouver.

Agriculture committee  One of the things I find good in the recommendations of this report is the fact that they actually recommend review and reporting, and they set timeframes on it. I think one of the failures of agricultural policy, indeed certainly in the recent history, is our failure to review w

Agriculture committee  Basically, grading is a human function. It's a visual function. You throw a sample on a desk and you have a set of parameters that the Grain Commission comes up with annually that you compare your grades to. Obviously in a year like this, when the quality is very good, there is v

Agriculture committee  I'll just add something quickly. Farmer declarations are fairly easily done in the industry. There is a maturity that's approaching our industry, resulting in farms increasing in size exponentially every year--out of necessity, I might add. But there is also provision in the th

Agriculture committee  In the Ontario model, the insurance cost started out almost up to 2% higher, I believe. Of course, you're insuring a larger volume. Also, in the current scenario with the Canadian Wheat Board, a lot of grain is obviously already banked by the Government of Canada, so your risks a

Agriculture committee  I won't say any more on that. In terms of security, there's a false sense of security that the farmers have had, in terms of what they were covered for. From what I see in this revision, the farmer ultimately is affected by every cost you put on him. If it's inefficient.... Lik

Agriculture committee  The arbitration committees I think are immediate and effective, and they perhaps remove it from what appears to be the hallowed halls of the Grain Commission, which we aren't always able to penetrate. Just this fall I had a difference in grading with some cars that were graded i