The Southeast Agri-News - January 20, 2012

Issue No. 145

January 20, 2012

A Supplement to the Southeast Trader Express

Combines In January?

Ray Neuman, who farms north of Estevan, took the untraditional opportunity to clean up some of his land by knocking down weeds that he couldn’t get to due to flood waters this past summer. Neuman took advantage of the warmer temperatures and moderate conditions to work the land just after Christmas and again in early January, clearing 400 acres.

9

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Page 2

SOUTHEAST AGRI NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2012

Nominations sought for Farm Family of the Year Farmer Appreciation Night, a big event for Estevan

By Norm Park for Agri-news The nominations should be flowing in by now, but the Estevan Chamber of Commerce and the Estevan Exhibition Association are very willing to accept more of them.

They are speaking, of course, about the nominations for the Farm Family of the Year, the long-standing coveted award that pays tribute to one of southeast Saskatchewan’s premier producers following a nomination and adjudication process.

The Chamber and Exhibition Association are cosponsors and presenters at the gala evening affair along with several corporate supporters.

Alf Tide, who is helping co-ordinate the annual Farmer Appreciation Night in Estevan on March 8 at the Days Inn Plaza, said the lineup of

the guest speaker and some of the entertainment has already been completed, but the committee would like to have a full roster of Farm Family of the Year nominations in to the Estevan Chamber of Commerce (to the attention of Michel Cyrenne) before the Feb. 15 deadline.

“I believe it’s the 47th annual awarding for the Farm Family part of the program,”

said Tide.

“This year the keynote speaker is J.P. Gervais from the Farm Credit Corp., who will address the challenges surround the current world economy as it relates to the Canadian economy.”

The deficit and debt crisis in Europe will be a part of the issues that Gervais will speak about during his speech.

The organizers have again arranged for a trio of award-winning 4-H speakers to make their presentations to the audience which is expected to be in excess of 300, making it a complete sell-out.

“Right now though, we want to emphasize the need to get the nominations in. It can be for any grain or cattle or other agricultural producer

who operates within the rural municipalities around Estevan. That includes about 10 RMs,” said Tide.

The rest of the evening’s entertainment package is yet to be completed, but Tide said that will probably be announced by the end of January.

As in the past, there is an open invitation for Estevan MLA Doreen Eagles, MP Ed

Komarnicki and provincial Agriculture Minister Bob Bjornerud, Tide said.

“It’s a huge event, a full evening with lots of information and entertainment and good food. It’s a popular thing for Estevan and the salute to the Farm Family of the Year is a big part of it, so we want to have lots of good nominees that the judges can look at,” Tide said in conclusion.

Winter wheat acreage up substantially The advantages of winter wheat have never been more pronounced than they have been this year.

The snow cover is not there, but the decisions to plant winter wheat were made some time ago and the acres seeded to winter wheat are up significantly, said Statistics Canada.

The seeded acres were released in mid-December

2011 and Stats Canada confirmed that the acreage planted is up quite a bit as a result of a wet spring and early summer. Farmers are seeing the many benefits of growing winter wheat and the potential of this fallseeded crop is still growing.

The only blip on the screen though, is the lack of good snow cover, which could hamper late-spring,

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“Winter wheat was a great solution for farmers who couldn’t seed this past spring,” said Paul Thoroughgood, regional agrologist with Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC). “Including winter wheat in the crop rotation improves the efficiency of the operation by conserving labour and capital by distributing the

workload throughout the year.”

The seeded acreage for this past fall is over 1.3 million, up from 695,000 acres seeded in 2010. The provincial breakdown for winter wheat acres seeded in 2011, heading into 2012 was 580,000 in both Manitoba and Saskatchewan and 175,000 in Alberta.

“New varieties, im-

proved marketing options and the agronomic advantages provided by winter wheat make it an attractive choice for many growers.

Farmers know growing winter wheat is a better use of soil moisture. In the spring, when others are fighting wet seeding conditions, winter wheat is already in the ground growing,” said Thoroughgood.

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For all of your Farm, Commercial & Industrial Needs Published monthly in Southeast Saskatchewan by the Prairie Newspaper Group., a subsidiary of Glacier Media. The Glacier group of companies collects personal information from our customers in the normal course of business transactions. We use that information to provide you with our products and services you request. On occasion we may contact you for purposes of research, surveys and other such matters. To provide you with better service we may share your personal information with our sister companies and also outside, selected third parties who perform work for us as suppliers, agents, service providers and information gatherers. Our subscription list may be provided to other organizations who have products and services that may be of interest to you. If you do not wish to participate in such matters, please contact us at the following address: The Southeast AgriNews, Box 730, Estevan, Saskatchewan, S4A 2A6; or phone (306) 634-2654. For a complete statement of our privacy policy, please go to our Website at: www.estevanmercury.ca The Southeast AgriNews is owned and operated by Boundary Publishers Ltd., a subsidiary of Glacier Ventures International Corp.

We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Publications Assistance Program toward our mailing costs.

Editor: Norm Park Publisher: Peter Ng Advertising Manager: Cindy Beaulieu email: normpark@estevanmercury.ca 68 Souris Avenue, Estevan Phone: 634-2654 Fax: 634- 3934

SOUTHEAST AGRI NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2012

Gone baby gone ... or is it?

By Norm Park for Agri-news It’s positive, it’s a done deal.

No, it’s terrible and it’s not over yet.

Pick your sides, choose your team and enter the fray, especially if you are a Western Canadian grain producer because you are the one who really counts when it comes to the great Canadian Wheat Board debate.

According to the federal government’s Agriculture and Agrifood Minister Gerry Ritz, it’s a battle that is already won and the supporters of the single desk CWB model are the losers.

But supporters of the CWB, the way it was, figure the battle is still on and they have court documents to prove their case, even if Ritz refers to the court challenges as “specious.”

Ritz, the MP for Battlefords-Lloydminster, was back in his home province last week, standing in front of a friendly audience, the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association during their annual convention on Jan. 5, stating that “at the end of the day, this is a done deal.”

But on Dec. 7, Federal Court Justice Douglas Campbell ruled the Conservative government had broken the law by introducing the legislation that started the process of ending the CWB’s monopoly (single desk) status. The ruling stated government was bound by its own legislation, the CWB Act passed in 1998, referring specifically to Section 47.1 that required decisions such as this to be subjected to a plebiscite.

The majority government however, proceeded with their new legislation to end the CWB’s monopoly, providing it with royal assent Dec. 15.

Former CWB chairman Allen Oberg said there are now two court actions that have to be dealt with by the government and that legal action would continue because he, and others, felt it was important that not only farmers, but all Canadians, required some clarity and justification.

“I think it’s an issue of democracy,” Oberg said, suggesting that it was a bit strange that a group of people outside of government were forcing the issue and not the government itself.

Oberg was one of eight elected directors who were removed from their CWB duties by the government as the new legislation was passed.

Oberg, other former CWB directors and Friends

of the Canadian Wheat Board, are asking a Manitoba court for an injunction to stop Bill C-18, the bill to eliminate the single desk mandate at the CWB, until its validity is determined in the courts ... a case that was to begin Jan. 16.

Oberg also said it was curious that the federal government is appealing Campbell’s December ruling even though they (government) passed legislation that was contrary to his ruling.

Ritz, on the other hand, while declaring the demise of the CWB’s single desk status as a done deal, said he felt the energy would be best expended in finding ways in which a voluntary wheat board could remain a strong asset for Prairie producers, noting that the government was willing to support a transition program for up to five years at $5 million per year. He emphasized that the key point was “up” to five years, to ensure they have an opportunity to provide an option for farmers.

The Canadian Wheat Board, as it exists today, will be only a note in history as of Aug. 1 of this year.

If and when that moment arrives, said Oberg, Prairie producers will be set back 100 years.

Meantime, Saskatchewan and Alberta governments have welcomed the new legislation, while Manitoba hasn’t. Groups such as the Western Canadian Wheat Growers cheer the decision while the National Farmers Union don’t.

Ralph Goodale, Liberal MP for Wascana, called for an independent study on the impact the elimination will have on farmers, wheat and barley prices and the entire Canadian grain industry including transportation, grain movement.

Goodale is a former federal agriculture minister and former minister responsible for the CWB. He referred to the current government’s move to enact legislation in defiance of the courts, “unprecedented.”

He said concerns surrounding such things as risk premiums and initial payments have yet to be answered. Other issues, he said, involved check-offs that are deducted from grain payments. He wanted to know where that money will now go and who will be accountable for them and accountable for the cost of various services that will now be controlled by government, including those provided by producer-owned terminals, short-line railroads and producer cars.

Page 3

WEYBURN INLAND TERMINAL LTD. Canadian Wheat Board Delivery Contract Summary PERCENTAGES

SERIES “A”

CALLED: CALLED 2011-2012 Crop Year – Red Spring #1 (13.5 % & higher) 75% Red Spring #1 (13.4% & lower) 75% Red Spring #2 (13.5% & higher) 75% Red Spring #2 (13.4% & lower) 75% Red Spring #3 (13.5% & higher) 100% Red Spring #3 (13.4% & lower) 100% Red Spring #4 100% CFW – CPS Red 1 & 2 100% CPS White – Red Winter 1 & 2 100% Extra Strong 1 & 2 – Durum #1 (13% & higher) 75% Durum #1 (12.9% & lower) 75% Durum #2 (13% & higher) 75% Durum #2 (12.9% & lower) 75% Durum #3 75% Durum #4 75% Durum #5 –

WIT STOCK QUOTATIONS

ACCEPTED

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

– – – – Week– Ending 52-wk *Close –Volume Yield** – low* 52-wk high – January 13, 2012 $13.25 $13.45 $13.32 0 1.88% – – – – *Based on trading price of a minimum of one board lot which is equal to 100 shares.

– – – – **Based – on the semi-annual–dividends paid in the–previous 12 months–and the current market price.

– – – – Contact: Union Securities – – – – Suite 102 - 2002 Cornwall St., Regina, Sask. S4P 2K5 – – – – (306) 565-4462 • Toll Free 1-877-525-7650 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – Regular – delivery hours–are 7:00 a.m. to 8:00–p.m. OPEN MONDAY – TO SATURDAY CROP INPUT & PELLET HOURS ARE: Mon. Fri.: 8 a.m.

– – – – - 5 p.m.

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SOUTHEAST AGRI NEWS, FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2012

Hawes Agro bought WGI Westman Group Inc., a North American group of agricultural, commercial and industrial steel product manufacturing companies, has acquired Hawes Agro of Saskatoon.

Hawes has been manufacturing high-quality hydraulic auger movers for the agricultural market since 2000. Hawes Agro movers will be bundled with WGI’s Sakundiak Equipment division augers to provide a more complete grain movement package for North American farmers.

“Hawes Agro is known for their commitment to service, quality and innovation,” said Paul Cunningham, president and chief executive officer of WGI Westman Group.

“Their product line, location and employee team significantly strengthen our position as a leader in the agricultural storage and handling market. We’re extremely pleased to welcome their team, dealers and customers to the WGI family.”

WGI Westman, headquartered in Brandon, Manitoba, is an entrepreneurial group of companies comprised of Meridian Manufacturing Group, Sakundiak Equipment, BEHLEN Industries LP, Westman Steel Industries, TS Metals and CanadaCulvert.

The WGI Westman Group operates manufacturing, sales and distribution facilities in 25 centres across North America.

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