Driving across the prairies at this time of year has always been a wonderfully Canadian experience for me. Green or brown tend to dominate the landscape, depending on how wet the summer has been.
Harvesting of hay and other early crops is underway, and there’s a peace and serenity to the picture which is quietly inspiring.
There have definitely been changes since I first traveled that stretch between Winnipeg and Regina, long before I was old enough to be the person behind the wheel. The biggest change has been the disappearance of those familiar wooden elevators, including the red one at Fleming that said Lake of the Woods Milling. It came down in an unfortunate fire a couple of years ago.
Wooden grain elevator at Fleming, Alberta.
Others have mostly been replaced by those imposing concrete structures called inland terminals. They carry names like Cargill and Viterra and Richardson. They are the product of the global economy, and politics.
Since the beginning of August, the Canadian Wheat Board no longer has the monopoly to sell wheat and barley that is grown on those prairie fields. The CWB has been around for more than 70 years, and it appears they are not about to quickly fade away.
Wheat blowing in wind beneath big prairie sky.
As the first crop year under the new regime begins, hundreds of Wheat Board employees have been terminated, but the survivors seem to be doing quite well.
They have concluded grain handling agreements with a number of major players including Richardson International of Winnipeg. This will give farmers more than 170 locations across the prairies where they can deliver their crop and be confident that it will be handled and marketed by experienced people who know what they’re doing.
Chances are the producers who continue to market through the Board will be barely acknowledged by the likes of Stephen Harper and Gerry Ritz, but don’t be surprised if they do amazingly well on a world market where prices are very strong.
I’m Roger Currie
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