It looks like the fight over the end of the Canadian Wheat Board's single desk will not be going to the Supreme Court.
The court has declined to hear the appeal presented by the Friends of the Canadian Wheat Board.
Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz welcomed the decision.
"We are pleased with today's decision that upheld the right of western Canadian grain farmers to make their own business decisions," said Ritz in a statement. "The overwhelming majority of Prairie grain farmers are already taking advantage of the benefits of an open market. Our Government will continue to defend the rights of farmers and work with them to strengthen Canadian agriculture and our overall economy."
Stewart Wells, chair of the Friends of the CWB, said they will continue with the class action lawsuit, which they believe has not been affected by the Supreme Court decision.
"We do not believe that the Supreme Court ruling declining to consider the issues raised by the Campbell decision regarding the rights of farmers to have a vote on the disposition of our Canadian Wheat Board has a direct effect on our class action lawsuit to either restore the CWB or obtain over $17 billion in damages from Ottawa for the loss of single desk marketing," said Wells in a separate statement. "The class action is based on several legal principles which were not before the Supreme Court and as a result the class action is not affected by today’s ruling. While wheat and barley prices have been exceptionally good due to severe droughts in most of the worlds grain growing regions, the fact remains that producers have lost the premiums on high protein wheat and malt barley which the CWB was able to obtain for the benefit of farmers"
Source: Portageonline