U.S. Wheat Farmer Shares His Struggles With Selling Grain To Canada

Dec 06, 2018

A wheat grower from Montana shared his struggles with the invisible 49th parallel at Agri-Trade in Red Deer, Alberta last month.

Previously, American farmers growing registered Canadian wheat varieties could only get the lowest grade when they sold their wheat in Canada.

Past President of the National Association of Wheat Growers, Gordon Stoner, farms near Outlook, Montana and says under the new NAFTA trade deal, American Farmers can now qualify for a Canadian Grain Commission Grade instead of their grain defaulting to feed.

"With NAFTA, or the USMCA as our president calls it, that will be facilitated. All my fertilizer comes from Saskatchewan, so I can see the day where I'm going to haul my wheat north and fertilizer back south."

Stoner, who farms right against the border, says Canada will still only take American wheat if it's a registered Canadian variety, which is one of the road blocks Canada still needs to address.

Source : Steinbachonline

Video: Why Invest in Canada’s Seed Future? | On The Brink: Episode 3

Darcy Unger just invested millions to build a brand-new seed plant on his farm in Stonewall, Manitoba so when it’s time for his sons to take over, they have the tools they need to succeed.

Right now, 95% of the genetics they’ll be growing come from Canadian plant breeders.

That number matters.

When fusarium hit Western Canada in the late 90s, it was Canadian breeders who responded, because they understood Canadian conditions. That ability to react quickly to what’s happening on Canadian farms is exactly what’s at risk when breeding programs lose funding.

For farmers like Darcy, who have made generational investments based on the assumption that better genetics will keep coming, the stakes are direct and personal.

We’re on the brink of decisions that will shape our agricultural future for not only our generation, but also the ones to come.

What direction will we choose?

On The Brink is a year-long video series traveling across Canada to meet the researchers, breeders, farmers, seed companies, and policymakers shaping the future of Canadian plant breeding. Each week, a new story. Each story, a piece of the bigger picture.

Episode 3 is above. Follow Seed World Canada to catch every episode, and tell us: Do you think the next generation will have the tools they need to success when they takeover? How is the future going to look?