WINNIPEG - Ottawa won't do it, so the Canadian Wheat Board's farmer-controlled board of directors is organizing its own vote on the marketing agency's future.
Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz has announced plans to strip the board of its monopoly without a vote, even though one is required by the current Canadian Wheat Board Act.
"Farmers have the right to be asked," said Allen Oberg who farms near Forestburg, Alta., and is chairman of the board that runs the agency.
"The current law requires that they be asked, but the federal government plans to change the law to circumvent that requirement."
He noted that Ritz and other Conservatives say the majority result in the May 2 federal election is enough of a plebiscite, but the board of directors doesn't agree.
"A fair plebiscite will settle this question."
Since the 1940s, Prairies farmers have had to sell their wheat and barley to the board, which in turn exports it to dozens of foreign markets.
A comment from Ritz emailed by a spokesperson Tuesday appeared to close the door on any hope he might bow to a vote.
"Once again, the Canadian Wheat Board is failing to realize that every single farmer should have the right to choose how they market their grain," the minister said in the email.
"Prairie farmers elected Conservative members of Parliament to deliver on our promise to give western Canadian grain farmers the freedom to decide when, where and how they market their grain.
"Farmers themselves do not support a plebiscite and our government once again invites the (wheat board) to work in the best interest of all farmers by focusing on earning farmers' business.
"Any plebiscite must never trump the rights of those farmers who want to choose how they market their own grain."
Oberg's announcement came just one day after a group called The Friends of the Canadian Wheat Board asked Federal Court to review the government's plan.
The farmers who make up the group also believe Ottawa's intention is in clear violation of the Canadian Wheat Board Act, which reads:
"The Minister shall not cause to be introduced in Parliament a bill that would exclude any kind, type, class or grade of wheat or barley, or wheat or barley produced in any area in Canada ... unless (a) the Minister has consulted with the board about the exclusion or extension; and (b) the producers of the grain have voted in favour of the exclusion or extension, the voting process having been determined by the Minister."
Opponents of the wheat board jumped into the fray as well Tuesday.
"We strongly encourage the wheat board to spend its time and resources in developing a new business model for the future," said Richard Phillips, executive director of the Grain Growers of Canada, an umbrella group that represents 13 grain, oilseed and pulse grower groups.
"It's unfortunate the wheat board is undertaking this when it is essential to ensure a smooth transition for farmers, including those who wish to continue selling through the board."
The Western Canadian Wheat Growers are calling on all Prairie farmers to refuse to participate in what they call an "illegitimate plebiscite."
The group says in a news release that the policy of the former Liberal government was to hold a vote among farmers before changes were made to the board's marketing mandate. But they say the Liberals are no longer in power and the new government has committed to giving western grain farmers the same rights and freedoms enjoyed by farmers elsewhere in Canada.
Supporters of the board say it has no future if it loses a guaranteed supply of western grain.
"The wheat board is the largest and most successful grain marketing company in the world. It's a Canadian success story," said federal NDP wheat board critic Pat Martin.
"I have to hand it to them, they've found a brilliant way to circumvent the gag law."
The wheat board is operating under a federal order that prevents it from arguing its own case, but Oberg said all that counts is that farmers get to make a decision.
Oberg expects between 60,000 and 70,000 producers are eligible to vote. They include wheat board permit holders and any active farmer who has grown wheat or barley in the last five years.
They will be asked to vote separately on whether western wheat or barley should remain under the board's control.
