With the goal of providing better service to farmers, the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) today announced the results of an eight-month-long corporate review that will consolidate all services to farmers and related activities in one area. The corporate restructuring will involve a reduction in the number of staff positions by about 135 by July 2004.

The reductions were announced to CWB staff today by President and CEO Adrian Measner, who initiated a sweeping review of the corporation as one of his first actions immediately following his appointment in January 2003.

"We are positioning the CWB to deliver on our commitment to add value for Prairie farmers in every aspect of our business. We will be re-engineering our traditional activities to better meet the needs of farmers and customers and to ensure the CWB is the most effective and efficient organization it can be for the future," said Mr. Measner.
The review, which formally got underway in April 2003, involved the thorough evaluation of all CWB products, services and processes to determine how well they reflected the CWB's future direction. After determining the CWB's essential operational requirements, adjustments to the organizational structure and staffing requirements were identified. Opportunities to improve consistency and efficiency were also identified.

"As a commercial marketing organization, the CWB must operate in a way that reflects the new realities of the international grain trade," said Mr. Measner. "We've moved into an era of intense competition, as opposed to reliance on a few large, loyal customers. Our farmer stakeholders are under severe financial pressure and need to extract maximum value from the marketplace."

Mr. Measner also noted that since 1998, farmers, not government, control the CWB and expect strict management of administrative expenses, accountability and transparency. "Farmers must be able to see evidence of our commitment in this regard," he said.

The staff reductions will come from a combination of a hiring freeze (where all vacant positions will be eliminated), outsourcing and terminations. At full staff, the CWB employs 584 people at its headquarters in Winnipeg, farm business offices in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and Airdrie, Alberta (including 15 farm business reps who live and work in communities across the Prairies), a logistics office in Vancouver, and international sales offices in Beijing, China and Tokyo, Japan.

Controlled by western Canadian farmers, the CWB is the largest wheat and barley marketer in the world. As one of Canada's biggest exporters, the Winnipeg-based company sells grain to more than 70 countries and returns all sales revenue, less marketing costs, to Prairie farmers.