The federal government’s plebiscite on marketing barley from Western Canada has been rendered meaningless by the inclusion of three options on producers’ ballots, the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) says.

The option asking farmers if they would prefer to sell their barley to any buyer, including the CWB, creates an unrealistic expectation that the CWB can continue to offer the same value to farmers without its single desk, said Ken Ritter, chair of the CWB’s farmer-controlled board of directors.

“This question is not, in our opinion, intended to accurately gauge farmers’ feelings on the issue of barley marketing since it perpetuates the belief that the CWB can be effective without its single desk,” Ritter said. “Including an impossible choice is not the way to consult with producers on an issue of such crucial economic importance.”

Minister Chuck Strahl announced the plebiscite question and voters’ list today in Red Deer, Alberta. The question asks farmers to choose between three options: the CWB single desk system, an open market, or an open market that retains the CWB.

The CWB recommended to the Minister that he adopt the questions forwarded by the major Prairie farm groups in October, which can be viewed at www.kap.mb.ca (PDF). This would have given farmers a clear and unbiased choice between maintaining their ability to market barley through the CWB single desk or removing the single desk for barley in favour of an open-market system.

Results from a recent plebiscite of Manitoba producers, which used the Prairie farm groups’ wording, showed 62 per cent of producers wished to retain the CWB single desk for barley.

Ritter said there is solid economic evidence that the CWB cannot add value for farmers without its single-desk structure. As an example, he pointed to a recent paper by University of Saskatchewan agricultural economics professor Murray Fulton, which can be viewed at www.kis.usask.ca. By contrast, there has been no economic analysis – not even by the Minister’s own task force – to support the contention that the CWB could continue to be “strong and viable” within an open market.

“Farmers need to have realistic scenarios presented, based on solid analysis,” Ritter said. “Instead, the sweeping changes made to the CWB since farmers took the reins in 1998 have been ignored. We would advise a different course on such a serious economic issue.”

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 organization sells grain to over 70 countries and returns all sales revenue, less marketing costs, to farmers.