Dear Editor
On a recent radio show, Gunter Jochum, president of the very conservative Wheat Growers Association, said he was “torn” about the recent Bunge-Viterra merger. To paraphrase and to infer, he was conflicted because, as an affirmed free-marketer, he was philosophically fine with private companies combining to exert greater control over said free market, but was bothered by his certain knowledge that this particular merger would cost the farmers he claims to represent hundreds of millions of dollars.
Every major farm group across the prairies has strongly opposed this merger. To be sure of the numbers SaskWheat, SaskBarley, APAS and Alberta Grains contracted some top-level economic analysis from Dr. Gray, Dr. Nolan and Dr. Slade from the United States, and found that the merger would result in a hit to farmers in the neighborhood of $770 million/year. The report can be found on the SaskWheat and other websites.
The economists found the merger to be “well above the action thresholds” in the Competition Bureau’s 2011 Merger Enforcement Guidelines, yet the Liberals did nothing to interfere. Even worse than the Liberals, an ex-conservative MP lobbied in favour of the merger.
The Liberals and Conservatives are, at best, just cheerleaders for farmers and at worst, they work to allow corporations greater control of how much money we get to keep from our labour. It’s time to look elsewhere for politicians who really do look out for our interests.
Glenn Tait
Meota
