cuchulainn
April 2, 2003, 08:46 AM
http://www.canada.com/saskatoon/starphoenix/info/business/story.html?id=6FBE6E94-8C64-4F80-BC30-AA0189DC250B
NFU equates quality system for grain to gun registry
Angela Hall
Saskatchewan News Network
Wednesday, April 02, 2003
REGINA -- The National Farmers Union is comparing a proposed new quality control system for grains to the issue of gun control, saying it could amount to a mountain of paperwork and burgeoning costs.
The Canadian Grain Commission proposal suggests declarations be signed and samples taken every time grain changes hands. Classes and types of grain are currently kept separate in the handling system through visual identification.
A modified system would ideally allow the introduction of new varieties of wheat that look similar to existing varieties and help prevent unregistered varieties of grain from being misrepresented as more expensive varieties.
But the NFU, which notes the vast majority of farmers never misrepresent grain, is calling on the commission to shelve the idea and pursue other alternatives.
"This is the grain system equivalent of gun control: simple in concept, complex and expensive in practice, burdensome on the honest, and unlikely to catch the 'criminals,' " said NFU president and Saskatchewan farmer Stewart Wells in a prepared release.
"Curbing grain system contamination and the misrepresentation of varieties does not require such a cumbersome system."
Canadian Grain Commission spokesperson Paul Graham said the gun control analogy is "unfortunate" and noted they are going through an open process to test a new concept.
"The commission is not wedded to this proposal in particular."
National Farmers Union executive secretary Darrin Qualman said Tuesday that though they drew the parallel with gun control, the organization also raised many issues and suggestions in their 11-page brief.
"We're hoping that people look at the complexities of this."
Qualman said given the mixing of grain that takes place in the handling system, it will be impossible to trace contamination back to an individual farmer.
(Regina Leader-Post)
© Copyright 2003 The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon)
NFU equates quality system for grain to gun registry
Angela Hall
Saskatchewan News Network
Wednesday, April 02, 2003
REGINA -- The National Farmers Union is comparing a proposed new quality control system for grains to the issue of gun control, saying it could amount to a mountain of paperwork and burgeoning costs.
The Canadian Grain Commission proposal suggests declarations be signed and samples taken every time grain changes hands. Classes and types of grain are currently kept separate in the handling system through visual identification.
A modified system would ideally allow the introduction of new varieties of wheat that look similar to existing varieties and help prevent unregistered varieties of grain from being misrepresented as more expensive varieties.
But the NFU, which notes the vast majority of farmers never misrepresent grain, is calling on the commission to shelve the idea and pursue other alternatives.
"This is the grain system equivalent of gun control: simple in concept, complex and expensive in practice, burdensome on the honest, and unlikely to catch the 'criminals,' " said NFU president and Saskatchewan farmer Stewart Wells in a prepared release.
"Curbing grain system contamination and the misrepresentation of varieties does not require such a cumbersome system."
Canadian Grain Commission spokesperson Paul Graham said the gun control analogy is "unfortunate" and noted they are going through an open process to test a new concept.
"The commission is not wedded to this proposal in particular."
National Farmers Union executive secretary Darrin Qualman said Tuesday that though they drew the parallel with gun control, the organization also raised many issues and suggestions in their 11-page brief.
"We're hoping that people look at the complexities of this."
Qualman said given the mixing of grain that takes place in the handling system, it will be impossible to trace contamination back to an individual farmer.
(Regina Leader-Post)
© Copyright 2003 The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon)