Inside this issue …
Seed Royalties are only part of the story: Why multinational seed companies want to put restrictions on farm saved seed – An economic analysis done by JRG Consulting and SJT Solutions for the Seed Synergy group in 2018i clearly shows the corporate seed industry is not just looking for increased revenues from collecting royalties, but they also envision obtaining the degree of control that will allow them to raise seed prices too.
Seed Synergy and Value Creation — A Solution in Search of a Problem – Op-Ed by by Cam Goff, NFU 1st Vice President (Policy) – The critical question is why does AAFC believe Canadian farmers and citizens will be better off if the returns from public and farmer money invested into plant breeding is diverted to private companies where it can flow offshore to fatten shareholder dividends?
The Canadian Grain Commission and Canada Grain Act are under Attack — Again – by Cam Goff, NFU 1st Vice President (Policy) – For the last fifteen years, the grain companies and federal government have been looking at both the Canadian Grain Commission (CGC) and the Canada Grain Act (CGA) with an eye to making company‐favourable changes. Always under the guise of “modernization” (after all, who wants to be old‐fashioned?), the changes they seek will inevitably lead to greater power, money, and control for the companies at the expense of farmers.
Origins of the Canadian Grain Commission – The mood amongst the grain farmers of the west during 1897, 1898 and 1899 was one of outrage, indignation and frustration. There was no doubt in their minds that the CPR, the grain dealers and the milling companies were formed into a monopoly designed to cheat them. …
