THURSDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2013
VOL. 91 | NO. 43 | $4.25
Winter awaits GROWING WITH FARMERS FOR 90 YEARS
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What’s in store this winter? One forecaster says we should brace ourselves | P. 4
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LUNCH BREAK AT THE ROUNDUP
PROCESSORS | SALE
Reopened beef plant a blessing for markets Rancher’s Beef will be sold to Vesta Holdings of Colorado BY BARBARA DUCKWORTH CALGARY BUREAU
Alberta beef producers are hoping the new owners of the former Rancher’s Beef processing plant in Balzac, Alta., will help strengthen and expand markets. “This couldn’t come at a better time,” said Bryan Walton, chief executive officer of the Alberta Cattle Feeders Association. Tyson Foods recently said it would no longer accept fed cattle from Canada at its plant in Pasco, Washington, because of uncertainty over country-of-origin labelling in the United States. It means fewer bidders for Canadian fed cattle, although Tyson said it would still accept foreign born cattle fed in the U.S. Rancher’s Beef, owned by Sunterra Farms, will be sold to Vesta Holdings, a Colorado investment company as of Nov. 1. SEE REOPENED BEEF PLANT, PAGE 2
Hanna Faulkner, 7, and her father, Corbett, share a laugh during lunch in the cook tent on the second day of the Cypress Hills Stockmen’s Association 95th annual roundup held in the Cypress Hills West Block Provincial Park Oct. 18. FOR MORE PHOTOS, SEE PAGE 15. | WILLIAM DEKAY PHOTO
Deal worth $1.5 billion annually | Canadian meat sector expected to be big winner in deal
Canada and the European Union have inked a tentative trade deal that Canadian agricultural exporters say could be worth as much as $1.5 billion in annual sales. Increased quotas and tariff elimination or phase-out over seven years offers unprecedented market access as long as commitments can be met to negotiate the end of existing EU technical barriers that have often thwarted theoretical quota access. The meat sector expects to be the major beneficiary with projected sales opportunities of more than $1 billion — $600 million for hormone-
free beef and $400 million for pork — once the deal kicks in two years from now. The canola industry expects a doubling of sales to $180 million for the European biodiesel industry once tariffs are eliminated. The pulse industry said there is potential for a dramatic increase in exports of pulse flour to the European market. The grain industry also saw a silver lining, although direct grain exports will not be affected dramatically. “I think for us it eliminates any chance of new tariffs or tariffs going up,” said Grain Growers of Canada president Stephen Vandervalk. “But the big winner in this is hogs, pork and beef, and that means more sales to them of feed grain so that is
an opportunity for us.” The self-perceived loser in the deal is the Canadian dairy industry, which will see potential imports of European high-end cheeses double to 30,000 tonnes. Dairy Farmers of Canada president Wally Smith predicted that the deal will put small artisan cheese producers in Ontario and Quebec out of business because of competition from subsidized European product. The result would be smaller markets for dairy farmers. “This is unacceptable,” he said Oct. 17 after dairy leaders were briefed by the government on the details. “This potential deal is a loss for Canadian dairy farmers and industry.”
The Canadian government, which has cultivated a strong relationship with Canada’s protected dairy industry, disagreed. In Brussels Oct. 18 at the signing of the agreement-in-principle, prime minister Stephen Harper said Ottawa will compensate dairy farmers if there is any evidence of lost sales. Details of how the compensation would work were not available, and federal politicians suggested compensation would likely not be necessary because growing domestic cheese demand would more than cover the additional 17,000 tonnes of imports when the deal kicks in, likely in 2015. SEE TRADE DEAL, PAGE 3
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The Western Producer is published in Saskatoon by Western Producer Publications, which is owned by GVIC Communications Corp. Publisher: Shaun Jessome Publications Mail Agreement No. 40069240
Canada, EU reach trade deal OTTAWA BUREAU
u|xhHEEJBy00001pzYv/:. OCTOBER 24, 2013 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Box 2500, Saskatoon, SK. S7K 2C4
INTERNATIONAL TRADE | AGREEMENT
BY BARRY WILSON
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