Western Canadian Agriculture is in the process of a major transformation. Some of the forces behind this transformation are global in nature, while others are specific to the region.
A word from Murray Fulton
Western Canadian Agriculture is in the process of a major transformation. Some of the forces behind this transformation are global in nature, while others are specific to the region.
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At the global level, agriculture is undergoing a process of
industrialization. The industrialization of agriculture has been
defined as ...the application of modern industrial manufacturing,
production, procurement, distribution, and co-ordination concepts to
the food and industrial product chain... (Boehlje). Key elements of
this transformation are that markets are less commodity driven and more
product driven; production is more capital intensive; decisions made by
firms at all levels of the market are increasingly interdependent;
price and production risks are replaced with risks surrounding
relationships and food health and safety; and information becomes a
prime source of control and power. These changes are resulting in
increased vertical co-ordination and integration. In addition, firms
are more and more frequently being asked to deliver products of
consistent quality at the appropriate time (Boehlje, Drabenstott).
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A word from Murray Fulton |
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Another part of the global transformation is a major change in the role
of government. Government is withdrawing from agriculture, whether it
be in the removal of price-support programs and production-based
subsidies, the deregulation of industries such as grain transportation,
or the withdrawal from agricultural research. There is also a loss of
support for marketing boards and government marketing agencies. The
view that agriculture deserves special treatment no longer holds sway.
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Some of the forces behind the transformation of agriculture in western
Canada are unique to this region. Included in these regional forces are
the removal of the Western Grain Transportation Act (WGTA) and the challenges to the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB).
The removal of the WGTA has not only reduced the price of grain in
western Canada, but it has resulted in the replacement of a highly
regulated system with what many anticipate will be a market-based
system. Although the CWB still retains single-desk selling authority in
wheat and barley for export and for human consumption, firms are taking
steps to position themselves for the possibility that the CWB will lose
this authority in the next five to ten years.
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