The Government of Alberta is elected as well, and has a responsibility to act on behalf of its constituents – all Albertans. Repeated polls have shown that the majority of Alberta’s farmers would prefer marketing choice, a reality not reflected by the CWB’s electoral process.

The Government of Alberta encourages all eligible farmers to vote in the CWB elections. The purpose of the Choice Matters campaign is to ensure all farmers have all the information they need to make informed decisions about the future of the grain marketing system in Alberta. The sharing of information on all sides of a debate is a responsible way to promote democracy.

Farmer returns are primarily based on the global marketplace. Dividing the small Canadian portion of that global market into CWB-bought grain and open-market grain will not have an adverse effect on world market prices.

Alberta’s producers successfully market other grains on the open market. Marketing choice would allow them to do the same for wheat and barley designated for export and human consumption.

The CWB cannot and does not maximize returns to all farmers. That would suggest picking the highest price day of the year and selling all wheat/barley through the locations/customers that provide the best returns to customers. The CWB may attempt to maximize sales price levels, but it does not necessarily attempt to maximize volumes.

Alberta supports individual initiative and individual risk and reward. The CWB does not know – nor could it know – each individual farmer’s needs in terms of cash flows, fixed costs, break-even points, etc. For example, a good sale for one farmer (early movement, early cash payment) may not be acceptable to another (one who can afford to hold his grain until spring in anticipation of higher prices).