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Farmers now have delivery points all across Western Canada to market their grain with CWB. President and CEO Ian White today announced new agreements have been reached with six companies, including Viterra, to handle grain for farmers who want to participate in the popular CWB pools. More agreements are expected to be reached shortly with other Prairie grain-handling companies, he added.
"CWB is ready for business, with partners who are committed to helping us serve Prairie farmers and their global grain customers," White said during a news conference held today at Western Canada's Farm Progress Show in Regina.
"Farmers want to do business with CWB and take advantage of our unparalleled expertise in risk management and marketing. Their success will be our success."
Companies who have agreed to handle CWB grain to date - including the new agreements announced today - operate over 120 country elevators (see list attached). Today's announcement includes an agreement with Viterra, one of Canada's largest grain companies.
CWB has also reached agreements with Mission Terminal, West Central Road and Rail (WCRR), Delmar Commodities, Linear Grain and Agro Source. These companies join Cargill and South West Terminal, which reached agreements with CWB earlier this year.
"The handling agreements we have reached to date provide farmers with the assurance of multiple locations to deliver their grain, with more on the way," White said. "Farmers should now be able to move ahead and sign CWB contracts with confidence."
CWB programs are now available for farmer sign-up. White urged producers to sign their CWB contracts as early as possible if they want guaranteed access into the pools, which may have limited space - allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.
"This will be a change for many farmers who were accustomed to waiting for harvest to sign their contracts," he said. "However, the flexibility of CWB pool contracts means there's no reason to wait, especially if farmers want to avoid disappointment in the fall."
White noted that Act of God provisions, a no-cost grade adjustment and the option to switch to cash contracts are all available before pool sign-up deadlines, which are September 28 for the shorter-term Early Delivery Pool and October 31 for the more traditional Harvest Pool. Farmers also have the unique new option of signing a CWB contract now and choosing their delivery points later with participating grain-handling companies.
"Only with CWB contracts can farmers sign first, then shop around for the best handling terms," White said. "It's one of the many advantages to doing business with CWB in this exciting new era."
More information on CWB contracts and grain-handling options can be found at www.cwb.ca.
