The Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association is delighted by a ruling from the Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench which firmly rejects an injunction application by eight former Canadian Wheat Board directors and upholds grain marketing freedom for Western Canadian farmers.
“This ruling is great news for prairie farmers,” says Kevin Bender, President of the Wheat Growers. “We are now in the clear. The court decision removes any lingering doubt over whether we will gain an open market in wheat and barley on August 1.”
The plaintiffs, eight former directors of the CWB, had been seeking to stay the implementation of the Marketing Freedom for Grain Farmers Act, which passed into law on December 15, 2011. The Act ends the CWB monopoly on August 1, 2012, giving prairie farmers the freedom to sell their wheat and barley directly to any buyer for the first time in nearly seven decades.
In a thorough and thoughtful decision, Justice Perlmutter is clear and unequivocal in his dismissal of the injunction application, ruling that the plaintiffs did not meet any of the three tests required for the granting of injunctive relief.
“It’s good to see every single one of the plaintiffs’ arguments flatly rejected,” says Rolf Penner, Manitoba Vice President of the Wheat Growers. “This ruling removes the uncertainty that was overhanging the marketplace. Farmers and the trade can now be confident in their business decisions, knowing that an open market for wheat and barley is no longer in doubt.”
