Zurich Citizens News, 1978-11-02, Page 12Page 12 Citizens News, November 2, 1978
Former chairman issues warning
Bean board faces some tough decisions
8y TOM NUNN
Cash Crop Farming
The Ontario Bean
Producers Marketing Board
must make some tough
policy decisions soon or face
its own demise, according to
former Board chairman Phil
Durand.
"If major policy decisions
are not made immediately, I
believe producers will de-
mand dissolution of the
Board," said Mr. Durand
during a recent interview on
has RR 1 Zurich farm.
There has been talk
among producers of cir-
culating a petition to acquire
the 1,500 signatures
necessary to have the
Board's dissolution con-
sidered by the Ministry of
Agriculture and the Ontario
Farm Products Marketing
Board, he said.
Phil had a hand in adop-
tion of the current agency
marketing by the Board 10
years ago but policy towards
dealers and producers
prompted him to abandon
positions as Board chairman
in 1976 and finally as a direc-
tor in December 1977. He
was elected Board chairman
in 1972 and decided to resign
completely from Board
business in December, 1976
but some growers talked
him into remaining on the
Board for another year as a
director. In December, 1977,
he resigned as a director for
several private reasons "but
mainly over disagreement
with Board policy."
"One of my major dis-
agreements was our receiv-
ing system from producers.
My major concern was that
the Board had not held
dealers responsible for the
quality they receive from
producers."
Currently the Board
accepts reports from
dealers that they have
received all no. 1 grade
beans and then when the
beans are sold to trade,
dealers report selling lower
grade beans, he said.
"I believe that all the
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beans purchased from the
producers should be bought
on the same basis as they
are sold to the trade." The
Eastern Pea Bean Grade
Standards, currently used by
dealers to sell beans to
trade, should also be used
when dealers purchase
beans from producers.
If dealers originally
report receiving all no. 1
beans they should not be
able to sell them to trade at
a lower grade, he said. With
the Borad price pooling
mechanism, growers who
actually deliver no. 1 beans
will lose money, said Mr.
Durand.
"Every time we allow a
bag of no. 4 beans to be
removed from the pool, it
replaces no. 1. I believe that
to be most unfair to
producers who deliver no. 1
beans into the pool. I think it
is very wrong."
No. 4 beans are usually
priced $5-$12iower than no. 1
beans and when a bag of no.
4 beans is removed from the
pool, the money comes
directly out of producers'
pockets, he said. The Board
should make dealers respon-
sible for selling beans at the
same grade as they are
reported as being received
from the producer, he
suggested.
"I believe it is very wrong
for a dealer to sell these
beans as no. 4 after he has
taken them in as no. 1," said
Mr, Durand. "There is no
reason why the dealer is not
held responsible for what he
takes in."
An agreement between
the Board and dealers states
that dealers cannot _ offer
producers an incentive to
ship through their facilities.
"Not docking producers ac-
cording to the agreement
could be an incentive. It is
quite possible that they don't
dock producers the way they
should be," he said.
Other incentives, the
dealers could offer
producers would be a lower
charge for drying or pay-
ment for shipping the bean
to the dealer's plant, he
said.
Lewis Sherman, current
Board chairman, agreed
there could be problems
with the agency marketing
system and dealers could be
offering incentives to
producers without the
Board's knowledge.
"The whole system is bas-
ed on honesty," said Mr.
Sherman. "Honesty is fine
but it's like a speed limit. If
you can break it, you can get
away with it. It's impossible_
to police." The Board can
pass regulations on the
dealers but enforcing the
regulations are another
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matter, he said.
"We don't really have a
viable alternative to the
agency marketing system,"
said Mr. Sherman. "The
producers do not have an
elevator nor does the Board
have an elevator. Somebody
has to process the beans and
if you're not doing it
yourself, then the dealers
have to do it."
Direct sales by the Board
could cause other problems,
Mr. Sherman said, Dealers
are currently handling and
marketing beans "and if
you remove part of their job,
and you end up still having
them 'employed to handle
the beans, you would have
someone working for you
who wouldn't like their job.
I'd say you'd by schnooked,"
he said.
Mr. Sherman said there is
a clause in a Board agree-
ment with dealers which
would allow the Board to
sell "in conjunction with"
dealers. "There are certain
instances where we could
handle the marketing but we
haven't really seen a time
where we can use that
clause. The clause could be
used in marginal markets
but it would define that the
Board and producers are
responsible if a buyer
doesn't pay," he said.
Mr. Durand cited the
wheat marketing system as
an example which could be
followed by the Bean Board.
The wheat board requires
dealers to report the quality,
quantity, price, grade, and
present a certified cheque
before wheat is shipped to
trade -and the same re-
quirements should be made
of dealers acting as agents
of the bean board, he said.
Bean producers are also
docked 9-10 cents/lb.. by
dealers receiving bad beans
but dealers are still allowed
to sell these beans, he said.
"Producers should not be
charged for the removal of
bad beans if dealers are
allowed to sell their intake."
Besides the problems with
receiving and dockage for
bad beans, the Board also
has a definite unwillingness
to formulate policy and stick
to it, he said.
"The Board has made
policy and, after a meeting
with dealers, has been
prepared to change it. Most
of the major policy decisions
were made to satisfy
dealers."
Mr. Durand cited the 1976
Hickling and Johnson report
as providing the Board with
some good recommen-
dations but the report has
remained confidential and
few of the recommendations
have been adopted by the
board.
Specific information
regarding dealers' handling
capacities and other private
information should remain.
confidential but most of the
report, about 95%, should
have been released to
producers, he said. When
Phil resigned from Board
duties he was asked to
return the report to protect
its confidentiality.
Among the recommen-
dations, the report
suggested the Board sell all
no. 4 beans directly from the
Board to the end user and
that beans should be sold
directly to fringe marketing
areas, he said.
"I agree with that point of
the report but I don't think it
went far enough," said Mr.
Durand. "Right now_I_don't
think we would have any
problem if the board sold
directly. We wouldn't be in
the mess we are in today if
the Board sold all beans
directly."
Without a marketing
board, the alternative would
be a free marketing system
and during the last three
years Michigan producers
have fared much better than
Canadian, growers under
free marketing, he said.
Phil is concerned about
bean marketing practices to
the point that he has reduced
his white bean acreage to
110 acres from the 160-170
acre crop he and two sons
formerly grew on their RR 2
Zurich farm.
"Many producers are op-
posed to any type of
marketing board but this is a
different situation," said
Mr. Durand.
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