Saskatchewan Opposes Licensing Car Loading Sites

REGINA - Mar 4/02 - STAT -- The Saskatchewan government opposes the idea of licensing producer car loading facilities as primary elevators, saying it imposes an unnecessary financial burden on producers without yielding any benefits.

However, Saskatchewan's Deputy Premier and Agriculture and Food Minister Clay Serby maintained the typical stance of politicians in favor of some form of bureaucratic involvement, stating, "In the long run, we support the development of an option that would establish a new class of license for producer car loading facilities. Licensing producer car facilities as primary elevators would impose unnecessary costs on farmers and not improve the quality of their product."

Highways and Transportation Minister Mark Wartman added, "Farmers were granted the right to bypass primary elevators and load railway cars directly with grain about 100 years ago. Producers must be able to develop innovative grain handling solutions that work to their benefit and reduce costs."

Apologists for the line elevator companies complain producer car loading facilities provide unfair competition because of their lower cost structure.

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