Alberta farmers hit hard by Vancouver grain terminal strike

Farmers crossed the federation are suffering the blows of the existent grain terminal strike successful Vancouver, including confederate Alberta farmers, who accidental they are frustrated.

Alberta Grains Region 1 manager Dave Bishop said producers are inactive recovering from past month’s obstruction strike.

“In farming we get 1 paycheque a twelvemonth — and that’s now,” Bishop said. “It pays our bills, it puts wealth successful the slope for adjacent year’s crop. Now, it’s connected clasp again. It was connected clasp with the dual obstruction onslaught and present it’s connected clasp with the onslaught astatine the terminals.

Both the Grain Workers Local Union 333 and its employer, the Vancouver Terminal Elevators Association, said they could not travel to an statement connected a caller contract.

Now that the onslaught is underway, atom farmers accidental they’re losing millions of dollars successful mislaid exports.

“For each time of disruption, it’s astir apt $50 cardinal per time that comes retired of the farmers pocket,” Bishop said.

A connection from Shannon Sereda, Alberta Grains manager of authorities relations, policy, and markets, said the onslaught is leaving farmers helpless, with nary options to determination their product.

“Every time of disruption compounds delays, with obstruction services halted and atom elevators astatine capacity, leaving farmers incapable to present their crops. This backlog threatens currency flow, atom quality, and Canada’s planetary estimation arsenic a atom supplier.

Bishop believes it’s nary coincidence the national chose to onslaught during harvest — the astir important clip of twelvemonth for farmers.

“It’s unfair to the system of Canada, and to america arsenic producers, to beryllium held hostage [by the strike],” Bishop said.

The Alberta Grains manager says the 2 parties request to settle, and if they can’t settle, helium hopes an arbitrator steps in.