Frustrations are mounting as rail blockades continue to impact the Manitoba farming economy.
Dan Mazier, MP for Dauphin-Swan River-Neepawa, is asking everyone to take a deep breath and promises to keep agriculture at the forefront of discussions in Ottawa.
“$9 million a day in demurrage and contract cancellations. That’s a pretty high number for us as farmers in Western Canada to bare. That’s just one agriculture industry and commodity, so I can’t imagine the rest of the industries that are suffering just as much.”
Mazier acknowledges that the rail blockades are adding more stress to the spring season.
“Now we’re getting closer to spring seeding, now our fertilizer has to start coming into the prairies. So the railways are going to have to make a choice here. We want them to get the grain out because the ships are sitting there, or they’re going to have to decide to bring the fertilizer in, and the grains are going to sit longer. They ultimately have to coordinate that. It ultimately just adds that much more complexity to the spring.”
There have been some efforts to help farmers through this difficult time, such as cash advances and Farm Credit Canada adjusting due dates of interest payments.
Mazier says he will also remain in contact with CN about their plan going forward, and hold the liberal government accountable to resolve this blockade issue.
“We should be talking to CN as well, I plan on talking to them. They have a thing called a grain plan. We’ll figure out where that’s at, and how they’re making out with that.”
“Ultimately, we hope that Trudeau steps up here and starts having some discussions about how he can help out. Right now we’ve seen nothing but indecision on how to handle this."
