https://davidraymondamos3.blogspot.com/2021/12/pei-farmers-give-away-potatoes-in.html
No new potato wart detected in national survey, says CFIA
P.E.I. Potato Board heralds this as positive news
The soil samples were collected this fall from areas that grow seed potatoes, including P.E.I., but excluding Newfoundland and Labrador. The CFIA said the results show potatoes from fields without quarantine plans are safe and pose no threat.
"The purpose of the survey was to provide reassurances to Canadian producers and international trading partners that potato wart had not spread outside of the regulated area of P.E.I.," said CFIA media relations in an email Friday.
Two cases of the fungus were detected in P.E.I. fields in October, eventually leading to Canada halting all exports of P.E.I. potatoes to the U.S., a move that has been criticized by P.E.I.'s premier and farmers alike.
Results as expected, says potato board
P.E.I. Potato Board general manager Greg Donald said the results are good news, though not a surprise.
"Those are the results that we fully expected because we've been exporting seed and fresh potatoes across Canada and all over the world for over 20 years," he said. "There hasn't been any spread from P.E.I. and actually from the restricted fields."
He said this is proof the management plan to isolate and contain the fungus is working.
"This should give reassurance to the U.S. and other trading partners that our potatoes are safe," he said.
The
potato wart fungus is spread through the movement of infected seed
potatoes and contaminated soil. It poses no threat to human health or
food safety, but is known to decrease yield — the number of good
potatoes that can be harvested and sold. (CBC)
The CFIA said the results have been sent to the U.S. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and that based on the science and measures in place, the risks of potato wart being transmitted from fresh potatoes "remain negligible."
It also said though it does not predict these results will spur immediate changes, the survey science was something the U.S. had specifically requested.
"This was an important first step," the agency said. "The U.S. still requires the results of the investigations linked to the 2021 detections of potato wart. "
Donald said he remains optimistic the survey results will positively influence talks with the U.S., which are scheduled to resume in January.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
P.E.I. seed potato growers shut out of Canadian markets on top of U.S. export ban
About 15 per cent of potatoes grown on P.E.I. are used for seed
The seed potato growers say they already have customers who are cancelling orders, and they worry losing that business even after the ban is lifted.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency suspended trade in fresh P.E.I. potatoes to the U.S. on Nov. 21. The move was in response to American concerns about the discovery of potato wart in two P.E.I. fields in October.
The ministerial order also restricted the movement of seed potatoes from P.E.I., both internationally and domestically.
Initially, in early November 2021, seed potatoes were prohibited only from being shipped south of the border.
Losing customers
Billy Cameron grows seed and table potatoes on the family farm in Hampton, P.E.I., and is vice-chair of the P.E.I. Potato Board.
"Customers have started looking for options. No question, and that is completely understandable. The situation we've been put in, we don't have a timeline. There's no hard dates on this," Cameron said.
"Completely understandable of the customers looking for new seeds. They need to continue their businesses and move along."
Cameron says his family has supplied seed potatoes to some of their customers for decades. (Shane Hennessey/CBC)
The U.S. border was closed to seed potatoes in November 2020 as well, after the discovery of potato wart that fall.
The border re-opened for export in March, but Island seed growers say it's a double whammy this time, being shut out of Canada as well.
It's very frustrating and hard to come up with any type of plan whatsoever for 2022.
— Billy Cameron
"We've never experienced a domestic shutdown like this before — certainly since I've been around. So your options are very limited currently. Seed is restricted to Prince Edward Island," Cameron said.
"You have a lot of potatoes in line, with hundreds of millions of pounds of table potatoes that also don't have a home. So it's very frustrating and hard to come up with any type of plan whatsoever for 2022."
'It's pretty discouraging'
Greg Stavert is also a fifth-generation potato grower, based in Freetown, P.E.I., who has already had customers cancelling orders from Ontario and Quebec.
"We were supplying them with quality potatoes for 10 or 15 years, and to have them call and not want them anymore — it's pretty discouraging," Stavert said
"We start grading about the end of March, and that would be our first big cheque coming in, to get caught up on last year's bills."
We still have a couple of orders to go to New Brunswick and Ontario that haven't been cancelled yet. But that's just a phone call away.
— Greg Stavert
Stavert estimated that his farm could face about a 40-per-cent loss in sales, exceeding half a million dollars
"We still have a couple of orders to go to New Brunswick and Ontario
that haven't been cancelled yet. But that's just a phone call away, if
this keeps keeps on any longer," he said.
Greg
Stavert is also a fifth-generation potato grower, in Freetown, P.E.I.,
who has already had customers from Ontario and Quebec cancelling orders.
(Submitted by Greg Stavert )
Stavert said he can still sell his seed potatoes here on P.E.I., but that's a concern as well.
He's not sure what kind of demand for seed there will be in 2022.
"If they have buildings full of product that they didn't sell, they're not going to have money to purchase seed this year," Stavert said.
"With the unknown in their markets, they might not grow as many acres or varieties that we supply to them."
Stavert estimated that his farm could face a loss in sales
of about 40 per cent, exceeding half a million dollars. (Submitted by
Greg Stavert )
Long-term damage
Stavert said many customers place their seed orders more than a year ahead, so at this point he would normally be talking to his customers about what they will need in 2023.
Both seed growers said they also worry about the long-term damage to P.E.I.'s reputation.
"I would say once they get away from Prince Edward Island seed
potatoes, they're probably not going to come back," Stavert said.
Stavert
says many customers place their seed orders more than a year ahead, so
normally at this time he would be talking to them about what they will
need in 2023. (Shane Hennessey/CBC)
"It's very hard to calculate in dollars the long-term damage that has happened to date," Cameron said. "Going forward, it's very difficult to shake that off your image."
About 15 per cent of potatoes grown on P.E.I. are used for seed.
The U.S. has been the single biggest international buyer. In 2019, $3.1 million of P.E.I.'s total $4.5 million in seed potato exports went to U.S. buyers.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-potato-convoy-charlottetown-1.6292958
Potato convoy sends message to Ottawa that border needs to reopen
Potato board chair concerned about growing emotional toll export ban is having on Island farm families
Banners on the side of the trucks described the impact of the ban on the export of fresh P.E.I. potatoes to the United States — a loss of $330,000 a day — amid a growing backlog of potatoes that may have to be destroyed.
The convoy included about 40 trucks of all shapes and sizes, many from the agricultural sector, showing their support for Island growers.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) suspended trade in fresh potatoes to the U.S. on Nov. 21. The move was in response to American concerns about the discovery of potato wart in two P.E.I. fields in October.
Three members from the Hayden family farm in Pownal, P.E.I., were driving potato trucks in the convoy. Two of them are seventh-generation potato farmers.
"It was touching to see the support from the people we drove by on the sidewalks. They seemed to be waving and supportive to us, and their horns were all blasting on the trucks too," said Harrison Hayden.
"It felt good to feel like the people on P.E.I. are supporting us, and we're very grateful for that," said Jason Hayden, a former chair of the P.E.I. Potato Board.
"We need to get our message sent to Ottawa that this has to be resolved. They're the people that have the power to fix this."
Jason
Hayden and his sons, Josh, centre, and Harrison, were part of the
potato convoy in Charlottetown. The family farm is in Pownal, P.E.I. (Kirk Pennell/CBC)
The Potato Board says the export ban has blocked the sale of more than 12 million kilograms — or 27 million pounds of potatoes — so far, a loss of more than $11 million to the Island economy.
Josh Hayden said what was once shaping up to be a good year has turned "bleak."
"We had to lay off a few crew, and a lot of our very expensive packaging equipment is just sitting there idle," he said.
"We're not ordering packaging or keeping truckers busy. Everything's just quiet. It's kind of eerie."
Many of the potato trucks carried banners with messages
about the urgency of getting the U.S. border reopened. (Kirk
Pennell/CBC)
For the Haydens — as for many Island growers — the longer the U.S. border remains closed, the more potatoes they won't be able to sell, which may need to be destroyed.
"You go to bed thinking about it, and you wake up thinking about it, the uncertainty of it," Jason Hayden said.
"You just don't know, and you can't make any plans going into the spring at this point in time."
The
convoy included Islanders who feel a connection to the potato industry,
including trucking companies, farm equpiment dealers and fuel
companies. (Shane Hennessey/CBC)
Jason Hayden remembers the winter of 2001, when the first discovery of potato wart closed the U.S. border, and more than 300 million pounds of potatoes were destroyed.
"We're going into January facing the prospect of dumping millions and millions of pounds of potatoes," Jason Hayden said.
"I remember doing that years ago. My sons don't. But it's not something we're looking forward to."
Growers
taking part in the potato convoy said it felt good to have the show of
solidarity, but they also know time is running out. (Kirk Pennell/CBC)
John Visser, co-owner of Victoria Potato Farm and P.E.I. Potato Board chair, said a help line for farmers is taking more calls.
"There's despair. It's taking an emotional toll, and that's being shown on the farmers help line," he said.
"The numbers are up. It's taking a major toll on an all farmers and their families."
The
Potato Board says the export ban has blocked the sale of more than 12
million kilograms — or 27 million pounds — of potatoes so far. (Shane Hennessey/CBC)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ottawa announces $28M to assist in P.E.I. potato wart crisis
Trade with the U.S. in P.E.I. fresh potatoes has been suspended for 4 weeks
Federal Minister of Agriculture Marie-Claude Bibeau has announced a $28-million plan to assist P.E.I. farmers affected by a trade suspension in fresh potatoes with the United States.
Bibeau made the announcement during a virtual news conference, accompanied by the Island's four MPs, on Monday morning.
"My message to farmers today is: We are here for you," she said.
"We know farmers need answers about what to do with their surplus product."
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) suspended trade in fresh potatoes to the U.S. on Nov. 22. The move was in response to American concerns about the discovery of potato wart in two P.E.I. fields in October.
Some potatoes will be destroyed
The $28 million will partly be dedicated to getting potatoes to food banks. Money will also be available for farmers who need to destroy surplus potatoes.
"We know that we won't be able to divert all these potatoes and a significant quantity will have to be disposed of in an environmentally sound manner," said Bibeau.
"The only way to do that is to do that in the very cold season."
Potatoes will need to be destroyed during the winter to mitigate the risk of disease spreading.
Bibeau said the U.S. would not accept P.E.I. potatoes until they see the scientific proof they require that there is no threat of potato wart spreading to U.S. farms. On Friday, CFIA officials told a P.E.I. legislative committee the agency might not complete its investigation until 2023.
Department of Agriculture officials will be consulting with the P.E.I. Potato Board this week about eligibility for the new program, said Bibeau.
Premier welcomes support
P.E.I. Premier Dennis King thanked Ottawa for the announcement, saying the supports will be "critical" in diverting the potatoes to people who need them and preventing their destruction.
"These types of creative solutions are exactly what we need to do in the interim to move our excess potatoes until the U.S. market is reopened," King said in a statement.
The premier said that while the province is still waiting to for more details, such as the fund's eligibility criteria and how it will be administered, he was encouraged to hear Ottawa is taking the matter seriously.
"I am also reassured to hear from Minister Bibeau that this is a top priority for her government, and all levels of the federal government from Prime Minister [Justin] Trudeau down are doing everything they can to reassure their American counterparts that our potatoes are safe," he said.
King has previously been critical of how the federal government has handled the issue. Last Thursday, the premier said during a trip to Washington, D.C. that Ottawa should "get rid of the silly B.S." and do more to put an end to the trade suspension.
King said the focus should now be on ensuring the CFIA collects the soil samples it needs to conclude its investigation into the potato wart discovery "without further delay," as well as convincing the U.S. the province successfully contains the fungus.
$120M in trade at stake
Wart was first detected in P.E.I. fields in 2000. A plan was developed to prevent the spread of the fungus that causes wart, in consultation with the U.S., and that plan has kept the border open since.
CFIA implemented the current suspension to prevent unilateral action by the U.S., which would be more difficult to reverse.
The P.E.I. Potato Board estimates trade with the U.S. would have been $120 million this season. With the ban already in place for four weeks, some of that trade is lost and cannot be recovered, the board says.
Potato wart is a serious agricultural pest, but is not a threat to human health.
"I'd liked to know who is pm, of this country?"
Well then, Robert is politically uniformed...
Robert doesn't know how to check wikipedia....Classic!
"wiki doesn't know either"
They seem to have a much more reliable guesstimate than yours....just saying..
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/tourism-minister-recovery-staff-borders-1.6287730#vf-5586700021288
Tourism industry may have to live off domestic travel until the fall, says minister
Industry advocates say they have a major staff shortage as the sector loses workers who will never return
· CBC News · Posted: Dec 27, 2021 4:00 AM ET.
Correction, I like when CBC staff participate in discussions.
Canazeula north.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/manatee-satire-website-chase-vietinghoff-1.6288518
How an N.B. couple bonded over a love of satire and gave birth to a Manatee
Founders of satirical website read the same gloomy news you do - then they rewrite it and make it hilarious
Resumé
I’m a filmmaker, cinematographer, multimedia specialist, and avid craft beer fan. I have years of experience in journalism, marketing, and communications, but I love being behind a camera; telling stories with eye-catching visuals.
Experience
Horizon Health Network
Dec 2018 – Present
Creative Communications Advisor
Creating engaging visual content for Horizon’s web platforms and social media. Special focus on video, photography, and animation. Working with the communications team to develop video content that furthers the Horizon brand strategy.
CBC New Brunswick
04/2018 – 02/2021
Digital Associate Producer
Casual Digital Associate Producer and back-fill for Video Producer and Videographer positions. Responsibilities include posting to CBC N.B. social media, conceptualizing videos, shooting, editing videos and using After Effects to create animations and visual effects to increase video production value and polish.
Producing promotional videos, short documentaries and award-winning short films with a special focus on travel and adventure documentaries. Managing online video channels and interacting with viewers. Freelance video production for various companies and clients. Notable clients include Maclean’s, Bell, CBC, and the Government of New Brunswick.
The Manatee
10/2014 – Present
Co-founder, Video Editor, Writer, Web Editor
Atlantic Canada’s satirical news website. Boasts province-wide readership across New Brunswick and thought-provoking, entertaining articles. Won the 2015 Saint John Salty award for New Brunswick’s “Coolest Blog.” In 2016 The Manatee expanded from only covering New Brunswick stories to covering all of Atlantic Canada.
---------- Original message ----------
From: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2021 21:04:22 -0400
Subject: Hey Cody McEachern I just called correct?
To: cody.mceachern@saltwire.com
Cc: motomaniac333 <motomaniac333@gmail.com>
https://twitter.com/CodyInHiFi
Cody McEachern
@CodyInHiFi
Reporter - The Guardian - Saltwire Network
Got a story? Reach me on here, at 902-314-8588 or cody.mceachern@saltwire.com
Cody McEachern
@CodyInHiFi
Did you see a long line of potato trucks rolling through Charlottetown
this morning? Here is what was going on:
https://saltwire.com/atlantic-
#PEIpotatoes #pei #saltwire
---------- Original message ----------
From: "Higgs, Premier Blaine (PO/CPM)" <Blaine.Higgs@gnb.ca>
Date: Tue, 21 Dec 2021 00:43:19 +0000
Subject: RE: Hey Higgy why is that nothing Trudreau The Younger does
surprises me anymore?
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
Hello,
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Cabinet du premier ministre au 506-453-2144.
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Tel./Tel. : (506) 453-2144
Email/Courriel:
premier@gnb.ca/premier.
---------- Original message ----------
From: Premier of Ontario | Premier ministre de l’Ontario <Premier@ontario.ca>
Date: Tue, 21 Dec 2021 00:43:08 +0000
Subject: Automatic reply: Hey Higgy why is that nothing Trudreau The
Younger does surprises me anymore?
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
Thank you for your email. Your thoughts, comments and input are greatly valued.
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From: Justice Minister <JUSTMIN@novascotia.ca>
Date: Tue, 21 Dec 2021 00:43:08 +0000
Subject: Automatic reply: Hey Higgy why is that nothing Trudreau The
Younger does surprises me anymore?
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
Thank you for your email to the Minister of Justice. Please be assured
that it has been received by the Department. Your email will be
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---------- Original message ----------
From: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2021 20:41:03 -0400
Subject: Hey Higgy why is that nothing Trudreau The Younger does
surprises me anymore?
To: stu.neatby@theguardian.pe.ca, greg@peipotato.org,
randy@peispuds.ca, marie-claude.bibeau@parl.gc.ca
<premier@gov.pe.ca>, "lawrence.macaulay"
<lawrence.macaulay@parl.gc.ca>
scottt_ann@hotmail.com, info@rollobaypotato.com, Nancy.Russell@cbc.ca,
"steve.murphy" <steve.murphy@ctv.ca>, press@usda.gov,
media@nationalpotatocouncil.
Cc: motomaniac333 <motomaniac333@gmail.com>, "blaine.higgs"
<blaine.higgs@gnb.ca>, pm <pm@pm.gc.ca>, premier <premier@ontario.ca>,
premier <premier@gov.ab.ca>, Office of the Premier
<scott.moe@gov.sk.ca>, premier <premier@leg.gov.mb.ca>, JUSTMIN
<JUSTMIN@novascotia.ca>
Ottawa announces funding for diverting P.E.I. potatoes to food banks, destruction of surplus
Potato trucks at a Dec. 20 rally at the Charlottetown Event Grounds had signs hanging from them with information about the current potato ban and the issues it is causing Island farmers. On the same day the Federal government announced $28 million in funding supports to help farmers divert potatoes to food banks and to begin planning for the disposal of their surplus crop. - Cody McEachern
Almost one month after a federal decision to halt the export of P.E.I. fresh potatoes to the U.S., Ottawa has announced $28 million in funding to allow farmers to move surplus potatoes to food banks across Canada and to help identify other markets.
But Canadian Agriculture and Agri-Foods Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau also conceded the funding will assist farmers in doing what many have dreaded since the export troubles began: destroying the bulk of this year’s harvest.
“We know that we won't be able to divert all of these potatoes, and a significant quantity will have to be disposed (of) in an environmentally sound manner. And the only way to do that is to do that during the very cold season," Bibeau said during a media conference on Dec. 20.
It is very likely a massive amount of fresh potatoes will need to be destroyed. The volume of potatoes sitting in barns across the Island is more than enough to provide each person in Canada with a five-pound bag of potatoes.
A quick resolution to the trade halt appears increasingly unlikely. Federal representatives have said soil sampling data requested by U.S. agricultural representatives could take over a year to collect and analyze. U.S Department of Agriculture representatives raised concerns after potato wart was found on two farms in October.
Meanwhile, time is limited to divert this year’s potato crop to other uses.
But Bibeau said details about eligibility or how the new funding program will be administered have not yet been finalized. She said these details will be worked out in discussions between her department, the P.E.I. government and the P.E.I. Potato Board.
Similarly, a $10-million P.E.I. government fund aimed at identifying new markets for potatoes has yet to be finalized. Provincial representatives said two applications for this funding have been received since it was first announced in late November. No funds have been disbursed to date.
“We know that we won't be able to divert all of these potatoes, and a significant quantity will have to be disposed (of) in an environmentally sound manner."
- Marie-Claude Bibeau, Federal Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
Bibeau said growers have already been in talks with local processing facilities to divert some potatoes there. Processed potatoes can still be exported to the U.S.
P.E.I. Premier Dennis King and the Potato Board have been vocally critical of the Canadian decision to pre-emptively put in place a halt of potato exports to the U.S. Bibeau has said this was done because a U.S.-imposed export halt would have been more difficult to reverse.
The P.E.I. government has also called for more federal funding support. In a media statement issued Dec. 20, King said this funding is “exactly what we need to do” as officials work to resolve the trade halt.
“These supports will be critical in diverting world-class potatoes to food banks, food aid groups and those who can use them instead of destroying these perfectly good, nutritious potatoes,” King said in the statement
Bibeau also said the federal AgriStability program, which is designed to help farmers dealing with unexpected income losses, has been adjusted to allow farmers to access a higher proportion of payments quicker. Farmers can now apply for 75 per cent of expected AgriStability payments, based on a five-year average of their margin, between now and the end of March 31, 2022. Previously, this interim amount had been set at 50 per cent.
About 88 per cent of P.E.I. potato farmers are enrolled in AgriStability.
Trade litigation considered
While Bibeau has justified the export halt by saying U.S. officials had threatened to impose their own export ban, P.E.I. farmers have argued that the federal government could have challenged this through existing trade agreements. P.E.I.’s minister of finance also suggested this in a question during a standing committee meeting on Dec. 17.
When asked during the press conference whether the federal government had considered a legal challenge under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico trade agreement, Bibeau said “every option (was) considered” prior to the Nov. 21 decision.
But the trade litigation route was ultimately not pursued.
A sanitary and phytosanitary chapter of the CUSMA agreement allows each country to halt exports on an emergency basis when faced with “an urgent problem of human, animal or plant life or health that arises or threatens to arise.”
“They have scientific grounds to suspend the importation of potatoes coming from a region affected by potato wart. We do not agree on the tolerance to risk,” Bibeau said of the United States.
"On a pure trading front, if we compare notes and we look at the situation with other countries being affected by potato wart, we wouldn't have a case for trade litigation."
https://davidraymondamos3.
Thursday, 9 December 2021
P.E.I. farmers give away potatoes in Ottawa to raise awareness about trade ban
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Federal agriculture minister provides update on P.E.I. potato wart situation – December 20, 2021
'Get rid of this silly BS,' P.E.I. premier urges Ottawa as potato export ban drags
'If we're really Team Canada, let's act like it's Team Canada,' says Premier Dennis King
A delegation of P.E.I. officials, including the premier, met with U.S. government representatives in Washington, D.C., Thursday in an effort to reverse the suspension.
The premier said the delegation effectively conveyed their position to American lawmakers, and how the ban could eventually become a food security issue for the U.S.
"They're also shocked and surprised when they hear that [the Canadian Food Inspection Agency] has so much confidence in their product that they're allowing us to ship our product across the country of Canada, and to be consumed in cities and towns all across Canada," King said.
"So they don't understand why there's a disconnect between Canada and the U.S. And as I say, that's part of the reason why we're here."
Canada suspended all shipments of fresh potatoes from P.E.I. to the U.S. in November after fungal potato wart was discovered in two fields in the province. Officials have said that the U.S. would have imposed a ban had Canada not acted first, which would have been more difficult to reverse.
The potato wart fungus poses no threat to human health or food safety. (CBC)
But the province argues that it was already managing potato wart successfully, as it has been following a plan that's been in place since the fungus was first discovered on P.E.I. more than 20 years ago. The management plan was developed by the CFIA, in co-operation with American officials.
Potato wart is considered a serious agricultural pest. It disfigures potatoes but is not a threat to human health.
The U.S. potato market is worth about $120 million a year to Prince Edward Island.
MLAs unable to see management plan
As provincial leaders lobby Washington, measures are being proposed on the Island to avoid or minimize future export bans, including permanently removing infected fields from potato production and dividing the province's farmland into zones so any potential future bans might only affect a portion of P.E.I.'s production.
MLAs with the province's standing committee on natural resources expressed frustration Wednesday that they haven't been provided with any details from the CFIA's long-term management plan for potato wart on P.E.I.
"It isn't our plan to share," said Deputy Agriculture Minister Brian Matheson. The province has asked CFIA if it could share the plan, he said, and was told no.
MLAs will question CFIA officials in Ottawa by video link when the same committee meets on Friday.
In a written statement earlier this week, federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said the government is continuing its work to get the border reopened to the exports.
"We believe in the science that says the U.S. demands go beyond what is needed to manage risk. In order to resume trade, however, the CFIA must work through the scientific evidence with the U.S. to give them the reassurances needed."
'Standing up for the science'
Recently, Canadian representatives have been in negotiations with their American counterparts to determine what needs to be done to get the border open.
Earlier this month, the CFIA met with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to discuss the suspension.
King said he has "no doubt" Ottawa believes issuing its own suspension was the best option it had, but that he's frustrated the federal government isn't more involved in solving the dispute.
Potatoes were destroyed in 2001 when potato wart closed the U.S. border to P.E.I. potatoes. (Mary Kay Sonier/PEI Potato Board)
"We certainly feel as a province that … our country should be standing up for the science," he said. "Because we found the most recent incidents in Prince Edward Island — that is an illustration that our plan is working.
"And we want our federal government, our federal agency, to respect that and to come down here, like we are, and talk about it, explain it and defend it. Because it is a good, solid policy that has been developed by both countries."
King said it would've shown that the issue was important to Ottawa if Bibeau had offered to join the delegation.
Ottawa pushing 'Team Canada' approach
In a statement, the agriculture minister said she was meeting with U.S. ambassador David Cohen on Thursday to discuss the suspension. She also pointed out that Trade Minister Mary Ng brought it up during a recent U.S. visit and that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has also raised the issue with President Joe Biden.
"I have raised it with my counterpart Secretary [Tom Vilsack] multiple times and my deputy minister visited his counterpart in the U.S. Department of Agriculture last week. Our ambassador [Kirsten Hillman] has also been very engaged with U.S. officials on this," she said.
"Our government has been pushing a Team Canada approach to resolve this issue since the beginning. Between myself, my team and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, we have been keeping the province fully informed every step of the way."
Bibeau said the CFIA is working with U.S. officials and attempting to demonstrate to them that Canada's management practices successfully contain the fungus. She said they've discussed risk-mitigation measures and the results of the CFIA investigation on the potato wart discovery, among other things.
Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc said in a statement that King's comments aren't helpful.
"It's a shame that the premier would say one thing in private about collaboration and progress and then another in public," he said.
"This does not help our shared cause of helping Islanders through this difficult time and Islanders would be better served with more respectful and productive behaviour going forward."
'No sense of urgency'
It is still unclear when the suspension could be lifted, but a source in Ottawa told CBC News it could be months.
Ottawa seems intent to leave the issue to regulators, King said, who have "no sense of urgency."
"They don't understand that the family farm is going to go out of business in Prince Edward Island if we're not able to do this. We just lived through 21 months of COVID, and the mental health of our farmers, and all of our Islanders, is at a limit," he said.
"Now we have to deal with the fact that their industry may be destroyed for no good reason.
"So are we frustrated with how Ottawa is dealing with this? Absolutely. And it's time to get rid of this silly BS and let's get to work and get this open. Because if we're really Team Canada, let's act like it's Team Canada."
With files from Katie Simpson, Brian Higgins and The Canadian Press
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-potatoes-destroying-memories-1.6286477
P.E.I. farmers reliving nightmare of destroying potatoes in 2001
In 2001, farmers across P.E.I. destroyed more than 300 million pounds of potatoes
Growers say there is not enough time to pack and truck the millions of pounds that have been left unsold because of the export ban.
In 2001, the U.S. border was also closed because of the first discovery of potato wart, and Island farmers had to destroy more than 300 million pounds of potatoes.
The
potatoes are chopped up going through the snowblower so that they will
be exposed to cold and not be a source of infection for any disease in
the coming year. (Mary Kay Sonier/PEI Potato Board)
Many Islanders know Kevin MacIsaac from his role as general manager of the United Potato Growers of Canada, but in 2001, he was also a potato farmer, on the family farm in Bear River, P.E.I.
"It's kind of an emotional decision when I think back to it because of all the things you do growing potatoes, the thing you don't expect is that you're going to have to take them out and destroy them," MacIsaac said.
"I thought once would be enough in a lifetime for that. But it's here again."
'A heartbreaking day'
MacIsaac said he started destroying the crop in February 2001, starting with a bin of Yukon Golds, because he knew they would not last as long in storage.
"It was pretty much a heartbreaking day when we started and we kind of hesitated because we thought perhaps there's a chance the border will open, which didn't happen," MacIsaac said.
"Every day, we would have a discussion at the end of the day, same as you have discussion after harvest. The discussion in 2001, was how many loads did we haul out in the dump truck today, and how many loads went through the snow blower. So pretty devastating."
Kevin MacIsaac has vivid memories of destroying three bins
of potatoes in 2001, at Lily Pond Farms in Bear River, P.E.I. (Kirk
Pennell/CBC)
MacIsaac went on to destroy two more bins of potatoes, covering a 25 acre field, careful not to make the layer too thick, so they are able to decompose.
"The whole concept was to try to destroy the crop so that those potatoes would not be a source of infection for any disease in the coming year. And the best way to do that is to expose them to the cold temperatures," MacIsaac said.
"Chop them up small, so that all parts of the potato get exposed, freeze, damage the cells, and they won't grow. Because you don't want any volunteers the coming year." (Volunteers are potatoes that are not planted which are a potential source of disease).
At the corner store or the parts counter, people really supported you. It was on everybody's mind.—Kevin MacIsaac
MacIsaac was emotional as he recalled what those months in 2001 were like, and the ripple effect through Island communities.
"We thought of all the people in the industry that were going through it, the people that we had hired to work to grade the potatoes, they went home," MacIsaac said.
"People that agreed to sell us equipment in the spring, they had orders cancelled. All of the industry was greatly affected. We had really good support from the community. Unbelievable. At the corner store or the parts counter, people really supported you. It was on everybody's mind."
MacIsaac
said there was a lot of snow that year so they had to blow out a track
on the field before bringing in the dump trucks. (Mary Kay Sonier/PEI Potato Board)
Immense volume
MacIsaac said he understands why people are upset about the potatoes being destroyed, instead of being donated to food banks.
He said some potatoes will go to those in need, as they did in 2001, but there just isn't the infrastructure to donate them all.
I couldn't watch after that first day. It's an image I have never really forgotten.—Lori Robinson, Eric C. Robinson Inc.
"You just can't deal with the amount of volume that comes out of tractor trailer loads of potatoes out of a bin, to go to a food bank. They're not really set up to deal with it, in terms of packaging and loading docks and so on," MacIsaac said.
"Great idea, just can't work on that volume. This is an immense volume of potatoes that has to be destroyed here."
These
potatoes being harvested at Kevin MacIsaac's family farm in Bear River
in the fall of 2000 were some of the ones that were later destroyed
after potato wart closed the U.S. border. (Submitted by Kevin MacIsaac )
Vivid memories
The discussion about destroying potatoes is also bringing back memories for Lori Robinson, farm manager at Eric C. Robinson Inc., a sixth generation farming operation in Albany.
"I remember watching the first few truck loads of potatoes being dumped in windrows in the field and then sending our snow blower through them," Robinson said.
"I couldn't watch after that first day. It's an image I have never really forgotten."
Lori
Robinson remembers watching the first few truck loads of potatoes being
dumped in the field and then sending the snowblower through them. She
says she couldn’t watch after that first day. (Submitted by Lori Robinson)
Robinson said she doesn't have any photos or videos of the potatoes being destroyed, but anticipates there will be many this time around.
"I said to one of my farm crew the other day that once farmers start destroying excess potatoes in the new year, social media will be flooded with pictures and videos," Robinson said.
"It will be very impactful, especially in these times of food insecurity, rising food prices, high demands at local food banks, environmental considerations, climate change."
'Heartbreaking' decision
Jason Webster, of MWM Farms in Kinkora, is also facing the prospect of destroying millions of pounds of potatoes.
His family also went through the experience in 2001.
Jason Webster of MWM Farms in Kinkora is also facing the
prospect destroying millions of pounds of potatoes. (Nancy Russell/CBC )
"It was a very, very tough experience for everyone. It was just hard to accept the fact that perfectly good food is going through our snowblower into our field and going to be frozen, wasted," Webster said.
"When we know there's people hungry, that need it and we know there's a market that demands it. It's just heartbreaking for everyone."
Webster
says it's hard to explain to his children why they would have to
destroy perfectly good potatoes as they are doing in this photo from
2001. (CBC )
Webster said the potato wart situation also has some of his family and friends talking about whether they want their children to consider a future in farming.
"When you hit three years of drought and then hit a real good year, and then all of a sudden things get turned into turmoil like this. Do we really want to ask our children to bear this burden?" Webster said.
My younger children look at me and don't understand, and I don't blame them.— Jason Webster, MWM Farms
"Those discussions are happening. My friends are having them with their children as well. I've had multiple people tell me that they're starting to discourage their children from taking over the farm because it's just too hard."
Webster said it's also hard to explain to his children why they may have to destroy some of this year's crop.
"My younger children look at me and don't understand, and I don't blame
them because they shouldn't understand. It shouldn't happen, destroying
perfectly good food when there's people hungry and need it," Webster
said.
"It's not the right thing to be doing, and our federal
government and the governments over the border need to open their eyes
and change this."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Farmer to farmer: P.E.I. potato growers try new tack in export crisis
‘We thought it would be easier to talk grower to grower’
The border was closed three weeks ago by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency in response to American concerns about the discovery of potato wart in two P.E.I. fields in October.
The group has opened up talks with the United Potato Growers of America and the National Potato Council in its efforts to get the trade suspension lifted.
"We thought it would be easier to talk grower to grower, group to group," said Kevin MacIsaac, executive director of the United Potato Growers of Canada.
It may be easier to get farmers to understand the issues involved, said MacIsaac, rather than relying on the ongoing talks between CFIA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
"We thought it might be faster. We could get to some of the details that are behind the situation here," he said.
20 years of successful management
Potato wart first appeared on P.E.I. in 2000, and prompted a border closure at that time as well.
A management plan was developed in consultation with the Americans, and it kept the border open until last month. Canadian officials insist the management plan, which includes washing potentially infected soil from fresh potatoes and spraying them with sprout inhibitor so they can't grow, makes exports safe for American agriculture.
Farmers would like to start by exporting potatoes to Puerto Rico, says Kevin MacIsaac. (CBC)
Potato wart disfigures potatoes but is not a threat to human health. It is considered a serious agricultural pest.
The P.E.I. Potato Board was expecting to export about $120 million worth of potatoes to the U.S. this season.
The farmer-to-farmer talks are focused initially on opening exports to Puerto Rico, which does not have a commercial potato growing industry. Puerto Rico represents about a quarter of the American market for P.E.I.
"If we were to prove that that could be done that would also prove then that it's not a trade issue," said MacIsaac.
"It's just something that has to be dealt with in terms of the details of getting potatoes there. It would be a good step in the process."
MacIsaac said the potato industry has already lost millions of dollars it will not be able to recover because of the trade suspension.
Meetings in Washington
Meanwhile, a delegation of high-level officials, including P.E.I. Premier Dennis King and P.E.I. Potato Board general manager Greg Donald left for Washington, D.C., on Tuesday.
The two-day trip will include meetings with senators, members of Congress, the National Potato Council and Kirsten Hillman, Canadian ambassador to the United States.
King told CBC News Wednesday that he feels there's been "a little bit of headway," though there's still no resolution.
He said the delegation is stressing the importance of following the science and outlining the process that's followed on P.E.I.
He's hopeful some potatoes may start moving into Puerto Rico again, which is one step closer to a full resolution.
With files from Nancy Russell
U.S. buyer of P.E.I. potatoes warns of potential shortage, higher prices due to export ban
The P.E.I. Potato Board estimates $2 million a week in lost sales to U.S. customers
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency announced it was suspending the fresh potato trade to the U.S. following the discovery of potato wart in two Island fields, bringing exports to a sudden halt, usually worth about $120 million per year to the P.E.I. economy.
Greg Maheras, of J Maheras Co and Chelsea Creek Farms in Chelsea, Mass., said his company was expecting to purchase 400-500 truckloads of P.E.I. potatoes over the course of the season.
"We're already paying a little bit higher prices on the varieties that we usually take off the Island. But going forward, we can see it. It's just going to get harder and harder," Maheras said.
"That's a huge gap to try to fill on the east coast, the potatoes that come off the Island and we were already in a very short supply situation in the U.S. to begin with. So this is just exacerbating that issue."
These
potatoes from Red Isle Produce are usually headed down the eastern
seaboard, from Maine to Florida, and into Puerto Rico as well. (Shane Hennessey/CBC )
Maheras said he was surprised when the export ban was put in place on Nov. 21.
"For most of us in the industry, it came out of nowhere, we hadn't realized that there was any issue whatsoever," Maheras said.
"It came as a surprise, and I lost a little bit of sleep that week trying to figure out how we were going to fill all the gaps. A little stressful."
Supply questions
Maheras said he is looking to replace the P.E.I. potatoes with shipments from North Dakota, Maine and New Brunswick, but worries about finding enough.
"They didn't foresee this so they don't have the supplies going forward to be able to keep on filling this gap," Maheras said.
"I think we're going to go through their crop a lot more quickly than anyone anticipated. A month or two out here, we could be in a very short situation."
Maheras says the border closure leaves a huge gap to fill in
markets on the east coast of the United States. (Submitted by Bill
Enserink )
Maheras said prices are going to go up and consumers will be paying "considerably more" for potatoes.
"All of a sudden to lose, 20, 30 per cent of your source, it's going to be hard," Maheras said.
"We're already struggling to find enough potatoes for the next two weeks for orders that we already have booked."
We're already struggling to find enough potatoes for the next two weeks— Greg Maheras, J Maheras Co
Maheras said he expects the price of potatoes to continue to increase, the longer the P.E.I. potatoes are blocked from the United States, and he worries how that will affect the industry.
"Potatoes are always been kind of an affordable commodity. Suddenly, if someone walks in and they're paying six or seven dollars for a bag of potatoes, that's going to raise an eyebrow," Maheras said.
"Usually at three, four dollars. I don't think it's an issue, but if it's a significant increase, I do think that that will hurt the potato industry."
P.E.I. reputation
However, Maheras said he's not worried about any long-term impact to the reputation of P.E.I. potatoes.
"For someone in the industry like us who've always used P.E.I. potatoes, appreciate the quality and the effort that goes into the potatoes up there," Maheras said.
"If the border reopens, we'll be back. You're not going to lose people who've always taken P.E.I. potatoes."
Farmers
on the Island say measures taken before fresh potatoes are shipped
anywhere make it nigh impossible for potato wart to spread through them. (Shane Hennessey/CBC)
Bill Enserink, of Red Isle Produce in Charlottetown, has been doing business with Maheras for decades.
"It's a frustrating situation. There's just so many farm families and employees up here that really work hard to make sure they're producing the right varieties and the right quality to supply those northeast customers," Enserink said.
"It's just devastating for them, farm families and their employees that they're just doing nothing.
At
Red Isle Produce in Charlottetown, Bill Enserink has a staff of eight
who would usually be spending their days filling orders, with more than
90 per cent of the potatoes they sell heading to the U.S. market. (Shane Hennessey/CBC)
"I appreciate the fact that we have customers that value our product, and when the border opens, their plan is to come right back again. That's awesome."
Enserink said he understands that Maheras has to look elsewhere to replace the P.E.I. potatoes that are stuck in warehouses, banned from crossing the border.
Enserink
says P.E.I. farmers work hard to make sure they're producing the right
varieties and the right quality to supply customers in the northeastern
U.S. (Shane Hennessey/CBC)
"He can't stop. He's got to keep going and he's got to pivot and he's got to find supply and he's got to supply his customers. The produce business in general, they're accustomed to doing that," Enserink said.
"Obviously we'd love to be doing it. Our infrastructure, our trucking situation, everything is set up to do it. And we just can't right now. So it's disheartening."
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-potato-ban-update-1.6280845
P.E.I. potato ban to U.S. expected to last into new year
Province announces more financial aid for industry
Bloyce Thompson made the comments during a news conference Friday announcing financial assistance to help the potato industry and trucking companies affected by trade restrictions to the U.S.
"Everything's on the table," he said. "We want to do everything possible so we don't have to destroy potatoes."
The program will provide potato farmers with working or capital loans with a fixed interest rate of four per cent. Farmers can access up to $5 million.
The government will also help the Island potato industry and affected trucking companies with wage reimbursements to employers to maintain their staff during the restrictions.
The P.E.I. Potato Board says the Island ships about $120 million worth of potatoes to the U.S. annually. (Shane Hennessey/CBC)
The wage subsidy program is worth $4.2 million, retroactive to Dec. 1. It is capped is $3,000 per month per employee. About 1,400 employees would be affected.
The assistance is in addition to a $10 million contingency fund announced previously for the potato industry.
It's been more than two weeks since the Canadian Food Inspection Agency announced it was suspending fresh potato trade to the U.S. following the discovery of potato wart in two Island fields.
'Serious tough times'
Thompson spoke with federal officials in Ottawa this week, and said he came away with the feeling the ban won't be resolved until at least the new year.
"This is unbelievably frustrating," he said Friday. "There's going to be some serious tough times."
The P.E.I. Potato Board has said the ban could lead to millions of kilograms of potatoes being destroyed, and that it's already too late for producers to recoup lost sales.
It's going to provide a lot of assistance to growers in the short term, given what we're dealing with.
— Greg Donald, P.E.I. Potato Board
Thompson said he's still hopeful potatoes won't have to be destroyed, but decisions have to be made "sooner rather than later." He said the situation needs support from the federal government.
"We need serious compensation or the border open."
Thompson said discussions with farmers last week were tough.
"This is serious, this is affecting our family farms and we took that message to Ottawa and we just can't seem to get the urgency that we feel ... is there to get some answers.
Matthew MacKay, minister of economic growth, said the potato industry is P.E.I.'s biggest economic generator and the trade restrictions cause a ripple effect to the rest of the economy and workforce.
Subsidy eases financial strains
The general manager of the P.E.I. Potato Board, Greg Donald, is relieved by the government's announcement. He said it will ease financial strains on farmers.
"We were pleased with the announcement and it's going to provide a lot of assistance to growers in the short term, given what we're dealing with," he said. "It'll help them with working capital, also with some financing."
It's important to keep the good folks that are working with them and this will certainly help with that.— Greg Donald, P.E.I. Potato Board
Nevertheless, the restrictions being lifted still remains a pressing need for potato farmers, Donald said.
"All of us collectively, and certainly the whole industry, that would be the best news," he said. "Every day that goes by, the more losses and so on, so forth. We're eager to have some good news real soon."
The wage subsidies will help farmers keep employees and partners, Donald said.
"During these times, it's important to keep the good folks that are working with them and this will certainly help with that."
Dumping potatoes very likely
There's a possibility that potatoes will need to be dumped if there is no market to sell them in, Donald said. The potato board hopes farmers will be reimbursed through government insurance, if that happens.
This is something that's going to continue to cause challenges well into the future, not just in the next few months, but we're talking years.
— Greg Donald, P.E.I. Potato Board
"We are talking about that now because the time to do it is in the middle of winter when we have freezing temperatures that will destroy those potatoes," he said.
Destroying their produce is the last thing farmers want to do, Donald said.
"That is just not what anyone in the industry wants."
Donald said that dumping potatoes is just a short-term issue. Planting next spring will be a challenge as well, he said.
"This is something that's going to continue to cause challenges well into the future, not just in the next few months, but we're talking years," he said.
"That's what we're up against."
With files from Laura Meader
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-potatoes-puerto-rico-supply-1.6279934
P.E.I., Puerto Rico look for ways to keep potatoes heading south
Concerns being raised around supply and increased prices for consumers in Puerto Rico
It's been more than two weeks since the Canadian Food Inspection Agency announced it was suspending fresh potato trade to the U.S. following the discovery of potato wart in two Island fields.
The P.E.I. Potato Board says the Island ships $18-$20 million worth of potatoes to the U.S. territory in a normal production year. In 2020, sales to Puerto Rico accounted for about 25 per cent of the province's sales to the United States.
One Island company has opted to purchase potatoes from New Brunswick to send south, rather than leaving its customers to find other suppliers.
Tropical
Shipping has a weekly sailing from the port of Halifax to Puerto Rico.
This is the Canadian vessel arriving at the port of San Juan. (Submitted by Tropical Shipping)
"We felt that at least for the short term we wanted to do our best not to disrupt our customers, with the hope that in short order this would be rectified, and we could just maintain business as usual," said Randy Visser, president of G Visser & Sons in Orwell Cove, P.E.I.
"It's just a stopgap measure to keep them supplied. We have heard from them that getting potatoes has become a problem, and that they're seeing already some disruption in the supply chain in Puerto Rico."
Weekly shipments
Visser had three containers on a ship that was en route to Puerto Rico when the export ban came into place.
"I understand they held it for a number of days. There was some confusion about whether those loads were allowed to enter, and I think it took several days to sort that out," Visser said.
"Since then, they've been released and delivered to our customers. So that's really good news."
Randy
Visser says the export ban has meant a loss in sales of about 40 loads
of potatoes to Puerto Rico over the last two weeks, worth more than a
quarter of a million dollars. (Rick Gibbs/CBC)
Visser said Puerto Rico usually receives 20 loads of potatoes from the Maritimes each week, mostly from P.E.I., leaving every Monday from Halifax.
Visser said the export ban has meant a loss in sales of about 40 loads of potatoes to Puerto Rico over the last two weeks, worth more than a quarter of a million dollars.
"It's a relatively big number, but when you start to add on what's not being shipped to the eastern U.S., or to the U.S. continent," Visser said, "that's only a fraction."
The P.E.I. Potato Board has estimated that the export ban is costing the Island economy about $2 million a week.
A
truckload of P.E.I. potatoes in Puerto Rico. The P.E.I. Potato Board
says the Island ships $18-$20 million worth of potatoes to the U.S.
territory in a normal production year. (Joe Colon Studio)
Impact on consumers
Visser said the export ban is also going to affect consumers in Puerto Rico, as his company will not be offering a Christmas ad, as it usually does, where retailers offer potatoes at a lower price.
"Unfortunately, with the need to source those potatoes from New Brunswick, we can't really offer a significant ad to our customers, so that's a disappointment to them," Visser said.
I think they sympathize with us as well. They're not happy about it at all
—Randy Visser
"They'll be paying regular prices, and probably, eventually, will start to pay more."
Visser said there is also high demand for New Brunswick potatoes right now, so his company has had to pay more for those potatoes, and is selling them for the same price.
He said there will also be certain potato products that he won't be able to supply from New Brunswick, meaning less variety on store shelves in Puerto Rico.
Visser said his customers in Puerto Rico are following the situation closely, and hoping for a quick resolution.
Visser
said the export ban is also going to affect consumers in Puerto Rico,
as his company will not be offering a Christmas ad, as it usually does,
where retailers offer potatoes at a lower price. (Submitted by Caribbean Produce )
"I think they sympathize with us as well. They're not happy about it at all," Visser said.
"I understand that several have connected with [United States Department of Agriculture] in the continental U.S. to stress the importance of the P.E.I. supply to their supply chain, and so hopefully that will have some positive impact to getting the border open again."
'An important staple'
In San Juan, one of P.E.I.'s customers is also expressing concerns about the supply chain and the impact on prices for consumers in Puerto Rico.
Ángel
R. Santiago Colón, president of Caribbean Produce Exchange, in the
company's warehouse in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He says he is concerned
about the impact on the supply and price of potatoes. (Joe Colon, Studio Inc.2016.)
"We are monitoring the situation, analyzing various scenarios and options at this time," said Ángel R. Santiago Colón, president of Caribbean Produce Exchange, in a statement to CBC News.
"This disruption causes an unexpected impact on supply and pricing, as well as our business model, given the fact that potatoes are an important staple in the daily diet of Puerto Rican families and a leading product in our company's portfolio. It also comes at an important season of the year given the holidays."
The issue was also discussed last week in Washington. Jenniffer González Colón, the resident commissioner of Puerto Rico, discussed P.E.I. potato exports during a meeting with Canadian International Trade Minister Mary Ng.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-potatoes-export-ban-puerto-rico-1.6271480
P.E.I., Puerto Rico lobby for export of potatoes to resume
In 2020, about 25% of P.E.I.'s sales to the U.S. went to Puerto Rico
The P.E.I. Potato Board says the Island ships $18-$20 million worth of potatoes to the U.S. territory in a normal production year. In 2020, sales to Puerto Rico accounted for about 25 per cent of the province's sales to the U.S.
Executive director Greg Donald said the board supports allowing potatoes to continue to be exported to Puerto Rico from P.E.I.
"We believe there is no rationale for the suspension of P.E.I. potatoes to the entire U.S.," Donald said. "Having said that, we see it as an easy first step that should have happened by this week already."
'Fantastic market'
Bill Enserink of Red Isle Produce in Charlottetown said sales to Puerto Rico account for 20 to 25 per cent of his company's total sales to the U.S.
He said if the border closure is based on preventing the spread of potato wart, that's not an issue for Puerto Rico.
Bill
Enserink, of Red Isle Produce in Charlottetown, said Puerto Rico makes
up 20 to 25 per cent of his company's annual sales to the United States.
(Shane Hennessey/CBC)
"There's zero risk. There's no potato-growing areas in Puerto Rico. It's a separate island — the risk to the continental U.S.A. is zero," Enserink said.
"If it was a science-based decision, there would be absolutely no reason why we couldn't ship to Puerto Rico …people think it's a small Caribbean island, but they consume a lot of P.E.I. potatoes. It's a fantastic market."
The P.E.I. Potato Board says the Island ships between $18
million and $20 million worth of potatoes to Puerto Rico every year.
(Submitted by Caribbean Produce )
Brian Ching of Russell Ching Ltd. in Souris, P.E.I., agrees that resuming exports to Puerto Rico makes sense.
"Puerto Rico is what I call the low-hanging fruit. They don't grow potatoes there. They eat a lot of potatoes there," Ching said.
"I would think if the border got opened to Puerto Rico first, if that's possible, it would be a good start and it would show that the Americans are at least bargaining in good faith and they're willing to move a little."
Political lobbying
International Trade Minister Mary Ng was in Washington Thursday and met with Jenniffer González Colón, the resident commissioner of Puerto Rico, to discuss trade issues, including P.E.I. potato exports.
A spokesperson for Ng said the issue has been raised several times on this trip.
International
Trade Minister Mary Ng, centre, was in Washington on Thursday and met
with Jenniffer González Colón, right, the resident commissioner of
Puerto Rico to discuss trade issues, including P.E.I. potato exports. (Jenniffer González/Twitter)
P.E.I. Agriculture Minister Bloyce Thompson was in Ottawa along with officials from P.E.I.'s Potato Board on Thursday to discuss the potato wart situation with federal officials, including Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau.
Thompson also raised the issue of resuming trade with Puerto Rico.
"I actually had a call this morning with my counterpart in Puerto Rico, the Secretary Gonzalez," Thompson said. "They want our product and they need our product, and so that's what we're dealing with right now."
P.E.I.
Agriculture Minister Bloyce Thompson, right, said it has been a week of
'extremely difficult visits' with Island potato farmers. (Bloyce Thompson/Twitter)
Concern about rising price
Angel Santiago, president and CEO of Caribbean Produce in San Juan, Puerto Rico, said his company has been doing business with P.E.I. for more than 30 years, and imports about $4 million worth of Island potatoes annually.
He's worried about the impact of the export ban on consumers.
"In the last years, decades, P.E.I. have been the predominant potato consumed in Puerto Rico — at least, I'll say, 80 per cent what we call the medium russet potato, in a five-pound-bag format," Santiago said.
"[The export ban] will affect availability of your product, and probably also affect the pricing on that product for the consumers."
Angel
Santiago of Caribbean Produce in the company's warehouse in San Juan,
Puerto Rico. He says the company has been doing business with P.E.I. for
more than 30 years. (Joe Colon, Studio Inc.2016.)
Santiago said the price of potatoes will increase without P.E.I. potatoes, because of increased transportation costs.
"There is a weekly ship that comes in and out basically direct from P.E.I., from Halifax to San Juan," Santiago said. "It's a very consistent service." If they don't get potatoes from P.E.I., then they'll have to ship them in from Quebec or New Brunswick, which will increase the cost, he said.
Santiago said the price of potatoes will increase without
P.E.I. potatoes, because of increased transportation costs. (Submitted
by Bill Enserink )
No risk
Santiago said because Puerto Rico doesn't grow potatoes, he agrees it is safe to continue to import P.E.I. potatoes.
"It won't affect our potato crops because we don't have potato crops in Puerto Rico," Santiago said.
"I will ask for a revision or reconsideration, if there's a possibility, do that, at least for Puerto Rico, because we haven't got the problem. We're following all the protocols — USDA protocols, our own protocols."
Angel
Santiago of Caribbean Produce in San Juan said because Puerto Rico
doesn't grow potatoes, he believes it is safe to continue to import
P.E.I. potatoes. (Shane Hennessey/CBC )
Santiago said he will be reaching out to politicians in Puerto Rico, asking them to make the case for resuming exports from P.E.I., both for his company and the people he does business with on the Island.
"I've been to P.E.I. We've been there for many years now. And for me, business, it is personal," Santiago said. "We have a personal relationship with Red Isle. We have a personal relationship with other growers."
Potato packers on P.E.I. trying to keep workers on the job
'It's going to affect a lot of people having the cash flow for Christmastime'
At the ones still operating, supervisors are trying to spread out the work to keep as many people getting hours as possible.
On Nov. 21, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency suspended U.S. trade in fresh P.E.I. potatoes following the discovery of potato wart in two Island fields.
At Mid Isle Farms in Albany, P.E.I., they are packing potatoes heading to their Canadian customers, but 60 per cent of their sales so far this year were south of the border and they were expecting that to continue, or even grow.
Dave
Masters said there would usually be between 27 and 30 people on the
production line, when they are busy, and they are now down to 17 or 18. (Nancy Russell/CBC)
"I'm here every day, but the workers, we're finding it hard to keep them busy. We've lost probably 60 per cent of our business stateside, so it's an impact on the company itself," said Dave Masters, a production supervisor at Mid Isle Farms for eight years.
"We have people here that's been here 30 years, and there's a lot of them has been here seven and eight years. They want to stay here, and keep busy and keep working. So, yes, it's difficult."
Not enough work
Masters said there would usually be between 27 and 30 people on the production line, when they are busy, and they are now down to 17 or 18.
— Dave Masters, Mid Isle Farms
The rest, he said, have been sent home because there is just not enough work.
"Right now, I guess they are either looking for work, or hoping that they're going to get called back when business picks up again," Masters said.
"Hopefully they have EI or something to fall back on right now. Other than that, we're unable to keep everybody busy because of the shutdown, so it's impacting us really bad."
Masters
said the two or three weeks before Christmas are usually very busy, and
would have meant extra income for many of the workers at Mid Isle. (Nancy Russell/CBC)
Masters said the timing — just before Christmas — is especially unfortunate.
"The holiday season is usually a busy time for us, usually two weeks, three weeks before Christmas, we are really busy and that obviously is affecting us right now, we are down to half a crew," Masters said.
"It's going to affect a lot of people having the cash flow for Christmastime. We were en route to give a lot of hours. People would be making more money just before Christmas, and that's not going to happen."
Kim Gavin has been working at Mid Isle Farms for 10 years and lives in nearby Borden-Carleton. (Nancy Russell/CBC)
Kim Gavin, who lives in nearby Borden-Carleton, has been part of the production crew for 10 years.
She is working this week, but the future is uncertain.
"Just happy to be here, to be working. I just got my EI going last week," Gavin said. "Just keep steady, keep going, hope for the best."
Losing workers
General manager Andrew Costa joined Mid Isle this fall, just as they were gearing up for a large harvest and lots of sales.
Now he's facing the consequences of the export ban to the United States and what it means to the employees.
"We are constantly focusing on trying to bring in the best people, and train them, and make sure that they're qualified to run their operations. But that takes time and skill and cost," Costa said.
General
manager Andrew Costa said he hopes the federal government and officials
in Ottawa understand the urgency of the situation. (Nancy Russell/CBC)
"The concern is that we can't provide those hours, and then we're running the risk they need to go look for work elsewhere," Costa said.
"Then when the border does reopen, we're going to potentially be at a loss for production crew members to ensure that we're able to move the product that we need to at that time."
Every day that goes by is a major impact to our market as the food is perishable.— Andrew Costa, Mid Isle Farms
Costa said he hopes the federal government and officials in Ottawa understand the urgency of the situation.
"We certainly don't have months. We don't have weeks. Day by day, it's really an impact here that we need to take into consideration," Costa said.
"Every day that goes by is a major impact to our market as the food is perishable and we need to be able to move that product."
Costa
said he has started to think about what happens if the U.S. border does
not open soon, including potentially having to dump potatoes. (Nancy Russell/CBC)
Costa said he has started to think about what happens if the U.S. border does not open soon.
"There are lots of food banks across the country and there are areas
that need food. We certainly want to try to move our product where we
can," Costa said.
"But the harsh reality is that you're maybe looking at options of dumping product, and that's something every farmer, every grower, every packing shed wants to avoid."
At
Russell Ching Ltd., the production crew has been doing a mix of regular
business with its Canadian customers, as well as helping to fill orders
for an upcoming Christmas sale at an Ontario retailer. (Shane Hennessey/CBC)
The potato export ban has also had an impact beyond P.E.I.'s borders, as some producers have sent temporary foreign workers home early, because of a shortage of work.
At Russell Ching Ltd. in Souris, the production crew has been doing a mix of regular business with its Canadian customers, as well as helping to fill orders for an upcoming Christmas sale at an Ontario retailer. Brian Ching said that has provided a full week of work for his 15 staff.
At Vissers in Orwell Cove, a significantly reduced number of staff is also packing the few Canadian orders they still have. The company would usually sell 70 per cent of its potatoes into the U.S. market, including Puerto Rico.
Randy Visser said they have also been fortunate to find temporary employment for some of their employees elsewhere.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
https://www.cbc.ca/news/
Federal agriculture minister 'working extremely hard' to resume fresh potato trade with U.S.
‘I am confident that we will convince the Americans that our fresh potatoes are safe': Marie-Claude Bibeau
Ending a suspension of trade in fresh potatoes from P.E.I. to the United States is a top priority for the Canadian government, says federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau.
The trade suspension was ordered by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency on Monday, following the discovery of potatoes infected with potato wart in two P.E.I. fields in October. Bibeau told CBC's Island Morning host Mitch Cormier she understands how important potatoes are for the P.E.I. economy and even the identity of Islanders.
"I really get it, and I am working extremely hard with the team to solve the situation as soon as possible," said Bibeau.
"I am confident that we will convince the Americans that our fresh potatoes are safe, they do not present a risk for their soil, for their land. And they desperately need our very high-quality potatoes as well."
President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
discussed P.E.I. potatoes in Washington last week, said Bibeau. (Evan
Vucci/Associated Press)
Potato wart disfigures potatoes and reduces crop yield, but is not a threat to human health. The U.S. lists it as a serious threat to agriculture.
CFIA implemented the suspension to forestall a ban from the American side. Bibeau said she feels trade will resume more quickly if trade is stopped from the Canadian side of the border.
"I know that it hurts, but I prefer to keep control on our Canadian side than be subjected to an American ban," she said.
'They have to be reassured'
P.E.I. farmers this year had been celebrating the best harvest in generations. With below-average crops in Manitoba and Alberta, prices were also good.
The P.E.I. Potato Board estimates the value of P.E.I. potato exports to the U.S. at $120 million.
In a news conference Monday, P.E.I. Premier Dennis King strenuously objected to the suspension, saying it was based on politics and not on science.
Bibeau said Canada needs to reassure its American trading partner that P.E.I. potatoes pose no risk of spreading potato wart.
"Science is not black or white. I think they are going beyond and they are asking for too much, but, I mean, it is still a scientifically based discussion that we have to have," she said.
"They have to be reassured that even if we have found more cases on the Island that our protocols are strong enough."
Those protocols may need to be strengthened, said Bibeau.
P.E.I. potato growers blindsided
Randy Visser, a potato farmer and packer from Orwell Cove, P.E.I, said he couldn't have ever foreseen the decision.
"All these machines where running at full capacity, and today they're quite idle and quiet," he said.
He said the suspension shuts off P.E.I. from important markets in the U.S. East Coast and the American territory of Puerto Rico, representing about 70 per cent of their sales and volume. It potentially impacts both staffing and storage.
"We have potatoes in storage and we have a schedule laid out to ship approximately a million-plus pounds a week through this plant. You can imagine how quickly that will start to bunch up. Eventually, we may run out of time to move those potatoes."
Ray Keenan, owner of Rollo Bay Holdings, say it could take years for the industry to recover if the suspension isn't lifted soon. About half of his farm's product is U.S.-bound.
"Everybody's business plan was destroyed overnight," he said.
Farmers aren't the only ones affected
Trucking companies on P.E.I. were also left reeling by the news of the suspension.
"My stomach turned over," said Scott Annear, co-owner of Morley Annear Ltd., which delivers potatoes to Boston, Pennsylvania, Florida and sometimes as far as Texas.
"We don't know how long this is going to last. We don't know what our options are. I'm sort of at a loss for words," he said, noting about a third of his business is exports to the U.S.
"It's devastating."
Tyson Kelly, owner of Bulk Carriers, said he was shocked by the news. While he is already booking to ship other products to replace that potato business, he said the loss of shipping will be a further economic impact for the province.
"There's other products that we can ship," said Kelly.
"For us it's not as devastating as it is for all our local farmers. At the end of the day the farmers are the ones impacted to the greatest extent."
In statement jointly attributed to agriculture critic John Barlow and health critic Luc Berthold, the Conservative Party said the suspension was evidence of a failed trade relationship between the Liberal government and the U.S.
"In classic Liberal fashion, this ban was made in the middle of the night, with no consultation and no plan to support the workers impacted by this decision," the statement said.
The statement demanded a detailed plan to support P.E.I. farmers.
American potato growers say it's not a 'Canada vs. U.S.' issue
Kam Quarles, CEO of the U.S.'s National Potato Council, said he was sympathetic toward the province's potato farmers, but that the suspension was necessary.
"I think anyone involved in agriculture anywhere in the world, at some point, is going to deal with pest and disease issues, and it's just a matter of time," he said.
"It's unfortunately a very difficult situation and we're hopeful that it's dealt with efficiently — both by the CFIA, and we stand ready with the U.S. to deal with it efficiently as well."
WATCH | P.E.I. vows to fight potato export ban:
Province, feds must work together to solve potato trade issues, says federal minister
Quarles said suspending seeds potato exports alone was not enough, and that the recent potato wart detection showed there were additional pathways for the fungus to get into U.S. fields.
He said the situation is far more complicated than just "some kind of trade dispute."
"Certain folks have wanted to make this a Canada vs. U.S. issue," Quarles said. "Economically, this doesn't help the U.S., not one bit.
"Our folks need P.E.I. seed. We process P.E.I. potatoes in the U.S. This is not an issue that is beneficial to the U.S. in any way."
The council said in a release Monday that the spread of the fungus to American farms could threaten their access to international fresh potato markets, costing the U.S. industry more than $225 million in annual sales.
No incidents of potato wart spread
Potato wart was first discovered on the Island in 2000.
Measures were put in place to control its spread, including restrictions if the fungus is detected in a field.
"No production of potatoes, including seed, table or processing potatoes, is allowed. No other propagative crops are allowed to be produced in that field," according to Dr. Carolyn Sanford of the P.E.I. Department of Agriculture.
The soil can't be moved, and all equipment and vehicles have to be cleaned and disinfected before they can leave the field.
There have since been more than 30 incidents of potato wart on the Island, but the P.E.I. Potato Board said there has not been a single incident of the fungus spreading anywhere else from Island potatoes.
Potato wart disfigures potatoes, but is not a threat to human health. (CBC)
Canada suspended trade in seed potatoes from P.E.I. in connection with the October discovery earlier this month, and has known there has been a threat to fresh potato exports for about a week.
It has kept the P.E.I. government advised of the situation, said Bibeau. She said she has had three discussions with U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in the last week, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau discussed the issue with President Joe Biden at a meeting in Washington last week.
In a statement released on Twitter late on Monday, Cardigan MP Lawrence MacAulay, P.E.I.'s representative in the federal cabinet, called the situation "absolutely unfair to our farmers on P.E.I."
But he agreed with Bibeau that it was better for CFIA to act, rather than have to deal with a ban from the U.S. side.
With files from, Kerry Campbell, Angela Walker and Island Morning
Kevin MacIsaac surveys the Canadian potato sector
The pandemic has disrupted the supply chain in potatoes with some sectors experiencing a boom, and others suffering from a dip in demand.
Karen Davidson, editor of The Grower, goes 'Behind the Scenes' of the November 2021 cover story and speaks with Kevin MacIsaac, general manager of the United Potato Growers of Canada. They discuss how the entire North American trade is adjusting to tectonic shifts in consumer demand, shifts in climate and shifts in seed sources. Surprisingly, some growers are responding by building more capacity.
http://thegrower.org/news/judge-dismisses-federal-appeal-skye-view-farms-case
Five years of legal woes have entangled Alex Docherty, Skye View Farms, Elmwood, Prince Edward Island, after he and the farm were charged with violations of the Pesticides Control Act. The charges stemmed from the aftermath of a torrential rain on July 25, 2016.
The current edition of PEI Potato News reports that on July 9, 2021, the Supreme Court of Prince Edward Island dismissed an appeal of federal prosecutors seeking to overturn an earlier ‘not guilty’ verdict. Justice Gormley upheld the decision that the farmer’s rights were violated based on a warrantless search of his land by federal officers.
The PEI Potato Board notes that Skye View Farms is the most recent operation to face the daunting legal resources of the federal government.
“The Board has stated for several years that there are major efforts underway on Island farms to reduce the probability of runoff, even given more and more severe rainfall events. Better approaches outside of the courts to addressing issues arising from extreme weather had been sought, to no avail, to date on the part of federal officials.”
The case has attracted ongoing publicity in the Island’s mainstream press. The PEI Potato Board has sought to explain the overall environmental and stewardship efforts of the sector.
The magazine article explains: “In the Skye view case, its defense included plans to show just how intense, unusual and destructive that rain was on July 25, 2016, but that part of the case did not get tried in court as the issue of the lack of search warrant led to the not guilty verdict.”
Source: Prince Edward Island Potato News July/August 2021 issue
Author
Contact info
105-355 Elmira Road N., Guelph, ON N1K 1S5
866-898-8488 ext. 221
Karen Davidson, editor
E editor@thegrower.org
Carlie Melara, print + digital sales
E advertising@thegrower.org
Potato wart situation was ‘mismanaged,’ says Prince Edward Island farmer
More in All latest News:
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Borderlands: US potato farmers preparing for Mexico opening
December 28, 2021
A potato farmer on Prince Edward Island’s North Shore in Canada is wondering how the situation with potato wart got to the point where the U.S. border is closed to fresh potatoes from the Island. Klaas Nieuwhof told CBC’s Island Morning he was packing potatoes when he got a phone call and learned the border was closing.
“There’s a lot of things that led up to that long beforehand that none of us were ever made aware of,” he said. “Somewhere along the way the wheels came off the wagon.”
The border closure shuts down a market estimated to be worth $120 million, and puts farmers in the position of having to destroy hundreds of millions of pounds of potatoes that can’t be sold.
Nieuwhof is all too familiar with the position P.E.I. potato farmers are in. He remembers running potatoes through the snowblower in 2000, following the first discovery of potato wart on the Island, and the closure of the U.S. border then. Nieuwhof’s children remember the stress of the last time the border was closed. Because of it, he said, they were reluctant to take up farming, though one son eventually did.
“[It’s] really disheartening for me as a dad to see your kids having to go through stuff like that, but also as a producer to see all my fellow producers struggling,” he said. “We will be forced to put potatoes through the snowblower again like we did back in 2000. It will help offset the cost of that.” The only real solution, he said, is to get the border open again.
Source: CBC. Read the full story here
Photo:
This photo from 2001 shows potatoes going through the snowblower so
that they will be exposed to cold and not be a source of infection for
any disease in the coming year. Courtesy Mary Kay Sonier/PEI Potato
Board via CBC News
Share this news story with colleagues on social media or email:
Lukie Pieterse
Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada - lukie5555@gmail.com – www.linkedin.com/in/lukie - www.potatonewstoday.com
S UMMARY I hold a Masters degree in Sociology; trained and practiced as a Social Development
Planner in the Office of the Prime Minister of South Africa, and was a lecturer in
Sociology at a major university in that country.
For 10 years, I owned and managed an intensive diversified farming operation in South
Africa, specializing in the cultivation of drip irrigated potatoes under contract for several
processing companies, including McCain Foods, Frito-Lay and Heinz, employing 35
permanent and 110 part time staff.
In 1996, I moved to Canada and launched a consulting company - Global Potato Focus
Inc. Over the years the company provided consulting and project management services
to several clients based in a number of countries in North America, South America,
Europe and Asia, including the International Potato Center (CIP), the World Potato
Congress, Syngenta AG, several potato specialist companies, as well as the Food and
Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.
I launched Global Potato News in 1997, and was the content manager of the website
until 2016. I acted as Co-Editor for several editions of the World Catalogue of Potato
Varieties; and was a columnist, freelance writer and technical editor for print
magazines, including Spud Smart magazine, Potato Storage International, and Fruit
and Vegetable magazine.
Currently I publish and edit Potato News Today – an online magazine containing
breaking news stories in 5 European languages related to the international potato
industry. The magazine can be found at www.potatonewstoday.com.
Over the past 20 years, I sourced and published several thousand potato related news
stories, press releases and technical articles in 5 European languages on several web
sites. I maintain an extensive database of potato industry contacts around the world.
S KI L L S AN D
COMP E T E NC E
Skilled in operations, strategic planning and management
Hiring, training and supervision experience
Culturally-sensitive; experience with diverse populations
Confident to collaborate internationally with clients; colleagues
Skilled in teaching/tutoring; knowledge transfer
Executive-level presentations
Computer skilled
Internet based applications, including web, blog development, maintenance
Strong written, verbal communication; interpersonal skills
Personable and friendly
Detail oriented; highly observant
Strong sense of accountability
Great collaborator, team player
E DUC ATION Ma s t e r o f Ar t s : Potchefstroom University (South Africa), 1982
Ba c h e l o r o f Ar t s ( Ho n s ) : Potchefstroom University (South Africa), 1981
Ba c h e l o r o f Ar t s : University of Pretoria (South Africa), 1980
lukie5555@gmail.com or lukie@potatonewstoday.com
Total turnaround for potato growers
by Nicole Kitchener
After already experiencing a few below-average years, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick potato growers were then forced to endure a tumultuous 2020. COVID-19 upheavals combined with drought conditions sunk provincial yields by 30 and 35 percent respectively. Growers were, therefore, relieved – and perhaps a bit surprised? – with 2021’s banner season.
It was “total turnaround in terms of the crop this year,” said Kevin MacIsaac, outgoing general manager of the Charlottetown-based United Potato Growers of Canada organization. Weather conditions were nearly perfect, not only allowing yields to increase significantly – likely to record-setting levels in New Brunswick – but the potatoes themselves are “excellent quality,” said MacIsaac. He added, “Sometimes good yield doesn’t always bring good quality, but it seems like we have both this year.”
Noting that numbers won’t be officially released until Dec. 7, MacIsaac estimated that P.E.I. produced 28 million hundredweight (cwt) of potatoes (35 percent more than 2020), while New Brunswick produced 18 million cwt (55 percent more than 2020).
“In P.E.I.’s case, it’s the highest since 2006,” said MacIsaac. “Not the highest ever. That was 2002. New Brunswick? It will probably be one of their largest yields ever.”
The season started out strong and continued that way, said Greg Donald, general manager of the P.E.I. Potato Board. Although it was hot, there was enough rain to make it “one of the nicest crops we’ve had in years,” he said. Although fields did start to get dry in the last three weeks in August, “the crop had such a good start, it didn’t really have an impact,” he added.
PLENTY OF RAIN
Fortuitously, the remnants of hurricanes Henri and Ida, plus other rain events in late August and early September helped size up tubers and bring the crops up. Donald said the Island received a record 200 millimetres of rain in the first week of September alone, but it was well enough in advance of harvest that farmers could manage wet spots or low-lying areas separately, so there was little impact. (Although some farmers have an eye on what’s in storage just to make sure no issues emerge due to the heavy rains.
Echoing MacIsaac, Donald said the quality is “probably some of the nicest I’ve ever seen and I’ve been kicking around for about 30 years in this business.”
However, it wasn’t quite the same story for Michael Woolaver in Canning, N.S. Although Nova Scotia isn’t known for its potato production like P.E.I. and New Brunswick are, there are a handful of larger growers and several like Woolaver and his family who serve the community. On their mixed-vegetable operation, Basinview Farms, they grow 180 acres of russets, round white, red, and Yukon Gold for local farmers’ markets and small grocery chains, and for sale on-farm. Rain from the beginning of August to the start of harvest, around Sept. 10 – when Woolaver said the weather turned “gorgeous” – caused what he estimates was a 20 percent yield loss.
“We’re on a clay-loam soil, so we’d rather have it drier than wetter,” said Woolaver. Due to the property’s profile, the surrounding hills wash off onto the land. “The tubers got large and they poked out through and that created a lot of green,” he said. “That then created a lot of crop loss and cullage. The tuber profile was more on the large side, and they were a rougher potato, especially on the round white.”
In fact, said Woolaver, “despite all the doom and gloom everybody else threw out there,” Basinview yielded a much better potato crop last year thanks to overall better growing conditions. And he added that chemical costs skyrocketed this year compared to 2020, as they had to protect against blight.
STRONG MARKETS
Western Canada, meanwhile, was brought to its knees this summer with drought conditions, despite the ability to irrigate. Alberta, Manitoba, and their U.S. potato-producing cousins, primarily in Idaho and Washington, find themselves in a significant potato production deficit. This at a time when North American pandemic shutdowns are no longer and “people are buying processed potato products like French fries and chips in excess of what they were pre-COVID,” said MacIsaac. He added that the fresh potato market is also strong, something he sees continuing through winter.
“So, there’s opportunity there,” said MacIsaac. However, he said it’s critical to be patient and “meter” the product into the marketplace as it requires to avoid flooding the market and driving down prices.
While Matt Hemphill, executive director of Potatoes New Brunswick, said it’s hard to complain about both an ideal growing and marketing season, it’s been challenging finding a market for what ended up being a 200-million-pound total crop surplus. He said they’ve been sending some of the excess to Manitoba for processing into French fries and hash browns and are in the process of moving more to Alberta. He expects a total of 30 million pounds will go to Western Canada. He’s also wooing buyers from Washington. As for the balance of the surplus? “Processors in the Atlantic northeast are doing the best they can to process the rest of them,” said Hemphill.
SOARING COSTS
Yet, despite demand, there are challenges in getting the potatoes where they need to go, particularly in the U.S. where it’s harder to find commercial haulers due to increased demand from players such as Amazon and FedEx, tightened federal regulations, rising fuel prices, and drivers aging out of the industry.
All of that plus overall global supply chain woes since the pandemic have meant freight costs have risen dramatically for producers and caused delays, especially in getting in parts and equipment specifically related to potato farming. “We find a lot of our producers are having to stock a lot of inventory because they don’t know when they’re going to be able to get that fuel filter or that bearing, so they’re increasing their costs,” said Hemphill.
And that’s just what P.E.I. grower Ray Keenan is doing. “I don’t know how much we can do about that any more than be proactive and keep our supplies ahead,” he said. Keenan’s Rollo Bay Holdings, near Souris, produces russet varieties for the tablestock market. His biggest worry for next year, though, is the same as most farmers: the soaring cost of fertilizer.
“The only thing we can do is make sure we pay attention to the probable yields we could expect and don’t plant more potatoes than we actually need, but at the same time maximize the value of the fertilizer we’re putting on,” said Keenan, who is also the United Potato Growers of Canada chairman.
By all accounts, said Hemphill, the price of fertilizer is set to double by next year’s planting time. Looking at preliminary costs for 2022, he figures that could mean a $10-million estimated increase over the province’s entire crop. “And that’s not even to mention the concern over supply,” he said. “Is it going to get here and when? It’s all brought in by shipping containers.”
Overall, input costs are expected to increase by at least 20 percent in 2022, said P.E.I.’s Greg Donald. “It’s going to be a very expensive crop next year.”
Farm Focus, PO Box 1509 Liverpool, NS B0T 1K0 Canada
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https://www.peipotato.org/pei-potato-industry/exporters
Exporters
(Effective from August 1st, 2020 to July 31st, 2021)
These exporters are licensed to sell Prince Edward Island Potatoes in countries other than Canada and the United States.
Potato wart field harvested for french fries
The P.E.I. field where potato wart was found back in 2000 had its first harvest of potatoes this year.
The discovery of the fungus in a 24-hectare field owned by Cavendish Farms in Travellers Rest led the U.S. government to close its border to P.E.I. potatoes for months. The closure cost Island potato growers $22 million in sales.
No potatoes were grown in the field until last spring. Under strict supervision set out by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, potatoes were planted in the field, harvested and turned into french fries this fall.
CFIA official Dave MacSwain told CBC News the agency was on site any time anything was done in the field.
"When the processing did take place a little later, we were again on site at the warehouse and at the processing plant checking for any sign of potato wart infection," said MacSwain.
"We didn't expect to find any potato wart infection and we didn't."
MacSwain said the field can now be planted and harvested under supervision. It will likely be 20 years or more before those restrictions are lifted.
Potato wart is a fungus that easily moves between fields on contaminated plant material or on farm equipment. It ruins the appearance of potatoes, but it is not a health threat.
CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/potato-wart-confirmed-in-field-1.693033
Potato wart confirmed in field
The confirmation of one case of potato wart in a P.E.I. field is not good news, but it's also not the crisis it was back in 2000, P.E.I. Potato Board officials say.
A case of potato wart in that year closed the U.S. border to Island potatoes.
Potato board officials says new protocols developed since then should prevent any trade problems this time.
"It's scientific protocols that are in place that allow us now to carry out trade," Ivan Noonan, general manager of the P.E.I. Potato Board, told CBC News Thursday.
"It's found, it's confirmed, it's isolated and that allows shipments to continue to move. Nobody wants to hear about it but you know… how it was handled, it proves the system does work."
The suspect potato, harvested from a field in the Freetown area in the middle of October, was confirmed to have potato wart by the Canada Food Inspection Agency Wednesday.
CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/fungus-hits-p-e-i-potato-field-1.340635
Fungus hits P.E.I. potato field
Potato wart, a fungus that leaves the vegetable covered in unsightly growths, has been found in a P.E.I. potato field.
- INDEPTH: Spud Scare: P.E.I's potato problem
The affected potatoes were spotted in a field owned by Cavendish Farms east of Summerside in Freetown, about 10 kilometres from where the fungus was found in 2000.
That year, the fungus devastated P.E.I.'s potato industry after the United States closed the border to Island potato imports. The wart merely is a cosmetic blemish and does not affect the nutrition of the potato or carry any health risks.
- FROM DECEMBER 6, 2000: P.E.I. premier furious over U.S. ban on spuds
Industry officials stress the new wart case is nothing to fear. "There's no danger to any of our trading partners," said Ivan Noon of the P.E.I. Potato Board.
"We have to remember every load of potatoes that leaves P.E.I. ... has CFIA (Canadian Food Inspection Agency) documentation."
The field with the fungus has been quarantined and nearby fields also have restrictions.
CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices
P.E.I. farmers give away potatoes in Ottawa to raise awareness about trade ban
Lively exchange in Parliament over what Conservatives call 'half-baked' export ban to U.S.
A tractor-trailer full of P.E.I. potatoes was parked on Parliament Hill as people in Ottawa were able to get one of 6,000 free bags of spuds from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. ET. The giveaway was organized in part by the P.E.I. Potato Board.
"It's our biggest economic generator, and when the potato industry hurts in Prince Edward Island, everybody hurts," Premier Dennis King said.
"We want to come up, keep it top of mind up here in Ottawa and demonstrate again to our politicians in Ottawa just how important this is."
It's been more than two weeks since the Canadian Food Inspection Agency announced it was suspending fresh potato trade to the U.S. following the discovery of potato wart in two Island fields.
Last week, the CFIA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture held a meeting to discuss the issue. But the province said the border shouldn't have been closed to begin with, as the Island has had a management plan in place to control the fungus since it was first discovered on P.E.I.
"As far as we're concerned, we're 100 per cent confident with our potatoes, with the plan that's been in place for 20 years to manage the issue and we don't understand why this disruption right now," said Greg Donald, general manager of the P.E.I. Potato Board.
"We'd like have the folks come together, have the appropriate discussions, whatever needs to be resolved. But as soon as we can to get things moving."
The decision of the federal government to suspend shipments of all fresh potatoes from P.E.I. to the U.S. must be immediately reversed.
— Sen. Brian Francis
The board has previously said the ban could lead to millions of kilograms of potatoes being destroyed, and that it's already too late for producers to recoup lost sales.
The premier said giving the potatoes away is the only alternative while they can't be sold. He said the province even offered to give potatoes to every food bank in the U.S. northeast, should they want them.
"We have this amazing crop of high-quality potatoes that we won't be able to sell to our biggest market, and our options are we can donate them to people, we can give them to people at food banks that really need them," King said.
"Because potatoes are a perishable product, the only other alternative is to destroy them. So just a decent human being who wants to do the best we can, we're trying to give as many potatoes and we're buying from the farmers as a way to keep some money flowing to their pockets."
All options on the table
King was at the event following a meeting on the issue Wednesday morning with Trade Minister Mary Ng, P.E.I. MP Lawrence MacAulay, Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and her provincial counterpart, Bloyce Thompson.
Bibeau said the meeting was productive, and that Canada is looking at every option on the table to solve the issue.
"We definitely have to pursue the scientific discussion with the U.S. and we're doing so," she said. "Our objective is to reassure them as quickly as possible, because our fresh potatoes are definitely safe for everyone."
King said he also met with U.S. Ambassador David Cohen, and that the ambassador said the province was making a "compelling case" to get the borders reopen.
"We feel like we're making a little bit of progress, but unfortunately nothing that we're doing can get this open today, which is what we need."
P.E.I. Sen. Brian Francis and Ontario Sen. Robert Black also stopped by the truck to show their support.
"The decision of the federal government to suspend shipments of all fresh potatoes from P.E.I. to the U.S. must be immediately reversed," Francis later wrote on Twitter.
'Half-baked' ban
Foothills, Alta., Conservative MP John Barlow brought up the P.E.I. potato ban in question period Wednesday, leading to a lively exchange with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
"Hundreds of jobs have been lost and dozens of family farms are at risk," Barlow said, calling on Trudeau to rescind the "half-baked" ban.
Trudeau responded with the line he and Bibeau have been repeating since the CFIA imposed the ban: the U.S. was about to impose its own embargo of fresh P.E.I. potatoes, which would have been much more difficult to reverse. He reminded MPs he'd brought up the ban with U.S. President Joe Biden, and accused the Conservatives of throwing mud without knowing the issue.
Any of the 4.5 kilogram (10 pound) bags of potatoes that remain at day's end will be given to food banks, Premier King said.
With files from Mathieu Theriault and Chris Rands
Commenting is now closed for this story.
David Amos
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https://davidraymondamos3.blogspot.com/2015/09/v-behaviorurldefaultvmlo.html
Friday, 18 September 2015
David Raymond Amos Versus The Crown T-1557-15
153Alvin Avenue
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-skye-view-farms-fish-kill-charge-1.5198359
Farmers rally, as one of their own found not guilty of charge related to fish kill
'We find it very hard to understand why family farms are fair bait for federal prosecutors'
Island farmers packed a Charlottetown courtroom Wednesday where a case involving a fish kill charge against one of their own, came to a sudden end.
Well-known Island farmer Alex Docherty was found not guilty, after the judge ruled fisheries officials failed to get a search warrant when they went on his property following a fish kill on the Clyde River in July 2016.
The ruling, midway through what would have been a lengthy trial, brings to an end a three year series of legal battles for Docherty.
The case had become a rallying point for frustrated Island farmers, who see a double-standard in the enforcement of environmental law. Farm leaders addressed a group of several dozen farmers who gathered outside the courthouse following the ruling.
"We find it very hard to understand why family farms are fair bait for federal prosecutors," said Jason Hayden, chair of the P.E.I. Potato Board. "But towns and cities repeatedly allow sewage to flow into rivers and oceans."
The federal prosecutor conceded his case was lost, following the judge's search warrant ruling, and supported Docherty's request that provincial court Judge Nancy Orr issue her direct verdict, exonerating Docherty, without hearing any further testimony.
Docherty's adult son, Logan, and their business, Skye View Farms Ltd. of Elmwood, were also found not guilty. They were charged under the federal Fisheries Act. The charge stated the farm allowed a substance deleterious to fish, in this case pesticides, to enter the river.
Alex Docherty and wife, Valerie Docherty, outside court Wednesday. (Brian Higgins/CBC)
Docherty's lawyers, Brandon Forbes and Brendon Hubley, had intended to argue the pesticides entered the river because of heavy rain, not because of a problem with Docherty's farming practice. They'd assembled evidence, not presented in court, that about 70 millimetres of rain fell on Docherty's farm in the space of a few hours on July 24, 2016 — the equivalent of a 1 in 700-year rainfall event.
"When you have provincial culverts overwhelmed and highway damage, as we saw that day, you can't hold a farmer responsible for something he has no control over," said Forbes after court. "[It's] an act of God and it's one where the landowner couldn't possibly have controlled the situation."
Malpeque MP Wayne Easter attended court in a show of support for Docherty and the farm community.
"There's one factor missing in this case on the part of the fisheries officers, and that's common sense," said Easter. "Governments and farmers and communities working together have to find a better way rather than putting people through a court system like this."
Jason Hayden, chair, P.E.I. Potato Board, speaks to farmers outside court. (Brian Higgins/CBC)
Farm leaders and government are now looking at putting together a task force to examine how environmental protection and enforcement is carried out, according to Hayden.
"We estimate that several hundred thousand dollars have been spent to date on this case. It would have been much more productive to invest those dollars in high-risk watersheds rather than in the courts," said Hayden.
Docherty feels the court battle has cost him customers and tarnished the reputation of Island agriculture.
"We lost a fairly significant export deal," said Docherty. "They wanted us to explain why our own government was taking us to court."
Two years ago, Docherty was fined $1,000 under provincial legislation in relation to the fish kill investigation. Investigators found Docherty had allowed his pesticide applicator's licence to expire.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valerie_Docherty
Valerie E. Docherty (born 25 June 1963)is a Canadian politician.
She was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island in the 2007 provincial election. She represented the electoral district of Kellys Cross-Cumberland as a member of the Liberal Party for two terms. She is a graduate of the University of Prince Edward Island.
On January 13, 2010, Docherty was replaced in the Provincial Cabinet as minister of Tourism and Culture by Robert Vessey, MLA for York-Oyster Bed.[2] Docherty was reappointed to cabinet in October 2011 as Minister of Community Services, Seniors, Labour and Minister responsible for the Status of Women. She was defeated by Green Party leader Peter Bevan-Baker in the 2015 provincial election.
https://www.campbelllea.com/r-brendan-hubley.html
R. Brendan Hubley
|
Brendan Hubley joined Campbell Lea in June 2017 and became Partner in January 2019.
Brendan graduated from the University of New Brunswick in 1998 and was called to the Bar in 1999. From 1999 to 2001 he practiced with Key, McKnight & Peacock (now Key Murray Law). His areas of practice included prosecuting Federal matters under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, the Fisheries Act and criminal defence. From 2001 to 2005 he remained in private practice, practicing civil litigation, family law and criminal defence. In 2005 he accepted a position in Yellowknife, NWT as a Federal Crown Prosecutor, prosecuting all Federal and Territorial matters including prosecutions under the Criminal Code. In 2007 he established his own firm and primarily focused on criminal defence matters with a preference to those matters involving Charter issues. Brendan appears regularly in the Provincial and Supreme Courts on Prince Edward Island and has appeared in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and the North West Territories as well as the Supreme Court of Canada. Brendan works closely with Prince Edward Island Legal Aid, performing as duty counsel providing after-hours immediate legal advice and also represents legal aid clients when a conflict arises. He has also sat on the Board of Directors for the Community Legal Information Association for Prince Edward Island and the Prince County Family Service Bureau. Brendan has the experience to provide very competent and skilled representation in all areas of criminal law. With the benefit of having been both a Federal Prosecutor, prosecuting Federal offences, including offences under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, the Fisheries Act as well as various other Federal legislation, together with prosecuting offences under the Criminal Code of Canada, and 18 years of experience as Defence Counsel, Brendan is able to efficiently and effectively address any and all issues that arise within the Criminal Law arena. |
tel: 902-566-3400
direct: 902-367-3364
bhubley@campbelllea.com
Brandon Forbes
|
Brandon became a partner of the firm in 2012. Brandon received a BBA from the University of Prince Edward Island in 2004 and an LL.B. from the University of New Brunswick in 2007. Brandon is a member of the Law Society of Prince Edward Island and the Canadian Bar Association. Brandon practices in the areas of litigation, real estate, business law, criminal, regulatory defence, and immigration. |
Brandon
tel: 902-566-3400
direct: 902-370-7135
bforbes@campbelllea.com
Assistant contact:
Daniel Boudreau
tel: 902-370-7137
dboudreau@campbelllea.com
Court says feds breached charter in P.E.I. fish kill investigation
P.E.I. Supreme Court upholds acquittal of farming operation
The Island's top court has upheld the acquittal of an Island farming operation in connection with a fish kill five years ago that has sparked a long legal battle.
In a written decision issued Friday, P.E.I .Supreme Court upheld a provincial court finding that the actions of federal investigators constituted a "serious breach" of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms when it came to the farmers who were under investigation.
"This is a good day for my family but a great day for all farmers in Canada," said Alex Docherty, who owns and operates Skye View Farms with his son Logan, the three parties named in the court case.
The July 2016 fish kill on the Clyde River followed a heavy rainfall. Docherty was fined by the province in 2017 for having allowed his pesticide sprayer's licence to expire. Federal charges were laid in 2018.
Docherty pleaded not guilty and went to trial. The judge in that case ruled investigators failed to get the necessary search warrants, and found the farmers not guilty.
Friday's Supreme Court decision upheld that decision and expanded on the explanation for it.
Cleanup workers take notes on dead fish pulled from the Clyde River in 2016. (Krystalle Ramlakhan/CBC)
The court ruled that federal fisheries staff failed to understand they were required to obtain a search warrant, given the serious nature of investigations linked to fish kills.
"This was a serious breach of the charter," wrote Justice James Gormley in his 18-page decision. "A warrant was required prior to the fisheries officers entering upon the land of the accused."
In less serious circumstances, such as routine inspections, search warrants are not required. The judge found fisheries staff failed to differentiate between a routine inspection and a more serious investigation, as defined in the federal Fisheries Act.
Provincial enforcement officers did not make the same mistake, said Gormley. The judge at the original 2019 trial in provincial court found that significant, and so did the Supreme Court judge in Friday's decision.
Expectation of privacy
"The provincial enforcement officers may have had a different view of the expectation of privacy to be afforded to a land owner in this situation," Gormley wrote.
Gormley did note, however, that a search of land does not have the same impact on an accused person as a search of his or her home.
The judge also supported the lower court's ruling that in fish kill investigations, farmers are entitled to an "enhanced reasonable expectation of privacy." This is because fish kill investigations are conducted under powers of the federal Fisheries Act.
Farmers are not regular participants in fisheries activities and have less familiarity with its requirements.
"I support her analysis on this factor," Gormley wrote, in reference to the 2019 decision by provincial court judge Nancy Orr.
The officers chose to ignore the requirement. That was their choice.
- Brandon Forbes, lawyer
The lawyer for Skye View Farms told CBC News the Supreme Court ruling underscored the requirement of federal investigators to "follow their own legislation."
"The officers chose to ignore the requirement. That was their choice," said lawyer Brandon Forbes in an email to CBC News.
The ruling also confirms that privacy rights of farmers extend to farm land and fields, according to Forbes.
"I suspect farmers will be happy that someone challenged the federal government on this point and that the Courts agreed," said Forbes.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada declined comment Monday. Federal prosecutors have 30 days to file an appeal.
Farmer jailed in Lebanon disowned by government: MP
A New Brunswick farmer in jail in Lebanon should be getting more help from the Canadian government, said Liberal MP Wayne Easter.
Wayne Easter accused Prime Minister Stephen Harper of disowning Canadians who get into trouble abroad. (CBC)
The P.E.I. MP said Prime Minister Stephen Harper needs to do more to secure the release of Henk Tepper — the potato farmer who has been in a Beirut jail for nearly three months, in a dirty, crowded cell with no light.
"It's a mantra of Stephen Harper's, you get in any kind of trouble as a Canadian abroad we'll disown you practically at the political level," said Easter.
"We need to have political involvement."
Tepper was arrested in March on an Interpol warrant issued by Algeria. That country's government wants the Grand Falls farmer extradited to face charges of importing potatoes unfit for human consumption.
The imports in question had ringrot, which is not a danger if consumed. The shipment included potatoes from P.E.I., although Island farmers say the problem potatoes were from Quebec.
Henk Tepper was detained March 23 and remains in a jail in Beirut.
The parliamentary secretary to Canada's minister of foreign affairs, Deepak Obhrai, said Canada cannot intervene on behalf of Tepper, but said officials with the Department of Foreign Affairs have met with him to ensure he is being treated well.
Obhrai said Canada has no say when it comes to another country's judicial system.
"This process has to go through the local system, judicial system. Canada cannot intervene in any country's judicial system. We need to respect that, as we expect everyone else to respect our judicial system."
Easter said Tepper should be returned to Canada to face the charges.
"Let the legal system deal with whether there's right or whether there's wrong, but the Canadian government has the responsibility to ensure that this individual is brought back to Canada, and treated fairly under the law," he said.
Tepper's lawyer in Beirut expects an answer Monday about whether he can be released to her custody. She has made an application to the state prosecutor.
There are lawsuits underway in P.E.I., New Brunswick and Quebec over the potato shipment, as potato producers seek to recover lost money, as well as compensation for damaged reputations.
Prominent law firm 'undermined' Tepper proceedings
Judge orders Gilbert, McGloan, Gillis to pay legal fees
Justice Lucie A. LaVigne, of the Court of Queen's Bench in Edmundston, has ordered the Saint John-based firm Gilbert McGloan Gillis (GMG) to pay a portion of the legal fees incurred by the other parties — about $102,500.
"GMG's conduct amounts to a serious dereliction of the duty owed to the court which justifies the use of the word 'gross,'" LaVigne stated in her written decision, dated Dec. 1.
"It clearly goes beyond mistake, error in judgment, or mere negligence. I conclude that GMG's conduct amounts to acting in disregard of the interests of justice in these CCAA (Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act) proceedings," she wrote.
"I am satisfied that GMG's actions have caused costs to be wasted or incurred without reasonable cause and that GMG should compensate the other parties for some of those costs."
The decision comes on the heels of a previous order by LaVigne that the fees and disbursements of GMG from when it was the solicitor of record be reduced from nearly $509,000 to $150,000.
"In my opinion, this amount represents fair, just and reasonable compensation to be paid by the corporations to GMG in the circumstances, and therefore I will not deal with these any further," LaVigne wrote.
The prominent law firm has declined to comment. "No comment at this time," lead partner Rod Gillis stated in an email Friday.
Henk Tepper was detained March 23 and is in a jail in Beirut, Lebanon. (Facebook)
His family's companies — Tepper Holdings Inc., Tobique Farms Ltd., Tobique Farms Operating Limited, Tobique International Inc., 637454 N.B. Ltd., New Denmark Farms Ltd., Tilley Farms Ltd., and Agri-Tepper & Sons Ltd. — owe about $11 million to creditors and the family has been asking for more time to deal with them.
The corporations are now represented by the law firm of Lawson Creamer, but Gilbert McGloan Gillis was initially handling the case.
The main creditor, the Bank of Montreal (BMO), which is owed about $8 million, complained Gilbert McGloan Gillis was billing too much.
In an Oct. 18 decision, LaVigne agreed and reduced the amount.
BMO then filed a motion asking the court to order Gilbert McGloan Gillis to personally pay its legal fees, as well as the fees incurred by the other parties since the proceedings started during the summer.
It alleged the law firm withheld information from the court and sought an emergency injection of cash that wasn't actually an emergency.
The National Bank and court-appointed monitor supported the motion, according to the court documents.
The corporations did not take a position on the motion because Gilbert McGloan Gillis continues to represent the Tepper family in its efforts to repatriate Tepper, the decision states.
Such awards exception, not rule
"Solicitor-client costs are generally awarded only where there has been reprehensible, scandalous, or outrageous conduct on the part of one of the parties," the judge wrote.
They are the exception, not the rule, she stressed.
But the problems with Gilbert McGloan Gillis started in June when it advised the Tepper corporations to seek relief at a hearing without having the creditors present, "which it knew or ought to have known was contrary to the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act," said LaVigne.
She said Gilbert McGloan Gillis "failed to make full disclosure of relevant facts concerning the position of BMO towards the corporations."
It also "allowed information which they knew or should have known to be inaccurate" regarding cash flow statements, which are an essential component of an application for protection to be presented, which "amounted to a breach of its duty of utmost good faith to the court."
"GMG acted in its own interest to the detriment of the corporations and its stakeholders, including the parties" when it refused to remove itself from the file, as recommended by the creditors' lawyers.
As a result, proceedings were adjourned to allow the corporations to obtain independent legal advice.
In addition, Gilbert McGloan Gillis "did not properly inform the corporations of several important matters ... did not always answer questions in a timely manner" and "delayed answering questions by shifting responsibility between different lawyers of the firm," LaVigne said.
The judge said In the context of a CCAA proceeding, the interests of justice required the corporations and their creditors to work together in an attempt to devise a plan that would allow the corporations to emerge and continue as viable economic entities while protecting the interests of all stakeholders.
GMG's actions "have undermined the CCAA process," she said.
The judge awarded $50,000 to BMO, $8,000 to the National Bank, $11,000 to the monitor, and $25,000 for the monitor's lawyer.
She also awarded costs of $6,000 to BMO for the motion and costs of $2,500 to the monitor.
Although individual Gilbert McGloan Gillis lawyers could have been held liable, LaVigne ordered the firm to pay.
At least nine lawyers and one student-at-law from the firm worked on the case, she said. "It would be very difficult, if not impossible to single out particular lawyers in this case."
Earlier this week, LaVigne extended creditor protection for the Tepper family's corporations once again. She said they continue to act in good faith and with due diligence and has given them until Dec. 16 so they can file a plan of arrangement.
Tobique Farms is a 1,214-hectare potato farming operation that is one of the province’s largest potato producers.
In a Nov. 24 report to the court, Paul Stehelin, the monitor of the companies, said they're in ongoing negotiations to sell certain parcels of property.
Meanwhile, Tepper's supporters continue to fight to bring him home.
Potato farmer's case against federal government to go to trial in late 2020
Henk Tepper was released from a Lebanese jail in March 2012
A New Brunswick potato farmer who claims the federal government didn't do enough to secure his freedom during more than a year in a Lebanese jail will have to wait until the end of next year for his lawsuit to go to trial.
Federal Court this week directed that the case filed by Henk Tepper in 2013 be scheduled for trial beginning in mid-December 2020 for about 10 weeks.
Tepper's lawsuit alleges the Canadian government violated his right to life, liberty and security of person by failing to secure his release.
The lawsuit, which seeks $16.5 million in damages, also says the RCMP provided Algerian authorities with private information, including the annual sales from Tepper's farm and the value of his home, in contravention of the Privacy Act.
He was arrested in Lebanon in 2011 on an Interpol Red Notice on allegations he tried to export diseased potatoes to Algeria. In a statement of defence, the government said it provided Tepper
with diplomatic help and made "numerous and frequent diplomatic interventions" on his behalf.
It states there were about 10 meetings between Tepper and representatives of the Canadian government to monitor his well-being, 40 phone conversations with Tepper's family members and 50 interactions with his lawyers.
Henk
Tepper is suing the Canadian government for $16.5 million, alleging
Ottawa did not do enough to secure his release from a Lebanese jail. (Facebook )
Tepper eventually returned to Canada on March 31, 2012, after his lawyers obtained a Lebanese presidential decree, but he said he felt let down by his own government.
That Interpol Red Notice remains in place, keeping him from travelling outside of the country.
In a direction issued by the Federal Court this week, Judge James W. O'Reilly, said the trial is expected to take 10 weeks, but with breaks it could stretch over 13 weeks.
He said the trial judge should be identified as soon as possible so he or she can deal with any outstanding matters.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/harper-government-legal-documents-henk-tepper-1.5124117
Harper government feared fallout from jailing of potato farmer, documents show
Henk Tepper was arrested on trade mission, imprisoned in Beirut
Henk Tepper languished in a Beirut jail cell in 2011 and 2012 on allegations he tried to export diseased potatoes to Algeria.
In 2013, he launched a lawsuit against the Canadian government, saying the government didn't do enough to try to secure his freedom, and therefore his right to life, liberty and security of person were violated.
The lawsuit, which seeks $16.5 million in damages, also says the RCMP provided private information, including the annual sales of Tepper's farm and value of his home, to Algerian authorities in contravention of the Privacy Act.
In a 13-page statement of defence, the government said it provided Tepper with diplomatic help and made "numerous and frequent diplomatic interventions" on his behalf.
It states there were about 10 meetings between Tepper and representatives of the Canadian government to monitor his well-being, 40 phone conversations with Tepper's family members and 50 interactions with his lawyers.
The case has yet to make it to trial, although a pre-trial conference is set for Monday in Ottawa.
Documents — including government emails — disclosed by the defence and filed with the court last week show that, during his incarceration, officials cautioned each other about saying anything publicly that could help in a Tepper lawsuit.
Tepper had already filed a civil suit against the Canadian Food Inspection Agency for negligence concerning inspections and documents for the potato shipment to Algeria in 2007.
Henk
Tepper, in the red and black coat, hugs family and friends as he
arrives home in Drummond, N.B., his first time seeing most of them in
more than a year. Tepper was jailed in Lebanon on charges that he sold
tainted potatoes in Algeria. (Catherine Harrop/CBC)
Someone had doctored one of the inspection reports to say the shipment was all approved, when in fact a portion of the shipment — from Quebec — had tested positive for Bacterial Ring Rot which is a quarantine pest in Algeria.
Tepper was unaware that Algeria had been granted an Interpol Red Notice for his arrest, until he was stopped by authorities in Lebanon when he arrived for an agricultural trade mission.
Tepper's detention and possible extradiction to Algeria generated a lot of public and media attention, and according to the documents filed with the court — a lot of discussion among government and consular officials.
Notes from one meeting of consular staff read "given Tepper's role, the commercial world of the Maritimes, there is a lot of interest at the political level. The family is extremely litigious."
Another email, dated April 11, 2011, reads "MSFA (Minister of State Foreign Affairs) has instructed us to meet Thursday with Mr. Tepper's wife and sister. There will have to be solid preparation for this. Otherwise — add another $100 million to the legal liability fund."
Emails
show then-minister of state for foreign affairs, Diane Ablonczy was
advised by staff that there was no reason to do something out of the
ordinary for Tepper since he was suing the federal government. (CBC )
By July 5, 2011, the-then minister of state for foreign affairs, Diane Ablonczy, wrote an email saying, "I foresee another Tepper lawsuit against GoC for business/monetary losses relating to our 'failure' to have him released. Points up importance of better communication with Canadians about what we can and cannot do, especially with regards to the legal process in other countries."
At the time, one of the people exerting pressure on the government to secure Tepper's release was Senator Pierrette Ringuette of New Brunswick, and it appears government officials were not happy about it, often complaining in emails that the senator was misrepresenting the facts.
During one string of emails, staff of the ministry of state foreign affairs complained about the senator and raised concerns about a planned meeting between her and officials of the RCMP.
"The more we cater to this woman the longer the story lives on. There is no good that can come of this meeting," one person wrote.
The response was, "OK. I did want to throat punch her though …," with a subsequent reply alluding to a profane sexist smear.
Liberal
Senator Pierrette Ringuette, seen here speaking with constituents
Berend Tepper and Jan Tepper, left to right, father and brother of
potato farmer Henk Tepper, after his release from a Lebanese jail. (Andrew Vaughan/Canadian Press)
By November 2011, John Baird, the-then foreign affairs minister, was considering a call to the Lebanese justice minister requesting that Tepper be expelled back to Canada.
However in an email to Ablonczy, staff advised "we have no reason to put all our eggs in one basket for this guy and not some of our other cases where there is more humanitarian reasons to do so."
And: "In addition, Mr. Tepper is currently suing the GoC … seems odd why we would do something out of the ordinary for him and not others."
Tepper was held in a basement cell that measured about five metres by 10 metres. It was dark and infested with cockroaches and spiders.
Watch a 2012 interview with Henk Tepper by the CBC's Harry Forestell. It was Tepper's first televised interview since being released from a Beirul jail.
Tepper eventually returned to Canada on March 31, 2012, after his lawyers obtained a Lebanese presidential decree.
Following his return to Canada, Tepper said he felt let down by his own government.
Although Tepper is free and back in New Brunswick, the Interpol Red Notice remains in place, keeping him from travelling outside of the country.
https://www.nortonrosefulbright.com/en-ca/people/123709
Alison G. FitzGerald
Of Counsel
Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP
https://www.blg.com/en/people/w/wray-benedict
Benedict S. Wray PhD
Senior Associate
Benedict is an English- and Ontario-qualified disputes lawyer. His broad practice includes international arbitration, commercial litigation and administrative law matters, as well as a range of business and human rights issues.
Benedict has experience of international law and investor-state disputes, advising and representing clients on matters governed by the rules of UNCITRAL, the ICC, LCIA, and ADRIC as well as ad hoc arbitrations under various Canadian statutes. He also regularly advises clients on conflict-of-laws and jurisdictional issues, and has appeared before a range of courts in Canada and the UK.
Before joining BLG, Benedict worked both as a barrister in chambers in London and at a global law firm. He recently represented his former firm in a consultation by the Canadian Federal Government regarding possible modern slavery legislation.
He is a member of the firm's Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) initiative.
Additional information on : T-775-13
Type : Federal Court
Nature of Cause : Others - Crown (v. Queen) [Actions]
Office : Ottawa Language : English
Type of Action : Ordinary
Filing Date : 2013-05-06
Party Information:
| Party Name | Solicitor | Lawyer(s) / file no |
|---|---|---|
| ATTORNEY GENERAL OF CANADA | - | - |
| TEPPER, HENDRIK | Norton Rose FULBRIGHT LLP | GOMERY, SALLY |
Type of Action : Federal Court
Filing Date : 2013-05-06
Recorded Entry Summary Information
Copies of public documents which are already in electronic format can be sent by e-mail, upon request to the Registry: fc_reception_cf@cas-satj.gc.ca. Indicate the Court File number in the subject of your email. In the text, you must clearly identify the document number and its name (this information is located in the Recorded Entry Summary column).
358 records found| Doc | Date Filed | Office | Recorded Entry Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 113 | 2021-11-15 | Ottawa | Certified French language Translation of Order rendered on 07-JAN-2021 by The Honourable Madam Justice Strickland filed on 15-NOV-2021 pursuant to s. 20 of the Official Languages Act. entered in J. & O. Book, volume 1515 page(s) 339 - 340 |
| 112 | 2020-10-27 | Ottawa | Response to request to admit on behalf of Defendant filed on 27-OCT-2020 |
| null | 2021-01-08 | Ottawa | Confirmation of receipt rec'd from all parties re: 7-JAN-2021 Order placed on file on 08-JAN-2021 |
| 111 | 2021-01-07 | Ottawa | Consent Order dated 07-JAN-2021 rendered by The Honourable Madam Justice Strickland Matter considered without personal appearance The Court's decision is with regard to Motion in writing Doc. No. 107 Result: granted Filed on 07-JAN-2021 copies sent to parties entered in J. & O. Book, volume 1476 page(s) 224 - 225 Final Decision |
| null | 2021-01-07 | Ottawa | Confirmation of Receipt recd from all parties via reply email. received on 07-JAN-2021 |
| null | 2021-01-07 | Ottawa | Oral directions received from the Court: The Honourable Madam Justice Strickland dated 07-JAN-2021 directing that "The Court has reviewed the motion of the Plaintiff (...)" placed on file on 07-JAN-2021 Confirmed in writing to the party(ies) |
| 110 | 2021-01-06 | Ottawa | Solicitor's certificate of service on behalf of Benedict Wray confirming service of Motion Record Docs 107, 108, 109 upon Defendant by e-service on 06-JAN-2021 filed on 06-JAN-2021 |
| 109 | 2021-01-06 | Ottawa | Motion Record containing the following original document(s): 107 108 Number of copies received: 1 on behalf of Plaintiff filed on 06-JAN-2021 |
| null | 2021-01-06 | Ottawa | Draft Order concerning Motion Doc. No. 107 consented to by all parties received on 06-JAN-2021 |
| null | 2021-01-06 | Ottawa | Consent on behalf of all parties to Draft Order disposing of the action received on 06-JAN-2021 |
| 108 | 2021-01-06 | Ottawa | Affidavit of Debra Diepeveen sworn on 06-JAN-2021 contained within a Motion Record on behalf of Plaintiff in support of Motion Doc. No. 107 with Exhibits A,B,C filed on 06-JAN-2021 |
| 107 | 2021-01-06 | Ottawa | Notice of Motion contained within a Motion Record on behalf of Plaintiff in writing to be dealt with in the Ottawa local office for an Order dismissing the action on consent \ filed on 06-JAN-2021 Draft Order\\Judgment received. |
| null | 2020-11-27 | Ottawa | Letter from Defendant dated 27-NOV-2020 advising the Court that the upcoming Trial is no longer needed as the partie have settled the matter. received on 27-NOV-2020 |
| null | 2020-11-25 | Ottawa | Letter from Plaintiff dated 25-NOV-2020 providing update to the Court re: trial received on 25-NOV-2020 |
| null | 2020-11-25 | Ottawa | Confirmation of receipt recd from both parties via reply emails placed on file on 25-NOV-2020 |
| null | 2020-11-25 | Ottawa | Oral directions received from the Court: The Honourable Madam Justice Strickland dated 25-NOV-2020 directing that "The Court appreciates that counsel undertook to advise the Court (...0" placed on file on 25-NOV-2020 Confirmed in writing to the party(ies) |
| null | 2020-11-20 | Ottawa | Ottawa 20-NOV-2020 BEFORE The Honourable Madam Justice Strickland Language: E Before the Court: Trial Management Conference Result of Hearing: further detail to come. held by way of video conference via ZOOM Duration per day: 20-NOV-2020 from 02:00 to 02:04 Courtroom : Judge's Chambers (VC) Court Registrar: Shaylee Martin Total Duration: 4min Appearances: Ms. A FitzGerald xxx xxxx representing Plaintiff Mr. G Tzemenakis, Mr. C Collins-Williams, Mr. S Kurelek xxx xxxx representing Defendant Minutes of Hearing entered in Vol. 1054 page(s) 478 - 478 Abstract of Hearing placed on file |
| null | 2020-11-19 | Ottawa | Confirmation of Receipt received from all parties via reply email. placed on file on 19-NOV-2020 |
| 106 | 2020-11-19 | Ottawa | Confidentiality Order dated 19-NOV-2020 rendered by The Honourable Madam Justice Strickland Matter considered with personal appearance The Court's decision is with regard to Motion in writing Doc. No. 82 Result: granted Filed on 19-NOV-2020 copies sent to parties entered in J. & O. Book, volume 1470 page(s) 458 - 465 Interlocutory Decision |
| null | 2020-11-10 | Ottawa | Confirmation of receipt of both the Order and Reasons and Written Direction issued 10-NOV-2020 confirmed by all parties via reply email. placed on file on 10-NOV-2020 |
| null | 2020-11-10 | Ottawa | Written directions received from the Court: The Honourable Madam Justice Strickland dated 10-NOV-2020 directing that "This Direction is made in relation to my Order of today's date (...)" placed on file on 10-NOV-2020 Confirmed in writing to the party(ies) |
| 105 | 2020-11-10 | Ottawa | Reasons for Order and Order dated 10-NOV-2020 rendered by The Honourable Madam Justice Strickland Matter considered without personal appearance The Court's decision is with regard to Motion in writing Doc. No. 82 Result: "THIS COURT ORDERS that 1. Pursuant to section 40 of the Canada Evidence Act and Rule 53.07 of the Ontario Rules of Civil Procedure the following individuals, whom the Plaintiff intends to subpoena and call as witnesses at the trial of this action, are declared to be adverse and may be cross-examined by counsel for the Plaintiff in accordance with that Rule: i. The Honourable Dominic LeBlanc; ii. Patricia Fortier; iii. Catherine Godbout; and iv. Ashley McArthur. 2. The Plaintiff shall have its costs." Filed on 10-NOV-2020 copies sent to parties Interlocutory Decision Certificate of Order entered in J. & O. Book, volume 1469 page(s) 430 - 431 |
| null | 2020-11-10 | Ottawa | Covering letter from Plaintiff dated 10-NOV-2020 concerning Witness list and will-say statements placed on file on 10-NOV-2020 |
| null | 2020-11-10 | Ottawa | Witness list of the Plaintiff (as requested by the Court) placed on file on 10-NOV-2020 |
| null | 2020-11-09 | Ottawa | Covering letter from Defendant dated 09-NOV-2020 concerning Witness List placed on file on 09-NOV-2020 |
| null | 2020-11-09 | Ottawa | Witness List provided by counsel for the Defendant. placed on file on 09-NOV-2020 |
| null | 2020-11-06 | Ottawa | Ottawa 06-NOV-2020 BEFORE The Honourable Madam Justice Strickland Language: E Before the Court: Motion Doc. No. 75 on behalf of Plaintiff Result of Hearing: Matter reserved held by way of video conference in chambers Duration per day: 06-NOV-2020 from 10:00 to 11:41 Courtroom : Judge's Chambers (VC) Court Registrar: Shaylee Martin Total Duration: 1h41m Appearances: Mr. Benedict Wray & Ms. Alison FitzGerald xxx xxxx representing Plaintiff Mr. Craig Collins-Williams & Mr. Nathan Joyal xxx xxxx representing Defendant Comments: Discussion re: Courtoom logistics after the motion with counsel. Minutes of Hearing entered in Vol. 1053 page(s) 484 - 485 Abstract of Hearing placed on file |
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