CANOLA 101 CONT.
“(Canola) is one of the major crop receipts and that’s where we get a lot of our cash flow. Tariffs create instability and unpredictability, and that’s almost as bad as anything else for us; it means reduced marketing options and cash flow.”
— Warren Ellis, who operates a small family-owned farm near the town of Wawanesa
PHOTOS COURTESY OF MANITOBA CANOLA GROWERS ASSOCIATION
“This isn’t about just having a cheque,” she says. “It’s about understanding the very complex damage that has been done to farmers and … making sure they are compensated for those losses so they can pay their bills and feed their families. This isn’t some nameless, faceless company. It’s 6,500 farm families in Manitoba that are going to struggle because of politics.” Ross Burtnack stresses it’s important the agricultural and business communities stand together to fight the threat of tariffs. “It’s not just agriculture that’s affected by this. It’s all of Manitoba’s economy and all of Canada’s. We’re too small not to work together.” ■
Ross Burtnack concedes there isn’t much canola producers can do to protect themselves against the threat of Chinese and U.S. tariffs. She says that’s why organizations like the MCGA and the Canola Council of Canada have undertaken lobbying efforts in the U.S. to help decision-makers in that country understand how tariffs will harm people in both countries and encourage them to begin trade negotiations. If tariffs remain in place over the long term, Ross Burtnack hopes the federal and provincial governments in this country will provide some form of financial compensation that matches what farmers have lost due to such levies. The last thing farmers need is another loan, she adds.
“For farmers, it really cramps our style. (Canola) is one of the major crop receipts and that’s where we get a lot of our cash flow. Tariffs create instability and unpredictability, and that’s almost as bad as anything else for us; it means reduced marketing options and cash flow.” One of Ellis’s concerns is that if the threat of tariffs causes some farmers to temporarily hit pause on canola, that could lead to a shortage of canola for export if and when those tariffs are lifted — prompting some countries to look elsewhere for their supply. “That could be almost as bad as tariffs because if the market’s demanding and you don’t fill that market, then the market goes someplace else,” he adds.
27 SUMMER 2025
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