SENATORS’ STATEMENTS — Grain Growers of Canada

Honourable senators, I rise today in the chamber to celebrate the Grain Growers of Canada, who are celebrating their twenty-fifth anniversary this year.

This important agricultural organization brings together a number of national, provincial and regional member organizations from across the country, representing a unified voice for the Canadian grain sector. For 25 years, they have represented their members through advocacy and leadership, championing the way for the grain sector’s competitiveness and long-term viability and advancing policy grounded in on-farm realities.

Honourable colleagues, I cannot recognize the significant efforts of Grain Growers of Canada without recognizing the robust and high-performing grain industry that makes up this organization. Canadian grains are as varied as our landscape, and the sector is widely respected around the world for consistently delivering high-quality dependable crops.

In fact, grains are broken down into three groups: cereals, oilseeds and pulses. Cereals would include much of what you think of when you hear “grains” — wheat, barley, oats — which are critical to domestic and international food systems. Oilseeds include canola, soybeans and flax — extremely versatile crops that are used in processed foods and livestock feeds. Finally, pulses include peas, lentils, chickpeas and dried beans, which are not only good for your diet but also good for the planet.

I think it is clear to every one of us that grains include an extremely vast and varied group of foods that are all staples in many of our kitchens at home and in homes around the world.

Did you know that our grains sector generates $45 billion in annual exports and is one of the top five global exporters of grain?

By advocating for many of our Canadian grain farmers across the country, Grain Growers of Canada is key to protecting our country’s food sovereignty and economic success. I have met with representatives of Grain Growers of Canada many times, and they do a great job advocating for their sector and driving positive change on important issues that are impacting their sector.

Representing over 100,000 producers and 120 million acres of farmland across this country, Grain Growers of Canada has played a central role in ensuring that our grain sector remains strong and reliable as a competitor on the global stage for the past 25 years. Through its advocacy, leadership and commitment to innovation, Grain Growers of Canada helps position Canadian growers for long-term success in an increasingly competitive international market.

Honourable colleagues, please join me in congratulating Grain Growers of Canada on celebrating their twenty-fifth anniversary and thanking all Canadian grain farmers, including our own Senator Todd Lewis, for their and his continued dedication to feeding our country and our world.

Thank you. Meegwetch.