JULY 2018 GERMINATION.CA 51 Richardson International was contrib- uting to the Canola Council, but he notes his organization has had to trim its 2018 operating budget with the loss of Richardson funding. Flax Council Office Closed For the Flax Council of Canada, losing Richardson funding was one factor behind the closure of the organization’s Winnipeg headquarters on Jan. 31. Brian Johnson, chair of the Flax Council, says other factors included declining flax production in Western Canada in recent years and the fact that many of the companies involved in shipping Canadian-grown flax to China, our largest overseas customer, have not been contributing levies to the council. According to Johnson, the closure also meant three staff workers were let go, although one has been hired back on a contract basis to work part- time. While still providing services to its members on a limited basis, the Flax Council is now concentrating its efforts on how to better align itself with important stakeholders in the oilseed industry, like Richardson. “We have to make sure that we are bringing value to them, and what we are working on right now is really consulting with the industry to determine exactly what they want,” Johnson says. The goal is to come up with a strategic plan that addresses industry needs as well as a new funding model for the organization. “We’re trying to do this as quickly as possible,” says Johnson. “Then we will be asking those in the industry for their support.” Johnson says one change is that the agronomic programs developed by the Flax Council will now be han- dled by flaxseed producer organiza- tions. He adds the organization will continue to support the flaxseed industry in the areas of market devel- opment and market access “but it’s going to be more pinpointed and it’s going to be managed on a very cost- effective basis.” Johnson, who declined to share how much the Flax Council had been receiving from Richardson International, says he agrees with the position that the formation of a national oilseed council could lead to greater efficiencies. He says that’s something the Flax Council endorsed during discussions with the Canola Council and Soy Canada last year: “We basically took the lead on that.” Ron Davidson, executive director of Soy Canada, says the Ottawa-based organization was disappointed by the decision by Richardson to pull funding. “We certainly regret their depar- ture, but … we have to take into account what everyone's looking for and our members do feel that they're getting their value,” he says. “We would hope that Richardson at some point will feel that too,” Davidson adds. “We would hope that eventually everyone in the value chain that has an advantage from increasing soybean production would be contributing.” Davidson describes Soy Canada as “a very lean organization” that provides “a very good value proposi- tion” for its members, who together contribute about $600,000 annually to the value chain agency. Soy Canada doesn’t put a limit on how much soybean producers can contribute each year, but it does for agri-companies like Richardson. For them, the maximum annual contribu- tion is $25,000. “When you lose $25,000 out of an organization that has a relatively small budget, it means you have to cut back somewhere,” Davidson says. Davidson adds his organization will be examining its priorities and consulting its members in the wake of the Richardson decision. He main- tains this a normal, ongoing process at Soy Canada. “The organization is always look- ing at what it’s working on,” he says. “We’re going to be talking about what activities the organization is involved in, why we're doing those things, what deliverables they may result in, and what value those deliverables provide members.” Davidson states the leadership at Soy Canada hasn’t said a national oilseed council can’t happen at some point, but it’s something they feel would need to be carefully laid out and planned beforehand. “I don't think that anyone has said it’s an impossibility in the future” Davidson says. “WEWOULDHOPETHAT EVENTUALLYEVERYONE INTHEVALUECHAINTHAT HASANADVANTAGEFROM INCREASINGSOYBEAN PRODUCTIONWOULDBE CONTRIBUTING.” –RonDavidson