'No problem' with dumped wheat, MP says

Eastern P.E.I. MP Lawrence MacAulay met Tuesday with federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz to discuss what MacAulay calls "the disaster" in the milling wheat industry.

'Again we're in a situation where the farmer is getting slapped in the face.' MP Lawrence MacAulay

Grain farmers across the country are having trouble meeting standards for levels of fusarium blight toxin being demanded by mills. Thousands of tonnes of wheat have been dumped in P.E.I alone.

Previously, farmers were able to get their wheat into the mill with toxin levels up to two parts per million, but this year levels above one part per million are being rejected.

"The point is we produced this wheat for more than 30 years with absolutely no problem. All of a sudden we can't use it at all," MacAulay told CBC News onWednesday.

"One farmer had $300,000 worth of wheat and can't sell it. That's a disaster for any farmer. I've farmed. I know what it's like when somebody changes the rules halfway through the third period of the game. It's pretty disastrous for anybody involved in agriculture.

"Again we're in a situation where the farmer is getting slapped in the face," he said. "I want to try to get that stopped."

Ritz is well aware of the situation, MacAulay said, and has promised he is working with industry to come up with a solution.