In a letter to President Joe Biden, The Fertilizer Institute, the National Grain and Feed Association, and 19 other members of the Agricultural Transportation Working Group requested the administration work with the Canadian government to avert a major railway labor strike. Kathy Mathers with The Fertilizer Institute says a possible strike at Canadian Pacific Railway could negatively impact the spring fertilizer season and be devastating for farmers.
Mathers says the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference recently voted in favor of strike action, which could happen as early as March 16. Grain is CP’s largest line of business and approximately 10-15 percent of CP’s business is fertilizer.
She says they’re asking both governments to intervene.
The groups are also asking leaders of both countries to rescind the cross-border vaccine mandate for workers moving essential commerce prior to April 21.
She says the strike would be significant for grain movements, livestock feeding and processing operations on both sides of the border served by the CP. The strike could also halt the CP route that carries grain to the Pacific Northwest export market.
