Agriculture minister suggests shipping grain south no answer to grain backlog

REGINA – Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz says there’s a fly in the ointment when it comes to shipping grain south through the United States to ports.

Ritz says railways have arbitrarily decided they’re not going to run cars in that direction.

Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall said this week it might be time to look at shipping grain south through the U.S. instead of east and west to Canadian ports.

Wall was voicing his frustration over a transportation bottleneck that has left a record crop sitting in bins across the Prairies.

Ritz says people have to recognize there are logistics problems in the U.S. right now too — he notes winter also hits the northern states.

Railways have said they have to use shorter trains during cold weather to ensure brakes can be used properly — and that means less capacity.