REGINA - The opposition New Democrats were on the attack Wednesday over news of a takeover of rail and ag infrastructure in Saskatchewan by an American buyer.
NDP Economy and Jobs critic Aleana Young was critical of the investment by Bartlett Grain Co. LLC, of Kansas City, which in July acquired Ceres Global Ag Corp. Assets in the deal included a Melfort area grain elevator and a major logistics hub in the southeast. Ceres also was the company that had proposed and later cancelled a $350-million canola crush plant in the province.
At a news conference at the Legislature, Young called it "deeply troubling."
"These are vital pieces of Saskatchewan's grain handling and transportation network under American ownership.”
Young also pointed to the cancelled $350 million canola crush facility as “the first of (Premier) Scott Moe's broken promises and industrial failures.”
Young also noted that Ceres also owns significant interests in Saskatchewan rail lines, energy terminals, and companies like Steel Reef, which had signed deals with SaskPower to provide 125 megawatts of power. She also noted Bartlett itself has donated directly to the Republican Party.
Young accused Premier Moe and his ministers of "pandering" to President Donald Trump, and of doing nothing to protect the economy
“Once again, we find the Sask Party government asleep at the wheel. While foreign companies are buying up critical parts of our economy and the U.S. has slapped a 35 per cent tariff on Canadian goods, 50 per cent on steel, 34 per cent on lumber, Scott Moe does nothing. While other provinces are fighting back, Moe is doing nothing. He hasn't shown proof of cancelling a single American contract and he quietly put American booze back on the shelves. And now he's continuing to allow Americans to buy up strategic economic infrastructure without a word. He's hoping no one is paying attention.”
Young also pointed to “a serial pattern of behavior” from the government, pointing to the recent takeover of Viterra by another American company, Bunge.
“And the province didn't say boo. And that's a major, major deal that is going to decrease competition for Saskatchewan farmers, for Saskatchewan agriculture. It's going to impact the farm gate to the tune of $700 million to the negative each and every year. Like, those are big numbers. These are significant impacts. And we've seen the Sask Party government completely vacate the field.”
The remarks from Young at the Legislature came during a week in which the opposition NDP has been hammering the Sask Party, on the heels of the Aug. 1 deadline in which President Trump imposed 35 per cent tariffs on Canada.
On Tuesday, the NDP send out a news release in which they cited Statistics Canada data that saw Saskatchewan agricultural exports to the United States down 16.5 per cent, energy exports down 13.4 per cent and forestry product exports down nearly 24 per cent year-to-date.
The NDP also pointed to exports to the United States having dropped year-to-date by 13.3 per cent, and exports to China having dropped 26.3 per cent.
On Wednesday, the NDP went ballistic over comments Wednesday by Premier Moe on the radio, in which he was grilled in an interview about the province reversing course on an earlier decision to remove American liquor from the shelves.
“I think as we find our way through this discussion we’ve also encouraged and have spoken to the fact that maybe it’s time for Canada, even, to at least not add additional counter tariffs in the space, but to even consider removing some of the counter tariffs that are harmful to Canadian businesses and Saskatchewan businesses today,” Moe had said.
That prompted an outraged reaction from NDP leader Carla Beck, accusing Moe of not standing up to President Donald Trump.
“Scott Moe should be standing up for our province — like other premiers are doing — not pandering to Donald Trump," said Beck in a statement.
“When we should be united, the Sask. Party is breaking with our country, putting American booze back on the shelves and refusing to put Saskatchewan companies first for public contracts — more broken promises.
“Bullies like Trump respect strength. All Moe’s approach has gotten us is more job-killing U.S. tariffs. “
Young similarly ripped Moe’s interview at her news conference. He accused Moe of “downplaying the trade war, trying to suggest that only five per cent of our economy was being impacted.”
She also pointed to the StatsCan numbers that had been released. “He claims everything is going well, but the numbers from stats can tell a very different story… that's not growth. That's decline. And this government has no plan to turn it around. Frankly, Saskatchewan deserves better.”
Sask Today has reached out to the province for comment. Their statement is as follows:
“The Government of Saskatchewan understands that Bartlett Grain recently purchased a grain elevator near Melfort and a logistics hub in the southeast as part of its acquisition of Ceres Global Ag Corp. We will continue to monitor the situation to help ensure producers have access to competitive and local options to sell their grains. During the first six months of 2025, the volume of Saskatchewan agri-food exports to the U.S. increased by almost 6.5 per cent.
“It is reckless for the NDP to suggest that we should be blocking and opposing investment in Saskatchewan that provides jobs and significant tax revenue to the residents of Saskatchewan. Is the lost NDP also suggesting that we oppose other businesses such as Evraz, LifeLabs, and countless others who have operations in Saskatchewan, the United States, and the rest of the World?
“Saskatchewan does $40 billion worth of trade with the United States, and our exports provide critical food and energy security to the US and the world, including potash, uranium and agri-food products. We will also continue to prioritize diversifying our export market through the use of international trade offices, something that the lost NDP has long criticized as being wasteful. These trade offices have provided an immediate benefit by diversifying Saskatchewan’s exports all across the world. Our government remains committed to building and strengthening trade relationships across Canada, the United States, and around the world while protecting Saskatchewan jobs.”
