Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Let's Create Jobs

I have a plan that will create jobs and a new industry in Canada.

We in Canada produce very little sugar. We should change this and develop an industry that will create home grown sugar for domestic and foreign consumption and provide well paying jobs for Canadians.

Canada has never had the climate to grow sugar cane and have therefore never had a sugar industry. But, with technology we can circumvent our climate constraints. We have the technology to build greenhouses that can house the climate necessary to grow sugar cane.

The government should embark upon a program that pays for the construction of sugar cane growing ready greenhouses and to hire staff necessary to grow it. This creates construction, administration, marketing, and executive jobs and creates demand for feeder industry and expertise.

Of course, a new industry will need some help to produce a competitive product. Foreign producers have a climate advantage that we can't compete against. For this reason, I suggest a series of subsidies and tarriffs. Subsidies will have the effect of paying some of the cost thereby allowing our sugar company to sell product profitably at a lower price than possible without the subsidy. Tarriffs increase the price of foreign sugar sold in Canada. This increases the competitive position of our greenhouse sugar to Canadians. Canadian sugar on Canadian tables!

There is very little downside to my plan. The upside is obvious. More jobs and a new industry.

Oh yes, that is correct...subsidies come from the tax Canadians pay. We may have to raise tax to finance the subsidies. Tarriffs raise the price of foreign sugar for all Canadians and allows our company to raise its price. Yes, Canadians will be poorer and be paying more for sugar but don't be a downer. We have created a new industry. Yes, it is possible that the nations that export sugar may be unhappy with what we propose. And it is possible that they may retaliate with tarriffs on our exported products. And they may try to create industries that we excel at thereby harming us.

Come to think of it...my plan is CRAP!

Right On

2 comments:

  1. Where Canada has felled miserable is getting secondary and tertiary processing from our natural resources. This is the fault of numerous governments.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I realize you were commenting in a "tongue in cheek fashion". I want to respond in support of our sugar beet farmers who will be hurt by your position!

    Have you never heard of the sugar beet?? We have a great sugar industry in southern Alberta, and I suspect Saskatchewan. We need no greenhouses, we need no sugar cane (it's too wimpy for us westerners) we just need beets, and with every frost, they just get sweeter.

    So let's support the sugar beet industry here in Canada. Maybe wheat farmers should switch to beets, much easier to grow and they are not part of the Canadian Wheat Board. Wouldn't that just tick off the lefties!

    ReplyDelete