Brewer Opposed to Monopoly on Barley

Here is a letter sent from Ontario brewer Charles Maclean, of F & M brewery, to the editor of the Owen Sound Sun Times paper.

I am an end-user of barley and have been a longtime foe of the Canadian Wheat Board's monopoly on western barley.

As a brewmaster, I like to use malted barley and hops appropriate for the style of beer that I am brewing. The Canadian Wheat Board has made it difficult to import European malted barley. I am also in the forefront of reviving the Ontario malting barley situation in at least a small way as well as Ontario hops. I have grown small quantities of both on my small farm in Grey County. I am in the process of starting a small craft brewery on my farm.

Grant Robertson's column on the wheat board is a very biased political hatchet job on the best government that we have ever had in Canada. He should stick to the facts.

The Federal Appeals Court decision against the government is yet another decision by interventionist justices, not justice. I am a free marketer opposed to monopolies.

We have two to deal with in my industry, one a foreign-owned private monopoly and the other the provincial government owned monopoly.

Charles Maclean

Good on ya Charles for voicing your concerns. Keep fighting the good fight. Is it just me, or do brewers have to jump through a lot of hoops at every avenue?