When I listened to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney speaking in Alberta today, I was carried back more than sixty years to a time when the United States, Canada and the Soviet Union cooperated in improving wheat and oil production.
While attending college, I worked for two years on an international durum-wheat project. Using an unusual IBM typewriter with tape storage and an early university communications system, I collected information sent by colleges across the northern regions where durum wheat was grown. I prepared the wheat material while another worker handled oil information. Our reports went to government offices and other agencies throughout the United States.
The United States, Canada and what was then the Soviet Union shared information about growing durum wheat. Parts of all three lie along similar northern latitudes, with growing conditions suited to this high-protein wheat. The cooperation helped improve production, increase yields and strengthen markets. Farmers and participating countries all benefited.
Oil was also part of the work. These countries possessed large oil resources, and exchanging information helped make energy production more efficient and economically valuable.
I knew the connection personally. My father owned 1,000 acres near the Canadian border and worked with Canadian farmers. My sister and her husband raised durum wheat on a large ranch along Montana’s Hi-Line, with oil wells nearby. Many Montana wheat farmers also had oil wells. Food grew above the ground while energy came from beneath it.
Recent attacks on Russian and Ukrainian grain shipping reminded me how quickly war can interrupt the movement of food. Tariffs and hostile political policies can also destroy markets that farmers and producers spent generations building.
The cooperation I witnessed benefited all three participating countries. It did not require them to agree about everything. They understood that sharing agricultural and energy knowledge could make each nation more productive and prosperous.
My experience taught me that cooperation made all three nations more productive and prosperous. As that cooperation diminishes, farmers, energy producers and ordinary families are paying the price.Canada is now finding new markets while American farmers and energy producers risk losing customers and influence. When nations stop cooperating over essentials such as food and energy, there are no true winners. The costs eventually reach farmers, workers, consumers and hungry families throughout the world.
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