REGINA — Hundreds of Prairie farmers gathered in Regina recently to discuss the future of the Canadian Wheat Board, an organization with a single-desk selling system that could be dismantled by federal government legislation next year, The Canadian Press reports.

At present, the Board is the only organization that buys wheat and barley from Prairie farmers. After purchase, it exports the products to foreign markets. Some farmers argue the Board’s monopoly protects them from losses when markets are low, while others say they want more freedom.

MELFORT, Sask. — A court has ordered the former owners and waitress of a small Saskatchewan Travelodge to pay $25,000 to a man who had an allergic reaction to cheesecake he was served while eating at the hotel in 2006.

Brian Martin went into an anaphylactic shock after consuming a slice of caramel apple cheesecake that the waitress claimed was nut free.

SASKATOON — Following recent discussions about the future of the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) under the new Conservative majority government, The National Farmers Union (NFU) is asking Stephen Harper to respect the CWB’s single-desk selling advantage.

“We now have a Conservative majority government and one of the questions on the minds of prairie grain farmers is the status of single-desk selling for the Canadian Wheat Board. We have been told by the Harper government repeatedly that they believe prairie farmers should decide on this issue. We hope they will honour that commitment.” said Terry Boehm, president, NFU, of the single-desk system, which sees all Canadian wheat sold through the CWB. “Farmers have consistently elected pro-single-desk directors to the Board of the CWB and in the last round of director elections this past fall farmers again spoke and elected four out of five directors who were clearly supporting the single desk.”

SASKATOON — The Great Western Brewing Company is raising a pint to its heritage with the upcoming release of premium Original 16 beer.

Named for the Saskatoon company’s 16 founders, the new brew pays homage to the group of employees who saved the brewery that their former owner almost shut down more than 20 years ago. “In 1990, we were striving to keep a great Western Canadian brewing tradition alive. All 16 of us embarked on a single-minded journey to make the highest quality beer available, right here in Western Canada,” said Don Ebelher, one of the company’s original founders and current director of Operations. “Original 16 Canadian Pale Ale celebrates that legacy and honours the spirit of the company’s founding.”