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Farmers and provincial governments have been complaining loudly that a bumper grain crop is still sitting in bins while prices fluctuate. Last year’s harvest was up by about 20 million tonnes.

Ottawa has already chipped in $1.5 million for a five-year transportation study and ordered rail companies to report monthly on their performance.

CN and CP did not get a heads-up about Friday’s announcement, Raitt said.

Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz said farmers are increasingly frustrated by the “poor performance of the railways.”

“The railways have dropped the ball,” he said. “This situation is not acceptable.”

Ed Greenberg, spokesman for Calgary-based CP, said the railway will comply with the order. But he called the move unfortunate and suggested it didn’t take into account the “entire supply chain.” The issue is complex and goes beyond the railway, he added.

The backlog has not been caused by a shortage of locomotives or crew, Greenberg said.

“It’s been a combination of an extraordinary crop size combined with extreme weather that has resulted in this situation,” he said. “And despite an extraordinary crop size that was not forecasted by anyone, and periods of extreme winter weather, our railway has continued to move record amounts of grain.”

CN’s Jim Feeny said the company can comply with the order if everyone in the supply chain works together.

The challenge in moving the biggest Prairie grain crop in history is unprecedented, he said. The company has been doing everything it can to keep grain moving but it has been hampered by extreme cold, Feeny said.