Water is often called Canada’s most precious natural resource by government after government and it is being bottled and sold everywhere. It wasn’t that long ago that I raised this issue in an earlier column about a situation in Ontario where Nestle’s, one of the biggest bottled water companies in the world, was looking for a new license to continue their operation in Wellington Country. The Swiss food giant (they seem to make something we eat so many times a day) wants to continue with their operation at their bottling plant in Aberfoyle near Guelph. It is famous for its Aberfoyle Spring Water which was bottled formerly Aberfoyle Spring Water Company. Nestlé bought the company around 2002. Nestle’s now bottles “Pure Life” water in Canada for Canadians. Nestle’s Aberfoyle Water can be bought in the states at Ralph’s at $2.99 for 24 bottles.

This year some of the people there said, "Just a minute, we are supplying water to this company for virtually nothing, no cost." If a person at home used the same amount of water a day he would get a bill for $2,700 a day. The locals wanted the government to step in and license this international company to use Canadian water for this purpose.

The Ontario government without much fanfare renewed the permit with no restrictions, no reduction in the daily limit but this time for only two years, not five. The government added a $3,000 processing fee as of next January. There is also an additional charge of $3.71 per million litres extracted. Now if you do the numbers, it cost Nestle’s $13.36 a day on their daily production of water valued at $4 million.

Nestle Waters is currently Canada's largest water bottling company by volume, with two bottling facilities. The larger of the two bottling facilities is located in Aberfoyle, Ontario with the second facility located in Hope and a warehouse and shipping centre located in Chilliwack.

I don’t know what the company pays for water in Hope but they have found a way to make millions selling us our own water.

Nestle’s Canadian water sales are roughly $279 million a year. Aquafina and Dasani are repackaging municipal water. Yes, water from the tap. It sells as premium water.

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This information came from Human Resources and Social Development Canada on temporary workers coming into Canada. When you look across the list of what the provinces are after in the way of employees there are some surprises. We know the four Western provinces are after most of the trades, from cooks and farm supervisors to welders and carpenters. All kinds of positions for the hospitality industry. These workers come into Canada on temporary foreign worker permits. But how many of the provinces are searching for musicians and singers? B.C. stands front and centre with 1,296 temporary permits for musicians and singers last year. Don’t forget the reason for this program is these workers are taking the jobs that can’t be filled by Canadians. That was the highest number in any category for the province. The numbers in 2007 were over 1,100 actors and comedians. Seven hundred cooks, and seven hundred carpenters. Highest numbers were babysitters at just over 6,000, harvesting laborers just under three thousand.

I know we send people all over the world to look for these workers but how do they determine the abilities of these people? Singers, dancers, musicians, actors and comedians.

The real problems faced everyday for these human resources people are the jobs like cooks, carpenters, nannies, registered nurses, farm workers, welders, drivers and iron workers.

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Best selling Canadian author Diane Francis, known for her biting columns
on business and the people who make it all happen in this country has a new book on the bestseller list that is worth a read. I found it fascinating Who Owns Canada Now. She did a piece on the Thorlakson dynasty, brothers Allan and John, the owners of Tolko Industries in Vernon.

She tells us that Tolko is the world’s fourth largest lumber manufacturer in the world capable of producing two billion board feet a year. Its mills and other operations are scattered across the four western provinces. Allan is CEO and John is executive vice president.

Father Harold founded the company in Vernon in 1956. Just twenty-five years ago they had one sawmill. Now there are nineteen.

As I said it is a good read. It is interesting, informative and well written.