HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1976-06-03, Page 14EXPOSITOR, JUNE 8, 1(16
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Opinion by John Miner
Are we osin
• The newest political game
these days seems to be kicking
around figyes on how much farm
land is ie Ontario and whether
any of it is disappearing or not.
The NDP in the last election
managed to score quite a few
points with the revelation that
Ontario • is, losing 24 acres of
farmland every hour. But the
Conservatives aren't prepared to
sit back and let the NDP walk
away with the series, so they'have
launched a cOunter-offensive with
a set of figures all their own.
Huron County had a front row
seat for the action last week when
Lorne Henderson, provincial
cabinet minister and MPP for
Lambton County, set the record
straight at the Huron-Middlesex
PC's annual meeting.
It is always good to hear the
other side to any story• and the
news that the minister had was all
good... Ontario is. not only not
losing farmland, but according to
Mr. Henderson, has gained some
102.4 percent in total field crop
acreage in-the last ten years. In
the same period, 'furthermore,
Huron County alone has:managed
to come up with almost' 100
thousand more acres• of field
crops.
If Huron County by itself has
fbund almost 100 new' country
blocks offarm land in the last ten
years and with other counties also
contributing, then it, doesn't look
like there is any 'problem.
.Perhaps the government. should
be taking steps to ensure that the
agricultural industry doesn't eat -
up allthe•land available for urban
developnient 'and factories, I say
to myself.
But still 100 thousand acres is a
lot of land when you come to think
of it. Especially when you realize
that the townships of Tuckersmith
and McKillop added together
don't contain 100 thousand acres.
I don't know where Mr.
Henderson got his figures and he
didn't say, but they sure don't
match the Dominion Bureau of
Statistics figures , that Gary
Davidson, Huron County planner,
gave me. According to those
figures; Huron had 765,135 total
farm acreage in 1961 and 742,965
in 1971. That fOoks like a ,drop of
22,170 acres.
However, Mr. Henderson was
talking about "total field crops"
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farm
and this may account for part, of
the difference as considerable
pasture in Huron has been
ploughed under for field crops -
about thirty to seventy thousand
acres in the last 10 years, Mr.
Davidson estimated. But to
suggest that this ,.represents
productive land being added to
Ontario's agriculture industry is
misrepresentation. Pasture is
productive land.
Mr. Davidson said that he
couldn't really comment on the
figures supplied by ,Mr. Hender- •
son as he did not kn6w the data
base,' but added "they certainly
don't jive with the information
we've been getting from the
census of agriculture and other
indications."
It is difficult to be sure whether,:'
the new figures produced by the
Ontario government to show we
don't need any farmland preser-
vation laws are correct or if the
ones 'by the Dominion Bureau. of
Statistics are right'. But as' I see
more houses sprawl out from the
urban centres and industrial
developments swallow .up more
land, in Huron County, I knoW
who 1 have my money on.
land or not?
New agricultu?al engin6er named
choir and was a 4-H member and,'
Junior Farmer member in Oxford
County. At University, he was
active in several clubs including
square dancing, Junior Farmers,
University choir, rifle club,
intramural sports and cross
country skiing.
Ron worked with •the Ontario
Ministry of Agriculture and Food
for two summers doing drainage
surveys in the Ridgetown and
Ottawa areas and his interests
include music, photography,
sports and farming.
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menage money, PC hear t
governinefit was being cafful not: demaiul outstrip- funds will covet* all tile drainet*
to give out too much in° ey and ping the available equipment. that there is machines M pat-
thereby drive up the cost of "We believe that the increased tile in the Bound with."
Six or eight months ago, this corner suggested that some
farmers would be happier if they could do the work of the
technicians now employed by artificial insemination units.
The idea sparked considerable controversy. The sugges-
tion wasn't original. It came, in fact, from a dairy farmer
who suggested that farmers get it in the ear because they
eventually have to pay the shot to keep the technicians on the
road, pay their salaries and expenses,
A quote• used at the time was: "These technicians don't
need to be paid to gallop all over Ontario inseminating
cows. ':
I suggested at the time that few farmers would write in
support of the plan but the artificial breeding units would
reply, with courtesy and restraint. They did. A few replies
did come from farmers and there seemed to be some points
on both sides of the story.
Western Ontario Breeders Inc. invited me to their head-
quarters near Woodstock for a half-day of information. A
week or two later, Don Fortune, director. of information and
promotion for United Breeders Inc. with headquarters near
Guelph, wrote a lengthy letter and even came to see me
about the idea. So many other things have been happening
on the farm front that I haven't been able to get around to
acknowledging the letter u!ltil now,
United Breeders, said Mr. Fortune, were one of the,first
units in Canada to sponsor a do-it-yourself course for farm-
ers.
"But the idea of farmers inseminating their own cows with
semen stored at the farm is viewed with mixed emotions by
governments, breed associations, AI groups and farmers,
too," said Mr. Fortune. "It allows the farmer-breeder •to
inseminate at the most convenient time.— for him — usually
milking time, But the successor failure of this method rests
squarely on the farmer's shoulders. Every ampule of semen
used represents an out-of-pocket cost to him alone and,
therefore, he tends to tighten up his breeding management.
All this is good.-
It does mean that bull semen must be stored in unsuper-
vised locations which creates a lot of problems. A couple of
years ago an individual in the United States was round guilty
of turning ampules of mis-identified semen into a quick
profit. Quick work by the government and insemination unit
officials prevented the same thing happening in Ontario and
resulted in more restrictive legislation.
Some great technical breakthroughs are ex,ected in the
next few years, said Mr. Fortune.
The use of hormones to control heat periods is rapidly de-
veloping. This will allow a dairy farmer, for instance, to
bring, say, 20 heifers in heat in one day.- Then the question
really doesn't need an answer. Most farmers will opt for a
professio„nartechnician to be there to do the job all in 'one
visit instead of taking a chanceon doing his own work.
Speaking abOut the poor profit-and-loss picture painted by
most of the breed units last year, Mr. Fortune said: "Like
our farmer-members we .are subject to the fluctuations of
the agricultural economy and, like them, we have-to be over-
invested at certain times as we currently are on the beef
side ... i but we'll) have a topnotch group of beef sires avail-
able for the golden age of the beef business which will
emerge over the next two or threeyears.-
"Speaking of golden ages, what is going to happen when
the price of cull cows rises and all those milk cows that have
been held off the market become meat? The current concern
over milk surpluses will be looked back upon with total dis-
belief just as the concern about beef shortages in the early
1970's is looked upon today:
"Despite these re-evaluations .. we Canadians continue to
look upon the food business as a short-term thing. The bank-
er tells us we should have six months' income stored away
for emergency yet if the nation has six weeks' food supply
ahead, we are in a desperate surplus situation.
"The food business and our related .businesses are long
term. We don't opt out when the going is rough. 'We aim
toward more efficiency in various ways and hope to recoup
our losses 'next year."
It is certainly not a very hard-headed outlook. But for that
outlook the consumer can be thankful. And thank you, Mr.
Fortune and United BreederS Inc.
Ronald (Ron) '. Fleming was
recently appointed Agricultural
Engineer for Huron County. He
succeeds George Penfold who
since January has been assoc-
iated with the Huron County
Planning Dept.,' Goderich, as
rural Planner.
A native of Oxford County
where his family operates a dairy
and hog farm, he attended
Woodstock Collegiate Institute
and then enrolled at the Univer-
sity of Guelph. majoring in
Agricultural Engineering.
At high school, Ron was active
in student council and school
crime.". Capital Distributing, a
subsidiary of U.S. - owned Capital
Distributors, headed by John
Santangelo of Derby,, Conn.,
U.S.A., has been' charged with
distributina obscene publications:
The Attorney General indicated
he had no specific information
which would link the distribution
of pornographic material to
organized crime.-
• Farmers who have been turned
down on their application for a tile
drainage loan because their
municipal council was out of
funds may have a second'chance
as the Ontario Government has
decided to put $3.8 million more
into tile drainage loans. .
Lorne Henderson, Ontario
cabinet minister without
portfolio, made the announce-
ment last Wednesday evening at
the annual meeting of the Huron-
Middlesex Progressive-Conserva-
tive Association. . .
Mr. Henderson said that the
government will allocate $16.8
million for the program instead of
the original $13 million dollars
which was set aside. ,However,
southwestern Ontario may not
benefit much from the increase as
the eastern townships of Ontario
will have priority ' over other
areas, since it needs drainage
more, according to Mr.
Henderson.
Mr. Henderson said that tile
drainage increases the amount of
workable land and saves energy.
"You do half the work and 'get
50 per cent more production."
Mr: Henderson also said the
Teachers elect
Gaeten Blanchette of St.
Mary's School, Goderich was
elected president of Ontario
English catholic Teachers'
Association at a recent meeting in
Seaforth. He succeeds Terry
Craig of Seaforth.
Other officers elected are: vice
presidents Jim McDade of
Dublin, and.Sister Loretta Eagen
of Goderich; Treasurer, Sandy
McQuillan of Seaforth; recording'
secret ary; Mary Duncan of
Stratford; Corresponding
secretary, Inez Haid. of Listowel
and councillors Michael Dewan of
Stratford and Joe MacDonald of
Sebringville.
I
More
(By Murray Gaunt MPP)
Ontario will give more than 355
tons of white pea beans to
Canadian international food
distribution agencies for use in
needy ' countries, Agriculture
Minister William Newman said
this week. The high protein food
will be purchased at $13. a
hundredweight from the Ontario
Bean Producers Marketing
Board.
Premier William Davis said this
week that Ontario does not intend
to resurrect proposals for a new
federal airport in Pickering,
'northeast of Toronto. He also
indicated that Ontario will not
support expansion at Malton,
which he• described as capable of
handling more traffic on existing
runways if flights were "spaced
properly during the course of the
day".'
Agriculture Minister Newman
has announced the establishment
of a Financial Protection Task.
Force to review methods of
protecting farmers against
default. of payment for their.
products,
In making the annOuncemmt
Mr. Newman said he is concerned:::
about a situation where a
producer sell his entire crop to
one or two buyers and then,
because of difficulties
experienced by the buyers, may
be unable to collect all or part of
the payment due him.
To deteritin'e the .bat Method
of eitdriding'finaneial protection
to Pr6dticer4, Mr. -Newman said
the task force ' will examine
exisling provincial prograMs and
also look at Methods used in other
.
aberal hi.P.14.. Albert Rey told
the Legislature that police
suspect people involved in
organized crime' are among the
main beneficiaries of profit from
pornographic, material. He asked
the Attorney General to confirm
suspicions that Capital
Distributing Co. Canada Ltd. and
its owners "are known or
suspected by police to have some
association with organized
Ontario donates bea ns