HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1981-01-29, Page 11nteres
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in „farming .Juniors told
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.ITOR, :JANUARY .* 1981 THE HVRON
e an
Mr. McCall telt that most
of the counft's problems are
centred around nun-renew -
able resources. but agricul-
ture is a reneviable resource
and it shradd he protected
tIEVY EX,001.1TIV The,,,K4r011 COttlity. .1unioi,.°Ferm*s instaked their
ne,w'ekecuttve at thelr Annual banquet 'and Donee het* in *Blyth. Their
first rneetingi if*t Wednesday, had Memberasplanning for the upcoming
year. Taking gore of, busibeit are ((back left) Roger KrTison,' Seaforlh,
alternate provincial director; lViarg Pyrn, newsletter' editor; Bevan
Shooter.); Exetectreasurer; and Randy 'Non, ,Seaforth,y1Ce president,
with Sharon Colcough, Clintont oresiclent. ( ft, front) artt Susan Pellock i
Auburn, secretary: Absent was Orovincr director Bill Armstrong,
VVingham. (Preto by Harnilten)
Approximately 45. Junior
Farmer,county directors from
across the province. were
special. guests $aturday
' evening at the HuroaCounts.
Junior Fa.m.ers' Association's
second annual banquet. held He in • aed the 6. rose d that
in the Blyth Communits government doesn't alas
Centre. giseegriculture the attention -
The banquet featured the it deserves
installation of offiCers for During, the meeting IAA)
1981. award presentations awards Were presented for
and a pest speaker. Bxuce outs:W.41os aclecst.,ntents.
Operaterof the Drns. The ain Armstrong.
sets 5teck.Tard$7 • -.Tor the' outstanding Author
..holeCot encouraged .farmer of .
ttwryottplc.r#Ogri. 1:0J, take presented to Nvo -ne --i5ehap.;
their -inlekcSt, in agrietiltpre .400 of Exeter. and. the 'Heim!'
seriously for, the bellettaFtq:..:::014/tY . Ander Fattuers
ottho.e0WItri. Rettereient A",
_He said the.; ultiorW Fault= • .word went tO. the West litnTon,,
err represent. only Of Cao-. „has*
groatpo. r t 430tirCe The Oecativel for .1981
agriculture. 7, 1pck.,4.4,5e an consists of Patti Fay**. post
• Canadians .depend on the. • .piesidentt Sharon Coiclottgh.
• productivity of the land, lie Clintpu. president: Rinds
maintaitiedthat this predtict- Wilson.. .5eafordl vice pre-
sident: Sue P.,11 6.K. Auburn.
secretary: Besan Shapton.
Exeter, treasurer: Bill Alin-
Farmers. 'by joining togeth.. strong. R.R. 4. Wingham.
er and exchanging ideas for , provincial director: Roger
the benefit of the whole. Morrison. Seaforth, alternate
director.
'From' time;to time, this,PlIttMitb4 taltiNISTOff: tliP 010°r
1'6°4,04410i thisprbvit10.10.r having itaigi •hutch-4M.
half e doikti chains Aunroi the greater 0194,
of the. POOd andihere is little ati ioth04991 farmer
can On about it. •
For e•XaMple%, Canadian grCliAT,rb bac' hattlper crop of
apples last year. 18 per cent larger than in 1979 and *per', '
cent higher than "the fives .ear averse. Growers .were
doing everything in their,power to sell their crops. The
age-old law of supply attddemand mode.prtees pinage, in
spite of the fact that a commission sets prices in Ontario.
,Farmers tried extra-stringent culling to the point where
their produce .was graded even higher than those set by
the federal agriethture department. Many growers did
this. even when they did not have to. just-to get their best
produce to market.
It didn't help much.
Some supermarket chains marked up Canachab Mcln-
Ri hts
Fof A topic .
hash apples 100 per cent; For instapee. one chairs
SteftittiSkapPles for -SLZ8' gltitc.eolty*Oo.,:
eceh ed le talon
cog*, ' -
Thu chain refused to IctiNer,•xs, retatlprikelts help:eut ,the
,hard-pressed Canadian grower, But 1400,4,11),* is ,the
elinehee- that Oil grocery ehain was offering imported '
Granny Smith apples for 98 cents a pound. Nin only, that.
the .same chain put the imported apples' in refrigerated
shellVes and bumped the McIntosh' Apples to an island •
Where. the Warmth ,eventually made them deteriorate in
quality.
Mind you. Canadian farmers can be 'criticized for lack of
foresight and conservatism. Apple growers spent less than
SI million all across,Canada in promotion and advertising.'
Florida citrus growers_spent 549-million• in Canada. '"-
But the figures are enough-to make fhe pOint:-chain food
Stores have tremendous clout. .
More evidence? Okay., Roy Misk of Canada Packers
mg.. Canada's largest food processing conipany. mad. a
deal with the largest food chain in Canada. Dominion
Stores Ltd. That supermarket chain got exclusive rights to
market a new line of frozen chicken products in return for a
promise to promote those new products in •advertising.
Food processors and food' growers den"rjust jumpAyhen
'a supermarket shouts. They say: How high?
That's how much control the chains have in this country.
They can give the nod to certain people, who have no other
choice but to give them exchisive control over the sale of a
product.
Statistics for last year are 'not ,complete but -in 1979,
chain stores controlled morn--than -60---per cent of e•very
retail food dollar spent in C nada. That percentage cannot
go any place else but up..,
The chain stores morkdontinan& in Ontario than.
any other..pMinge_With. t Per cent of the market.. To
make the figures more intriguing, the survey I'm quoting
'Carrie, from. Maclean-Hunter Research Bureau and the
figures do not include co-operative stores: On the Prairies"'
and in the Maritimes. co-ops proliferate and they do .noi"P
report their food sales in such surveys.
In other words, although 'not really chain stores, the
i co-ops are big part of'sales and may be the only hope left
to combat the chitit of the major food chains.
Just another brief example. A . beet grower not far
from my home town ntadeadeal with a local chain store to
-sell--his-'beets. They Were special beets: no chemical
fertilizers or pesticides'Were used. All was well,when beets
were relatively scarce. As soon as beets were available in
plentiful supply, he was told. his beets. withered -- the
leaves -- too quickly.. He explained -they were organically
grown:rthat•other beets are chemically sprayed to prevent
wilting. No matter. The deal was cancelled even though
the supermarket •got a 100 per cent markup.
The store got as much mines? to take the beets in the,,
back door and ring them through the cash register as the
grower got to plant. fertilize. 'nurture. pull. dean:- bit/kb
and deliver them. And take the risk. of selling them toga
supermarket chain.
wis it any wonder farmers complain?
Is it any wonder they are screaming foul on, that recent
inquiry into commissions and kickbacks by fixid chains is,
Ontario? • •
1 do not happen to be one of those who believes that
farm marketing, boards have too much power:,1t's the'
chains that have the power.
iyity has been" looked after
and improved upon by organ,
izations such as the Junior
industry. 9 0 provincial
Universal
The February membership
,,meeting of the Huron County 6
Federation of Agriculture
.be. held Thursday. Feb,
5, 8:30 p.m. atthe Brucefieki
,Centennial School. George
Kloster, from Mt. Elgin. a
member of the OFA Environ-
mental Committee will pre- - •
sent his committee's report
on restrictions affecting farm
operations and.recommenda-
dons for an Agricultural
Deyelopment(and Proteetkin-
• Act.
The provincial Federation '
of Agriculture has asked the
county federations to discuss ::-7
this proposal this month
before it's .prsentett to the -
Ontaiio government the •
end of Febrdary.
This study was carred out
at the request of the 1979
-OFA Annual Convention del-
egates who felt " that the
existing ,Agricultural Code of
Practice is unduly restrictive
and protects nott-agricultural
sec in. agricultural zoned
areas. Mr. Kloster% - report
suggests many areas where
the existing Ag. 'Code has
fallen. short of solving farm-
ing vs. non-farming conflicts. ,
The report makes 10,retom-
mendationS and proposes a ,
legislative ,act which ad- "
dresses these .objectives.
All farmers and anyone
with an interest in this
subject are invited to attend.
save time,
spade and
money
with the
exceptional
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