The Lucknow Sentinel, 1981-05-06, Page 3•
Iay,My6,19�1
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The Ontario Milk Marketing Board respected body would support such a SuPer-
(CIMIAB) takes strong exception to claims ficial and unfounded allegation."
made in a front page story appearing in "We wish to assure consumers," Mr,
yesterday's Toronto Star under the heading Smith stated; "that prices set for raw milk in
"Marketing boards inflate food prices, Ontario, and elsewhere in Canada; are
reports says", carefully monitored by 'governments and
The story is based in part on an interview their agencies, and in this Province all
with Dr. 'Richard I3arichelk, an economist at . pricing decisions of the OMMI3 are subject
• the University of British Columbia, who has to challenge before the government's Farm
conducted a study of the dairy industry for Products• Appeal Tribunal. This is directly
• the Economic Council of Canada. the opposite of .Dr. Barichello's assertion
The supposedly learned economist charg- that there "are no checks and balances in the
es that Canadian and Ontario consumers are system as it is set up now. How anyone could
being overcharged for milk and milk imagine that governments would extend
products because of the marketing powers supply Management and price setting pow -
and supply management programs of prov- ers to producer boards without putting a
incial and national marketing agencies. monitoring system into effect to ensure such
The Vice-Chairmay of the OMMB. Grant powers were being used responsibly, is.
Smith, said, "The first point to be made is beyond my comprehension," Mr. Smith
that the Economic Council clearly indicated concluded.
to the Star that the views submitted by Dr. "Moreover," Mr. Smith stated, "a recent
Barichello are not necessarily those of the . paper on national dairy policy, prepared by
Economic Council. Our Board will be very an interdepartmental committee of the
surprised," Mr. Smith continued, "if such a federal government stated, without qualifi-
terest rates, inflation
1.ef producers...
• *from page 1 '
represents a loss of $100 per head.
. The economic problem assessment is
complicated by the question of foreign land
ownership. Foreign investment for land
speculation is seen as a serious threat to
local agricultural future, but the local farm
community is simply not able go compete
with these buyers because the return on the
investment from agricnitural production
not high enough.
There is no criticism of land sales to those
'who are preparing to become a part of the
*working Canadian farm community. Some
local farmers are also looking to other parts
of Canada, where provincial programs are
more favourable to agriculture.
Farmers are under increasing pressure to
sell because of an erosion of their equity,
• and a bleak prospect of being able to recover
their costs of production in the coming years,
according to MPP Gurbin. .
Loss of equity is faced as farmers must ,
continually re -finance to overcome operating
deficits. Beef and hog farmers currently are
experiencing the greatest difficulties. Be-
cause there are more beef farmers locally
than anywhere else in Ontario, it appears
there will be major changes within the next
one to two years in the agricultural picture of
•Bruce County. There are few alternatives for
• local farmers to turn to as beef farming
becomes increasingly unprofitable.
As more area farmers cease operation,
there is concern that Canada will become,
increasingly dependent on foreign controlled
food production. This will eventually have
adverse, affects on the consumer, as
• imported food will be more expensive.
Dr. 'Trant has promised serious considera-
tion to the concerns expressed at the
meeting. They will be brought to the
minister's attention and it is hoped that a
•federal -provincial agriculture • ministers'
• meeting will be convened in the near future,
to come to grips with the crisis now facing
• the agricultural community in Canada and
• particularly the Bruce Grey Huron Counties.
• .
•
cation; that Canadian retail prices for
industrial milk products tend to be below
those of the European Economic Community
and the USA. This same review paper goes
on to say that the average annual increase in
retail prices for all dairy products between
1975 and 1979 was 7.2 per cent, compared to
an increase in the Consumer Price Index of
8.4 per cent. • Such evidence makes the
Barichello accusation of overcharges to
consumers absurd." '
According to the newspaper article, Dr.
Barichello has apparentlydrawn many of
his conclusions by comparing Canadian and
world prices of dairy products. "It Dr.
Barichello is a follower of the international
dairy. scene he should be aware that the
`so-called' world market prices for dairy
products are surplus removal or dumped
alone, milk producers are supplying slightly
more milk today than they were ten years
ago with only three-quarters the number of
cows and considerably less labour per unit of
output. Finally," Mr. Smith concluded,
"consumers should be aware that efficiency
• pains in the production sector 9f the dairy
industry are passed on ti; them through the
• kind of pricing mechanisms which are in
' place." •
•
prices," Mr. Smith stated, "which bear little
relationship to the cost of production of such
products in even the most efficient dairy
country in the world. Moreover, such • cicting
•from page 1
Dr. Cieslar to do his MOH training with the
Huron Health Unit
Dr. Lynch came to Canada from Ireland in
1972 and practiced with Dr. Cieslar and two
other doctors at the Church Street Clinic. In
.1977 Dr. Lynch was appointed MOH for the
'county. He will begin his position in Sudbury
° June 1.
Dr. Cieslar left the clink in 1977 for a four
month stint with the flying doctor service in
Australia and returned to Goderich in the
spring of 1978 where he has had a Mainly
industrial practice with Dominion Roads.
productivity in dairying in Canada over the
r. Cieslar
ap ointed
surphis removal is usually: highly subsidized
by the governments of the surplus producing
countries, which is not the case in Canada.
Any surplus removal costs of milk products
in Canada are paid for by milk producers.",
Dr, Barichello also alleges in the 'article
that up to now there's been no handle on the
• degree •of efficiency, or • on costs to
' consumers in the dairy sector. Mr. Smith
responded to this statement by saying: "The
professor has obviously not made a study of
efficiencY gains in dairy farming, as have
those who are responsible for dairy policy in
Canada. 'If he had done so, he would not
make such a statement The advances in
years have been tremendous and are widely
acknowledged and documented. In Ontario
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