HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 1990-03-14, Page 67MR 14AL'tMM PRS °9!
7raditional family farm concept becoming less viable
by Patrick Reftia
WA RTON--Agriculture, like eery
d other •industry In the ` 0s Is moving into
sr new decide on the WY to the nest
• no -
Wag
However; if the individual
�a�,@,r,*-
Wag the traditionalfamily farm, is to
have any stake m that future the Bruce
County Fedention of Agriculture (B JA)
believes government and the public can-
not continue to treat the farming cow
a tike every other industry,
enunents and academics must
abandon the ides that farming is a
business run like any other. It is capttal
Intensive and this capital very
low return. The e�tal in
dose not flow in and out of the sector
easily' ui response to returns. If it did,
much of it would have left a long time
ago."
This Statement from a' discussion Paler
prepared by the BCFA's Future of Farb, Gerald Peeclrinan, t Brace Cele ty farprer
Committee. in November.01 1909, : believes the tralditio dfarmewe*
es the trepidation with which many ares beet becoming lana viable cid the
farmer's are approaching their proilenion jot g years, (per Bank lam)
these days.
Gerald Poechman, chairman of , the
11
eo ninittee, that authored., the ;paper', mold
• the traditional family -farm concept has
been becoming lee. viable for the past 30
years. Low. tetanal per acre ;rave led
many farmers, into expanding their
operations, a move that 'often leaves
farmers overextended. ` • • '
Poecbman, of RR 1, Walkerton, grows
We, wheat and other grains on about 200
acres between: Walkerton and Hanover. ..
".The squeezethat makes you -expand
still keeps coining. It• gets . to the point
where it (the farm) is jest a corporate
structure, said :Poeciwuan. . •
For most fawners, ezpanaion mean.
borrowing money. ,Many get caught UP :in
where they are forced toex
H., • , and• borrowing, beyond a Iwo
their land can
Better prices farm commodities
would help, said Poedunan, which mews
•a supply -managed, market would benefit;
the small operator. .lilnfortunulately,
government polities have been leaning
-the other way In recent years, he said.
• "Government policy in the pest few
years is to try and compete at the world
market level. It's eort of self-defeating to
try and work at achieving world market
competitiveness ,and hive prices to
farmersat the same time."
• The disparity, between how. the federal
INTER CITY
WELDING
SUPPLIES
CO. LTD.
Brantford Cambridge: ': Guelph '.. Hanover
753-8436 622-2020 82 1VELD 364-1430.
KITCHENER/WATERLOO
893-6220 \ 1400-265-8209
gevernineet sed farm like
the RCM *ow the seariamic climate in
agtcinah r+e can be wen by temper* the
f.daratiue.'a Future 0f ft Farming Commit-
tee
'`Cd.eivl'onether, A1y90Vi-
sion
0
Canada report by Apiculture ," a Iillil
The .
to the fully flexibility and farm as a major the
strength In the agrifoad sector.
"The fiunily farm is very different to-
day than it was in any earlier period..
Over time, , social change and
evolving have brought about
signilicant changes not only in production
techniques,. but also in the size and pro-
T nof the average Canadian fa.
working, meand leisure .ems has
changed as well, with improvemans in
transportation, communication and
"Anmutating vidual working in Canadian
n�orc cultuteut thaure now ' significantlyn early 1980s.
. Those farm men and women who have
adopted' now tib eon'
have reapedsubstantial economic
benefits, carts have been below the
levels • achieved by those who were, not
able to met the management challenges
of the new„ the report said.
Poechman said only 'those farmers who
are first to adapt new technologies are
able to reap economic buts.
"The flint guy to use a new technology
is going to gain from it. After that,
e etTone's playing catch, up. The, last
to take up w new idea often gets n�oti
back." .
The trend toward larger +opera*
•, tions is a dangerous motor both
and consumers, Poecbman , said.„ ..
"Food Is viewed as 'a commodity wider
the prase* else. Once you
comma= to the start &dig that, soon
Doman will near name becomethey
have million farmers dueifood
for the people to Rance. Suppose lel
of
thfarmland.
e, lg What owned all the
TI,hat wou#a he then?”
The Fehr* of Farming ft matttee sug-
gested
ubgested keeping as large a popubdion bine
as possible Involved in awe should
be an important goal in rural, Ontario.
"Rural communities need the farming
sector as a bards for their economies.
Fret a social and community p of
view the the number of fe diet
involved n fanning ning the better," said
�ln�rTT repo4}' As farmers decrease in ntmnbers, "bur
srural
aid � become less viable,"
Serious environmental concerns also
arise from the move to corporate farm
operations, which are more concerned
with maximum yield than land steward,
often
far ed s long terra to Even smaller operatons are
for
short�ter7oga rettrns; said Poecbman.. .
'Ma last 20 years or so, we've been
• forced to mine our 'reaources: We've.
abused every resource we have."
thea ' of that n,abon the
said Poec�trnan, has been
All too often,he said, not only the •
fanner, :but his wife and children haveto
work long hours, for little or no return on
their labour, *0 the forfamfarm iy afloatfart.
.,
is labour.The farmer his .forced. to . explosit
his wife and children to make a go of it.
If I got the same return for my labouras
the guy in town working for: 12 or l4
Turn to page x96 +
LYNN LOWRY FARM SYSTEMS LTD.
R.R. 41, KINCARDINE, (at Ambe$sy)
396-2616, 395.2616 or
Jack Alton, Goderkh 524-4974
Our suppliers are among the
Mod highly s sspected names
in the industry} and their per-
sonnel are available to assist
you at anytime: Just call us.
Providing reliable' Service to
the Farming Industry since
1968.