The Rural Voice, 1981-02, Page 39PERTH COUNTY PORK PRODUCERS' NEWS
Producers' Meeting report
If all the hogs processed through the
Ontario Pork Producers' Marketing
Board (OPPMB) in 1980 were placed
together, they would cover 767 acres.
"That's a lot of pig meat," Helmut
Loewen, assistant manager of the board,
told Perth County Pork Producers
Association members at their annual
meeting recently. Loewen used the
graphic description to illustrate the size
of the board's operation, which handled
4.2 million hogs last year, and how it has
grown in the past few years.
In 1980, there were four days in which
the board handled over 30,000 hogs.
"You have to think about what we're
comparing that with," explained the
board's assistant manager.
"Our biggest day back in 1975 was
20,200," he continued. "That's not very
long ago, so you can see the difference
there has been over the last few years."
Loewen used the figures to explain the
operation of the board, from the in-
dividual producer through to final
packaged item, and the role of par-
ticipants at each step in the process.
While the number of hogs processed has
steadily risen in recent years, the size of
the Toronto facility has remained the
same, he added.
Another OPPMB staff member, Jim
Rollings, provided a summary of the 1980
Canadian and Ontario hog industry and
discussed the 1981 outlook.
While imports dropped by 49 per cent
in 1980, exports rose by 54 per cent,
including 174 million lbs. to the States.
Canada was first in sending hogs to
Japan and, Rollings added, packers
expect shipments to be good again this
year.
The current low prices on the hog
market could benefit from a little poor
weather, according to Rollings. "After
Christmas all kinds of cheap beef was
coming on the market, putting pressure
on the prices," he said. "What we need
is even a half a day of storm. We're
moving too many hogs. We just need
to stop this latest slide. If we can stop the
skid we can start getting back into the
high 60s or low 70s."
In his report, Willy Keller Perth
County's director on the provincial board,
noted the county once again placed first
in hog production in 1980, shipping over
Willy Keller. left. Perth director on the Ontario Pork Producers' Marketing board.
passes out efficiency awards to county winners with the highest indexing hogs.
Winners, from left, are Mr. and Mrs. Leo Kroonen of Dublin, 500 to 1.000 category, Mr.
and Mrs. Arnold Van Moorsel. St. Marys 1,000 and over, and Mr. and Mrs. Stan
Brookshaw. 100 to 500 category. [Photo by Shoveller]
500,000. Across the nation, there was an
increase over 1979 of 17 per cent in hogs
slaughtered, and in Ontario there was an
increase of 15 per cent..
Keller added the University of Guelph
is preparing a code of practice for
handling hogs. "There is a group
complaining to the federal and provincial
government about abuse on the farm,"
he said. "They have one for chicken
producers, and we want to be sure
everything is handled right in our
industry. We want to protect ourselves."
An issue which received extended
discussion at the meeting was the future
of weaner producers within the county
and provincial pork producers'
association. Ontario weaner producers
are seeking a stronger voice for their
industry and have determined the ideal
way to attain their goals would be to
operate through the OPPMB. Ron
Gillespie and Jim Bartlett of Drumbo
represented the weaner pig committee at
the meeting.
Although there appeared to be general
agreement among Perth producers to
establish a weaner pig committee within
their organization, no firm details of the
arrangement were reached. On a motion
from Hans Feldman, it was decided
committee members would be elected at
the next regular directors' meeting of the
pork producers late in January.
One hazy area in the matter is the
definition of a weaner producer, a
difficulty discussed by Gillespie. "How
do you determine who is a weaner
producer?" he asked. "It is something
just as important for someone in farrow to
finish as for someone who sells 100 per
cent of his weaner pigs, and he should be
eligible for the weaner pig group.
Members passed a resolution re-
questing the OPPMB use some its
research funds "to collect and make
available" information concerning
occupational health hazards in working in
swine barns.
THE RURAL VOICE/FEBRUARY 1981 PG. 37