The Rural Voice, 1983-01, Page 6OPTIMISM FOR '83?
What other choice have you got? The Rural Voice did a random survey with farmers, ag. reps. a banker, a broadcaster and other
notables in the farming industry to find out their point of view for the coming year.
by Rhea Hamilton
With the beginning of a new calendar
year, many of us often cast a hopeful eye
towards the coming months. It is a time
for resolutions and a tugging at the belt to
try and do better in the upcoming months
ahead.
We took a random survey of some
familiar faces in the agricultural com-
munity and asked them what they con-
sidered to be the highlights of the past
year and what they were looking forward
to in the new year.
We found there was an undercurrent of
optimism in everyone we talked to, even
the agricultural reps who have been so
busy these past few weeks with the new
provincial farm adjustment assistance ap-
plications that have to be processed.
Don Pullen, Huron OMAF rep. found the
past year particularly busy both personal-
ly and in the office. Don, although disap-
pointed in the prices farmers are getting
for their crops, had to point out that Huron
has been experiencing record yields, par-
ticularly in corn, and that we do have that
to be thankful for.
Don was one of two people to represent
Canada in Paris last year and was even
more astounded to further his travels with
a trip to British Columbia for the A.I.C.
convention. Needless to say Don expects
to be keeping a low profile in the new year.
"In our county we are blessed with ex-
cellent soil and improved farmland," Don
said. In the last statistics, cultivated land
acreage for the county had increased
from 625,000 acres in 1976 to 632,024
acres in 1981 with land reclaimed through
drainage and rough pasture put into crop.
While Don doesn't make any resolu-
tions he did remark that he and his col-
leagues are "resolved to be of
assistance."
Mac Bolton from the Bruce OMAF of-
fice has been caught up with the farm ad-
justment assistance program which will
keep him very busy right into the new year.
Bruce county has received the most ap-
plications for the program. Aside from the
work load, Mac is hopeful that we will see
"a turn -around and some income for the
farmers."
Although Barry Tolton has had a hectic
year too, up in Grey County, he has found
the past year satisfying. While working
with farmers, trying to help them stay in
business, Barry has found that lack of
farm financial records has been realized
PG. 6 THE RURAL VOICE, JANUARY 1983
and extensive workshops have been plan-
ned to help farmers organize their books.
While working with statements. assets.
liability and cash flow problems, they will
be using their own farm figures making
the whole workshop that much more
meaningful and easier to understand.
Barry sees 1982 as outstanding for
crops but finds it hard to get optimistic
about 1983 with the hydro corridor going
through Grey County. "People were
shocked to find out the corridor would be
going through here," Barry said.
"But with the decline in interest rates it
looks like we may be heading in the right
direction for 1983," Barry finished.
Over in the Perth OMAF office, the in-
terest assistance program is the major
project. But Al Scott noted that everyone
is more conscious of business and
economic matters on the farm.
Al sees 1983 as a challenge to working
with the farmers on financial matters and
looks forward to getting more fine tuning
done on the production end of the farm.
He would like to see farmers "getting
more out of what they have now."
When we caught up with Harold
Poechman he was between fields, busy
combining corn. Although combining in
December for the Bruce area is late, the
moisture content was 20 per cent.
As president of the Bruce Federation of
Agriculture, Harold has been bombarded
in the last few weeks with calls about the
problems with coloured fuel in farm
machinery. "There is a problem every day
to tackle," he sighed. 1983 will bring a new
challenge to both Harold and his county
federation as they take a hard look at the
new hydro route through the county and
try to get everyone in line of the route well
informed.
With the future in mind, the Bruce F of A
have revised their constitution and is look-
ing forward to having their bonspiel and
meeting with their MPs and MPPs towards
spring.
On the personal side of things,Harold's
one son has taken a step forward and
started into dairy farming and his other
son is at Kemptville. It would appear that
the sons have inherited their father's
energy and optimism.
The past year has been a trying time for
many and particularly for those involved
in our many farm organizations. Colleen
Garland was one of the founding
members of the Concerned Women's
Group in Bruce County and has just com-
pleted her first year as president of the
group.
Besides being a demanding year for
Colleen it has been a "profitable, building
year" in that she has developed new con-
tacts and accumulated new knowledge.
The group is only one year old and Col-
leen commented that it has been
frustrating sometimes having to deal with
both the demands of a family, farm and
the new group.
The Garlands are heading into their
lambing season and Colleen will spend
many hours, both day and night, in the
barn. She will not be returning to hold of-
fice with the Concerned Women's group
but intends on "throwing myself back into
the family and farm".
The group is looking forward to organiz-
ing a survey and setting up a strategy for
the new year but the details still had to be
ironed out. Colleen has a saying her
mother often used that may be of use to a
great many others; "When you get to the
end of your rope, tie a knot and hold on."
Colleen is holding fast.
Going into the president's seat is Bruce
Shillinglaw, Londesboro. He is looking for-
ward to a challenging year with the Huron
County Soil and Crop Improvement
Association.
The highlight for the past year was the
implementation of a new program called
Conservation day. Don Lobb hosted the
day long session in August that was en-
joyed by 165 people with the majority of
them coming from out of the county. It
was the first time that the committee had
worked so closely with both the chemical
and the manufacturing industry.
Bruce instils a certain amount of excite-
ment about the coming year when he
outlines the multitude of projects in which
the association has been involved.
The Association has its own corn per-
formance trials and has been in-
strumental in making changes with both
the governments, testing arrangements
and Guelph's research program.
Besides the important task of setting
up no -tillage systems to help reduce the
loss of soil, Bruce noted that the group
looks into the value of manure versus
commercial fertilizer, cereal trials, the ef-
fect of liquid manure on corn and compar-
ing new mixtures of herbicides, to name a
few.
A questionnaire circulated at their an-