The Rural Voice, 1985-11, Page 34FARM NEWS
Corn-dring chart creates controversy
When the Ontario Corn Producers'
Association (OCPA) stated that a
new corn -drying chart to be used this
year will cost $9 million, it scared a
lot of farmers, who are already en-
during comparatively low corn prices.
But Jim Cunningham, executive vice-
president of the Ontario Grain and
Feed Dealers' Association, says the
OFA's estimate of a $9 -million loss to
farmers is "extremely high."
Cunningham maintains that the
loss is closer to $2 million. He adds
that actions have already been taken
by his association to limit the loss to
farmers.
The controversy started when the
Canadian Grain Commission instated
a new moisture meter calibration
chart for corn, the now infamous
"Table Number Seven." This chart
will be used to convert readings from
the standard Model 919 moisture
meter (used by almost all commercial
elevators in Canada) to estimates of
the per cent grain moisture. The new
chart creates higher per cent corn -
moisture readings for a given meter
reading than the previous chart,
which has been used in Canada since
1977. In other words, the new chart's
conversion from wet tonnes to dry
tonnes is a little more severe than the
old. It takes more wet corn to get the
same amount of dry corn.
According to Laverne Rose of the
Mitchell Co-op, the old chart was
simply wrong, and the new chart was
developed as a correction.
On the other hand, the OCPA
claims that the new chart cannot be
correct because some of the samples
used for calibration research were
collected in Ontario but sent to Win-
nipeg before measurement.
"Deterioriation or fermentation dur-
ing time of travel may have affected
the calibration."
One of the reasons the old chart is
out of date, counters Cunningham, is
that new varieties and maturities of
corn have been developed which may
change conversion values. In addi-
tion, the testing equipment used by
the Canadian Grain Commission is
more sophisticated today, allowing
for more exactness, Cunningham
says. He stands with the statement of
the Ontario Grain and Feed Dealers'
Association: "There is no reason to
question the accuracy of Table Seven,
July 1985, and (we) recommend that
it be used as the official conversion
table for Model 919/3.5 moisture
meters for Eastern corn."
Another statement made- by the
OCPA ruffled some feathers among
grain dealers. OCPA said that the
loss in farm income will be a direct
windfall to Ontario elevators. Ed
Kalita, OCPA president, said that
"Commercial grain drying is already
quite profitable."
Cunningham objects. "Our in-
dustry is very capital intensive, and
we can't understand where they get
the idea it is so profitable." He adds
that the OCPA might have gotten its
information from producers who
have dryers and who have not taken
all of their own costs into account.
"In addition, farm dryers do not
have the same costs as commercial
dryers, such as federal and provincial
sales tax, business tax, federal labour,
and safety codes...."
Recognizing that the new chart will
have an impact, the Ontario Grain
and Feed Dealers' Association, which
had proposed to increase drying
charges this year, has issued a new
dry chart, effective October 15,
which, according to Cunningham,
"will compensate for the changes
levied for drying charges as created
by Table Number Seven."
The most obvious thing that the
new chart has done to date is start the
OCPA and the Ontario Feed and
Grain Dealers' Association arguing
about the effect it will have on
farmers.
Members of the Huron Federation
of Agriculture have hesitated, passing
a resolution that the Ministry of
Agriculture be lobbied "to delay the
use of this chart for one year so that
farm groups can look at it, and
evaluate it."
The changes are the greatest for
readings made at low temperatures.
For example, 12 degrees Celsius grain
which was formerly 21 per cent
moisture, tests 22.3 per cent by the
new chart. Using such figures, the
OCPA says the change will cost
farmers $1.6 million in additional
drying charges and $7.4 million for
decreases in calculated dry weight of
corn delivered this fall.
The real effect of the chart will on-
ly be known when the season is over,
and corn producers, dealers, and
their respective associations will be
able to calculate the economic results
of Table Number Seven. El PC
Farmers question Riddell on farm concerns
Jack Riddell, Minister of
Agriculture and Food, has been doing
the rounds of local meetings lately.
At the Pork Congress annual
meeting on October 7, he noted that
he was working very hard at
establishing the long -promised tripar-
tite stabilization program. October 8
he was in Kirkton at the Perth
Federation of Agriculture's annual
meeting. After another full day of
speeches, he was back in his home
county at the Huron Federation of
Agriculture meeting in Hensall, Oc-
32 THE RURAL VOL(
tober 10, where he vented his frustra-
tion over the slow process of ac-
complishing the things he would like
to achieve immediately.
"I'm sorry I got annoyed," he said
to the farmer who had prompted the
outburst by asking why stabilization
was taking so long. "But you get an-
noyed when there is a job to be done
and there are so many obstacles in the
way."
A common concern at meetings
was free trade. "We should approach
free trade very cautiously," Riddell
said, noting that free trade with the
U.S. in the full sense of the phrase
could mean the loss of supply
management.
Riddell has established a committee
to study free trade and determine how
it would effect each sector of
agriculture and the industry as a
whole. If the impact of free trade
would be very negative, "we will ask
that agriculture be excluded from any
kind of free trade movement," he
emphasized. He pointed out that
Canadian members of the auto pact