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The Rural Voice, 2006-01, Page 47RAINY RIVER Federation of Agriculture NEWSLETTER PO Box 416, EMO, ON POW 1E0 807-482-2051 • The Rural Voice is provided to Rainy RAINY RIVER VALLEY River Federation members by the RRFA. Holiday get-together leads to new ideas Well, the new year is on the doorstep. The days are starting to get longer, which is always a nice thing. I like winter myself, it kinda gives you a feeling of solid ground under your feet, especially after such a mucky and wet fall. Until you fall thigh deep into a snow drift I guess. I have a feeling that up here in the Rainy River District we get a lot more snow than most people reading this publication. In fact, it is evident when we see the people of Toronto digging out with pieces of cardboard after a snowstorm. Don't they own snowshovels? Well, we up here in the Rainy River District do own snow shovels, and we own good ones. It's pretty much business as usual after any amount of snow after you've lived with it your whole life. That has turned into a sense of pride and accomplishment for the people of the North. No matter what amount of snow we get, slip on the boots and get going. Well, I can tell you that the wheels of the RRFA keep turning throughout the winter, maybe even more so. It will definitely take more than a snowbank to stop us. All it took was one fantastic Christmas party, hosted by RRFA member KimJo Bliss, to get our creative vision going. RRFA president Trish Neilson has a vision, and that's to develop a demand for locally produced food. There is a fantastic article in the last issue of The Rural Voice called How Far Does Your Turkey Travel? written by Keith Roulston. We would like to build on this vision and I was excited to read that it is becoming a popular one. I started working for the RRFA on December 12, for which I had moved into the office shared by OMAFRA and the Northwest Health Unit. Not long after I moved in, a conversation between myself, RRFA board member KimJo Bliss, and Jarrod Gunn -McQuillan of the Northwest Health Unit took place. We agreed how much easier it was to get stuff done and solve problems on a full stomach. Being a dietitian by training, Jarrod pointed out that no matter what culture you look at, eating and drinking brings people together. I believe that as producers of food, farmers should not underestimate their positive influence on the world, and start thinking about how we can concentrate this positive influence locally. Okay, so we got together at the RRFA Christmas party, ate some great food, got our ideas in order, now how do we plan to do this you might ask? Well, we do have a plan, and I'm going to help. Among other things in my work plan, I will he looking into an environmentally sustainable hog industry, natural beef, vegetable production. I will also be looking into using waste heat to support winter greenhouses. I was very interested to learn that there is a special greenhouse design being tested in Manitoba that may require no heat at all during the winter by storing solar energy during the day and releasing it at night. At least one producer in the area has expressed an interest in constructing one of these greenhouses. You, the readers, and every food consumer and producer in the Rainy River District will carry out the most important part of the plan. It doesn't matter how much the RRFA researches, there cannot be a local market unless there is local demand, and people working together to satisfy that local demand. The Farmers' Market in Fort Frances is great, but to take this to the next level, we must demand local products in the supermarkets. We also have to make a conscious effort to support our local producers first, then producers across Canada second, and international producers when needed. It is important for consumers to go into the local supermarket and meat shops and ask for local products. You may think that one consumer can't make a difference but you definitely can. I believe that if this can work anywhere, it can work here. Pretty exciting plan to work towards I think. I'll keep you updated on our initiatives and ideas in issues to come. Changing topics, RRFA will try to provide some information to pass on to members that are interested in selling land under the Rainy River First Nations Land Claim Settlement. This has proved to be an interesting topic of conversation and we'd like to step in to promote some understanding on the issue where possible. Last but certainly not least the RRFA would like to thank KimJo Bliss for hosting the director's Christmas party and we thank Marg Irvine and Debbie Zimmerman for preparing the delicious supper. Any comments, questions or suggestions can be sent to fishin_e@hotmail.com or I can be reached at (807) 275- 8215.0 — Submitted by Eric Busch All -Candidates Debate January 11, 2006 7:00 p.m. Lady of the Way School Stratton JANUARY 2006 43