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The Rural Voice, 1990-04, Page 99INDEX ABC Investments .. 4, 38 AgVise 83 Ag. Employment Sery. 16 Agro -Trend 77 Al Mar Grain Systems 53 Alton Pontiac Buick Ltd. 82 Aug -a -Bale 53 Axis Air Products 18 B & L Farm Services 53 BASF Canada Inc. 13 BSM 35 Barfoot's Welding 18 Becker C.A. Equipment Ltd66 Becker Farm Equipment 79 Big "0" Inc. 42 Big Bear Services 1985 Inc. 16 Bluewater Office Equipment 76 Bodmin Ltd. 42 Boumatic dealers 93 Brandy Point Farms 81 Bruce Tile Inc. 64 Buchanan & Hall 66 C & M Seeds 47 Can -Con Systems 93 Can. Organic Growers 92 Canadian Wool Growers 24 Carmichael Ivan J.H. 79 Carter's Farm Equipment 11 Case IH dealers F4 Centralia College 20 Chesley Agri -Fair 4 Clarkhill Feeders 85 Cliff's Plumbing & Heating 54 Co-op Independent Stores 56 Co-operators 57 Cook's 69 Cook's Portable Seed 14 Culross Mutual Ins. 47 Daco Laboratories Limited 23 Davenport Glenn & Sons 82 Davidson Well Drilling Ltd54 Design Concrete Systems 91 Dietrich Farms 81 Dietz Milton Limited 89 Dol-ar Livestock Exchange .. 81 Drayton Farm Show 2 Dufferin Mutual 20 Durham Three Way 91 Durham Welding 89 Easy Lift Doors 8 Elma Steel 57 Elmira Agri -Systems Inc. 63 Enercraft 91 Epp's Manufacturing 69 Fax Cellular Centre 3 Fettes Tours & Travel 91 First Line Seeds 26, 58 Fisher Poultry Farm Inc. 76 Ford dealers 62 G & B Farm Equipment 89 GBS Insulation 82 Gallagher dealers 19 Georgian Bay Fire 82 Gibson Feed & Seed 83 Gilmore Farm Supply IncB2 Goderich Home Show 6 Greener Acres 68 Grey & Bruce Salvage 70 Grey -Bruce Co-ops 7 Grober Inc. 93 Hackett Farm Equipment 67 Hagedorn & Sons Ltd. B1 Hanover Holiday Tours 52 Haugh A.J. Equipment 41 Haugh Tire Inc. 73 Highland Supply 9 Hill & Hill Farms Ltd. 70 Hills Feed & Farm Supply 37 Holliday Dave Ltd. 80 Hopper W. D. & Sons 82 Howick Mutual Ins. Co. 55 Howson & Howson 75 Hunter Trevor 78 Huron Dairy Equipment 89 Huronia Welding 2 Husky Farm Equipment .72, 80 In Search 3 Instant Forest 38 Jamco Machine Shop 67 KMM Drainage 78 Ken -Pro Limited 73 Kongskilde dealers B3 LAC 92 Lakeport Steel 87 Laning Robert H. & Sons 84 Leo's Liquid Waste Disposal..8 Lloyd's Small Engines ...61, 63 Logan Ford 74 Londesboro Seed Plant 84 Markdale Ford 59 Marquardt -Williams 82 Martin Elam 93 Martin Owen Manufacturing 64 McDermid Farms Ltd. 81 McGavin Farm Equipment .80 McKnight Gary 59 McKillop Mutual Insurance 87 Mitchell Co-op 72 Monoway Farms Ltd. 68 Mullin's Farm Service 79 Naturally Pigs 81 New Vic Manufacturing ..14, 61 New Zealand Fence 65 Nicholson & Son 77 Nuhn Bio -Tech 83 Nuhn Industries 75 Oil Check Labs Inc. 12 Ont. Hereford Association 24 Ontario Crop Insurance 15 Ontario Hydro 21 Parker & Parker Drainage 71 Parsons Hugh Bolts & Tools 83 Priestap Electric 85 Profit Line Feeds 41 Progressive Farming 77 Protekta 81 Quality Swine Co-op 49 R & R Manurigating 49 Radfords 71 Radio Shack stores 17 Ralhen Hampshires 81 Rathwell National Realty 6 Reavie Farm Equipment 71 Reid J.K. Manufacturing Ltd37 Robert O's Travel Mart 56 Roe Poultry Inc. 22 Roth Drainage 48 Schmidt's Farm Drainage 83 Scott Drainage 82 Scott's Ind. & Farm Supply 83 Seaforth Home Show 22 Select Building Systems 82 Shell dealers 27 Shur -Gain OBC Siemon Keith 82 Smith Steel & Fabricating 49 Smyth George Welding Ltd. 76 Sommers Motor Sales 83 South Bruce Chimney 83 South Huron Agri Systems 74 Sprucedale Agromart 78 Stanley Farm Supply 80 Stihl dealers 39 Strassburger Insulation 87 Stratford Farm Equipment 38 Stubbe's Farm Products 65 Taylor Sales & Service 71 Thames Bend Farms Ltd. 5 Thompson Dairy Supplies ...82 Thompson W. G. & Sons 25 Treleaven'sMill 10 Valmetal Inc. 82 Van Eyl Farm Supply 80 Vanbrook Farms 81 Vanden Heuvel Laurence 83 Verdonk, John 80 Vincent Farm Equipment 77 Walco 34 Ward & Uptigrove 82 West Wawanosh Mutual 5 Westeel dealers F2 Western Tractor 80 Willits Tire Service 48 Yard Pro 43 Tell them you saw their ad in The Rural Voice there are for future funding. It is our under- standing that the last payouts for beef and pork were only 70 per cent of what they should have been. There are many serious environmental problems arising out of modem farming practices. We are well aware of estimates that half of all non -point source pollution comes from agriculture. Soil losses, figured at $1 billion a year in Canada, pollution of lakes and rivers, and the increasing threat of groundwater contamination affect us more directly than any other segment of the popu- lation. We also face what is now more widely recognized as a significant health risk; the danger of handling the toxic materi- als that have become part of the way we farm. Today's governments, pushed by a ris- ing wave of environmental awareness, must begin by recognizing the large role they have played in causing this. With absolutely no regard for ecology, assurances were made that a more specialized, capital -intensive, input -dependent agriculture was the only way. A super -efficient, industrialized agri- culture would feed the world. After two gen- erations of this propaganda, the world is now telling us that it was all a mistake. Farmers are understandably defensive and skeptical. Agricultural universities and govern- ment agencies alike lack the basic expertise and the credibility to effect change. They must accept full responsibility, but even assuming the best intentions they face a difficult task. We recommend the following: 1. Direct financial incentives: many innovative farmers are developing their own alternative systems. These should be en- couraged through direct funding. 2. Indirect financial incentives: eco- nomic stability fosters long-term planning and the consideration of environmental fac- tors in management strategy. In the absence of orderly marketing with guaranteed re- turns, there must be an effective safety net. 3. Education: government should chan- nel education dollars through farm groups already leading the alternative agriculture movement. Extension personnel must be retrained. Along with the academic commu- nity, they must emphasize ecology as the basis for long-term efficiency. If government wishes to pursue sustaina- bility it must compromise the stated goal of trading in a completely free, market-driven global economy. In summation, the federal government and its agencies have a large stake in agricul- ture. We sec that agriculture needs govern- ment support in financing, tax issues, and trade regulations. What we don't see is a commitment to aid farmers in coping with rising interest rates, new taxes, and the predatory tactics of our trading partners. The last half of the eighties saw the Canadian economy grow and prosper. We arc sorry to say that Canadian agriculture did not enjoy that prosperity. In fact it would appear that Canada's farmers will be forced into another recess ion al period by high inter- est rates and less than favourable trade prac- tices and philosophies.0 APRIL 1990 95