The Rural Voice, 1990-05, Page 57NEWS
FEDERATIONS RAISE COMMON FARM POLICY CONCERNS
by Jim Fitzgerald
The locations and the players were
different, but there were common con-
cerns when mid -western Ontario farm-
ers sat down with their members of
federal and provincial parliaments this
spring.
management) at GATT, and that recent
threats by processors to move plants
south of the border were a back -door
way of negotiating with major unions.
"A made -in -Canada trade policy
would hurt pork, wheat and beef ... it's
The Huron County Federation of Agriculture meets the members: (from left) Brenda
McIntosh of the Environment Committee, Warden Lionel Wilder, MPMurray Car-
diff, federation president Chris Palmer, MPP Jack Riddell, OFA executive director
Dona Stewardson, and acting Huron County ag rep Dennis Martin.
Free trade, the threat to supply man-
agement from the GATT talks, rising
interest rates, the Goods and Services
Tax, farm credit, more soil conservation
measures, stable" funding for a general
farm organization, and the perceived
lack of government vision for the long-
term future of agriculture were issues
raised in Perth, Huron, and Grey coun-
ties at three meetings sponsored by
county federations of agriculture.
Perth Federation: In Perth, where
20 county producers representing all
commodities met in a day -long session
with MP Harry Brightwell and MPP
Hugh Edighoffer, farmers worried
about the direction of the General
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade talks.
Bill Denham said farmers want to
know immediately if the government is
trading anything away so they can adjust
quickly to the changing environment.
"This is not an easy adjustment when
you have no definite plan to follow. We
are told to be ready for freer trade, but we
see new countervails," Denham said.
Brightwell said Canada stands alone
on Article XI (which allows supply
part of the whole deal. We can't nego-
tiate separately," Brightwell said.
Edighoffer agreed with Vince Hul-
shof, president of the Perth Pork Pro-
ducers, that the provinces still have to
remove inter -provincial trade barriers.
During discussions of the changes to
the Ontario Farm Tax Rebate Program,
Perth federation president Paul Verkley
said the government should offer incen-
tives to promote long-term leases to
encourage the more sensible use of land.
Huron Federation: At the session
sponsored by the Huron federation,
Huron MPP Jack Riddell said he has
noticed a "quiet despair" in the farming
community. "Normally farmers ex-
press their concerns vociferously ... but
not now," he said. "Normally they see
some light at the end of the tunnel."
Riddell agreed with Mike On-
drejicka of the Huron federation's Trade
and Finance Committee that govern-
ments in Canada haven't kept up with
the subsidies of the U.S. and Europe.
Riddell expressed optimism that
Ondrejicka's request for an interest rate
reduction program would be answered
in the next provincial budget.
A better stabilization program for
grains and oilseeds is on the way and
will include farm -fed grains, said MP
Murray Cardiff.
"The federal government is looking
very seriously at farm financing and the
Farm Credit Corporation," Cardiff
added.
He reminded his audience that the
federal government has spent $21 bil-
(cont'di
The Grey County Federation of Agriculture meets the members: (from left) David
McCleary of CFOS news, Jim Wilson, assistant to MP Perrin Beatty, MP Dr. Gus
Mitges, federation secretary Donna Spitzig, federation president Lorne Eccles and
wife Marion, MPP Ron Lipsett and wife Louise.
MAY 1990 53