The Rural Voice, 1988-01, Page 16COMPLETE LINE OF
ANIMAL FEED
— Hog — Beef
— Veal — Poultry
— Dairy — Pet
treleaven'
wed. to wed.
1 1 ■
treleaven's
feed mill ltd.
box 182, Iucknow, ont. NOG 2H0
519-528-3000
1.800.285.3008
14 THE RURAL VOICE
ATTITUDES: COMPARING
THE CFFO AND THE OFA
As we enter the new year, there
seems to be an attitude in the farm
community that differs from anything
I have noted in my 21 years of farm-
ing. The adage that "next year will be
better" has always been familiar to
farmers. What could be better has
included everything from prices,
yields, and herd health to whatever
was less than good in the year before.
Now, however, many farmers
appear to have given up hope that
things will be better next year. One
farmer who attended the recent annual
meeting of the OFA (Ontario Federa-
tion of Agriculture), as he has done as
a visitor on a regular basis over the
years, told me that the meeting pro-
duced days of whining and griping
with hardly any positive thoughts.
At the 15 or so annual meetings of
the OFA that I have attended, there
has always been some griping, and I
have done my share in that respect.
But in the past two years, all reports
from both the monthly board meetings
and from the conventions record a
negative attitude. Most of the blame
for the woes of farmers is put on gov-
ernments (more specifically the minis-
ters of agriculture) and on the nation's
moneylenders, chartered banks, and
the Farm Credit Corporation.
Early in December, I was privi-
leged to attend the annual convention
of the Christian Farmers Federation of
Ontario (CFFO). The farmer who
visited the OFA convention was also
there, and the first thing he mentioned
to me was his astonishment at the dif-
ference in attitude between the groups.
My attention focused, I began to note
the absence of self-pity among the
farmers at the CFFO annual. Their
concerns were overwhelmingly about
issues affecting all of society.
There was the concern about soil
degradation and erosion, about the
effect that the free trade agreement
will have on Canada (and not just on
the agricultural sector), about sharing
more information with Western
farmers, and about how our subsidies
bankrupt the farmers of the Third
World.
(Having said this, I must add that
these people aren't necessarily saints.
While CFFO leaders are seeking ways
to lower the cost of quota, for exam-
ple, those who own quota oppose
these efforts.)
In view of the generally positive
approach of the CFFO, it surprises me
(mildly) that more of the 500 dis-
gruntled former OFA members have
not joined the CFFO instead. This is
probably because of the predominant-
ly Dutch/immigrant/Calvinist back-
ground of the organization. Few who
did not grow up in that milieu will be
at ease there.
The difference between the CFFO
and a non -church group is evident at
the start of any of the CFFO's meet-
ings, which begin with a prayer and
Bible reading. At the convention,
hymn -sings were added to the agenda.
Most of the speeches ended with
the question of how to apply their
theme to Christian life. A speaker on
animal rights, for instance, found bib-
lical ground for declaring the animal
rights movement (though not animal
welfare) against Bible teachings.
The keynote speaker, American
agriculture professor Ed Lotterman,
noted the difference and advised the
CFFO to broaden membership beyond
a Dutch/immigrant/Calvinist group.
Reading the name tags, I didn't see
any non -Dutch name, and only one
speaker at the microphone identified
himself as being from German im-
migrant stock. If the CFFO wishes to
grow beyond its roots, it will have to
make efforts toward diversification in
membership.0
Adrian Vos, from Huron County,
has contributed to The Rural
Voice since Its Inception In 1975.