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The Rural Voice, 1989-01, Page 50RAINY RIVER Federation of Agriculture NEWSLETTER Box 416, Emo, Ontario POW 1 E0 807-482-2051 • The Rural Voice is provided to Rainy River Federation members by the RRFA. Winter finally arrived in the Rainy River District with overnight tempera- tures dropping into the -30° range in early December. Up until the first week in December, warm weather had been slowly melting the two feet of early snow and supplying needed moisture for the next growing season, but there is still a good half foot of snow cover to provide winter protec- tion for the alfalfa and winter wheat crops. Ken McKinnon reports that the new border crossing through Minnesota to Manitoba is functioning well, even though there have been a few minor problems. With the results of the federal elec- tion virtually confirming the FTA with the U.S., this border crossing becomes increasingly important to District beef producers. The FTA means future markets will probably be north -south rather than east -west. Cattlemen in the Rainy River District must have a port of entry into this north -south market. The border crossing committee must continue its work, and needs the co-operation of all District producers. On November 23, the Rainy River Cattlemens' Association held a direc- tors' meeting in Emo. Most directors appeared discour- aged with the 1988 financial returns. Discussions centred on the poor re- turns from the two fall sales. The Kitch- ener -area farmers bidding on satellite did not even attempt to compete with several Western buyers at the sale. Even local farmers easily outbid the Eastern feedlot operators. Many directors felt the satellite was a waste of money. Some felt the auc- tioneer should be replaced. Too much time and money is spent sorting the co - mingled cattle. Pens are too big, lots are too small, cattle are sold in the wrong order. There was a lot of criticism, but not many progressive suggestions. Presi- dent Barry Hartry felt these suggestions should be forwarded to the new board chosen at the annual meeting in January. The new board will have to consider the future carefully before making too 48 THE RURAL VOICE many rash decisions. Beef markets are changing, and the FTA will mean even keener competition. On December 7, the Rainy River Soil and Crop Improvement Associa- tion held its annual meeting at the Le- gion Hall in Emo. Bob Radbourne was chosen to re- ceive the Soil Conservation Award for 1988. Bob operates a mixed farm with about 100 beef cows, cash crops about 300 acres, and harvests about 250 acres of hay north of Emo. Besides being one of our more suc- cessful farmers, Bob has been a leader in implementing new drainage practices in the Rainy River District. Ken Vogan, Bill Romyn, and Rick Neilson were elected to three-year terms on the board of directors. Don McCulloch will serve the remaining two-year term of Dennis Brunn, who resigned for personal reasons. The four new directors join Lyle Wheatley, Bernie Zimmerman, Karl VanHupt, John VandenBrand Jr., and Dean Hodgson. Thanks go to the rctiring directors Andy Carpenter, Rick Boersma, Rudy Sinninghe, and Dennis Brunn for all their time and cffort. Agriculture Representative Bruce Ward reported that the new Crop Check North site just west of Emo will be developed gradually over the next five years. All ongoing projects will be completed at the present Crop Check North site at Pinewood. Rick Neilson, pasture manager, re- ported a successful year at the ARDA pasture farm. Because of low cattle numbers in the District, the pasture committee decided to try a completely different rental pro- cedure. The new concept worked so well that the ARDA pasture ended the year with a surplus operating budget. This committee set a good example for others with similar problems. The Rainy River District Federa- tion of Agriculture met at the OMAF office in Emo on November 28. The new directors have decided that membership in the RRFA should be emphasized in the coming year. President George Hyatt reported that the OFA office in Toronto had agreed to supply a fieldman to organize our membership committee for 1989. A resolution was passed to have the fieldman attend the January directors' meeting. Linda Armstrong and Paul Heyens reported that still rising costs forced the OFA convention delegates to vote in favour of raising annual dues to $125. The OFA and the Christian Farmers Federation are working with the Minis- ter of Agriculture to obtain an automatic checkoff on the land tax rebate, but this may still be a year away. In the meantime this $25 annual increase, coupled with the low price of fall calves, presents another difficulty for our farmer members. Farm costs go up, but income continues to fluctuate. But farmers must remember the contributions of both the OFA and the RRFA to the farming community when renewal time comes around. We cannot all agree with all OFA policy all the time, because the OFA represents the views of all farmers. Many farmers see themselves in conflict even with their own neighbours on vari- ous issues. The OFA is the one group that is available to all farmers from every commodity group. The delegates attending the OFA annual convention were convinced that the increase was necessary. If all of Ontarios' 70,000 -plus farmers paid their fair share, the annual dues of the paying members could be cut by two- thirds. An automatic checkoff would rem- edy this discrepancy. In the meantime, the OFA members will continue to carry the burden for their neighbours. The directors of the RRFA hope to increase our membership this year, to prove we are the strongest farming community in Northwestern Ontario. For the past couple of years, the Thunder Bay federation has been increasing its membership much more rapidly. Talk to your neighbour about joining the RRFA. If the Ontario federation had all the 70,000 farmers as members there would have been no increase in annual dues.0 Dean Hodgson