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Home My WebLink AboutHuron Expositor, 2009-02-18, Page 4141..L14744 - rage 4 February 18, 2009 • The Huron Expositor Go .•-••••.•••.. - a.,w44,40.,.rlr i. 14 • Opinion Proprietor and Publisher, Bowes Publishers Limited, 11 Main St., Seaforth, ON, NOK IWO Fo�dF miis,mDay shows Canadians still get best deal on food Despite the rising costs of food, the Ontario Fed- eration of Agriculture says Canadians are still get- ting good value for their money. On Feb. 12, 2.009, the average Canadian earned enough income to pay his or her individual grocery bill for the entire year. In observing Food Freedom Day, farmers in Ontario and across the country cel- ebrated their role in providing consumers with one of the safest and most affordable food supplies in the world. Food Freedom Day is occurring slightly later in 2009 due to the recentrise in the price of food. This is off the trend of recent years, where the disposable income of Canadians rose significantly faster than the cost of food. However, "thanks to farmers, Canadians still get the best deal in the western world for their food dol- lar," says Bette Jean Crews, President of the On- tario Federation of Agriculture (OFA). In many parts of the world, the cost of food is sig- nificantly higher. Member countries within the Or- ganization for Economic Co-operation and Develop- ment (OECD), on average, spend 8.3 per cent more of their disposable income on food than Canadians. Australians spend 12.7 per cent more, the Japanese spend 35.7 per cent more, and Mexicans spend over 125 -per cent more of their disposable income on food than Canadians. In 2008, while prices in some agriculture com- modities rose, Canadian farmers continued to take only a very smallpercentage of the consumers' food dollar at the store. In 2005, a grain farmer received $0.07 for the corn in a box of Kellogg's Corn Flakes and $0.11 for the wheat in a loaf of bread. According the the OFA, it is far more likely that an increase in energy costs played a much larger role in the retailprice in- crease. Agriculture is the second largest economic con- tributor and third largest employer in Ontario. It is true that good things grow in Ontario, and we all need to continue to support our local producers, especially in the these economic times. The - Mitchell Advocate Yew Coavoinity tiewepaper Since 1860 Publisher - Dave Sykes Editorial and Business Offices -11 Main Street, Seaforth Thlephone (519) 527-0240 Fax (519) 527-2858 MailingAddresa - P.O. Box 69, Seaforth, ON, NOK 1WO Visit our home page at www.seaforthhur nexpasttorcom • MIS QUE N ON MEDIA WE ACKNOWLEDGE THE FINANCIAL SUPPORT OF THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA, THROUGH THE PUBLICATIONS • ASSISTANCE PROGRAM (PAP), rowARD'ouR MAILING COSTS." CanadT Seaforth's socially -active kids are recognizing global injustice When I was in elementary school, my life consisted of little more than hockey, soccer and old kung fu movies. Weighty global issues such as poverty and the plight of the Third World rarely entered my realm of thought. I felt as if I was far too young to do anything about it - better to leave it for the adults. - This attitude, which - does nothing to ef- fectively contribute to the betterment of the world, doesn't seem to exist in a surprising number of young people in Seaforth. In this week's Huron Expositor, we present two stories about major initiatives led by so- cially active young people to improve the lives of less fortunate children their own age in some of the poorest regions on earth. A group of local teens will join classmates from St. Anne's Secondary -School in building a school in Kenya. The 15 and 16 -year-olds will work all day digging the foundation and laying the cement in the oppressive African heat, sometimes sleeping in tents on the ground at night. They're currently appealing to anyone who'll listen for funding to fly them across the world to work, • simply because they believe they can make a difference. This type of motivation is also prevalent among much younger kids in town. Seaforth Public School's socially active Cubs Care group has grown from a handful of inter- ested students in September to a small army of volunteers today. Ron & bave There goes Joanne Craig. She's in my class.. < Are you kidding? Why don't If I do that she'll you say think I like her. hello?r' m going to ignore her. It'll drive her crazy. Dan Schwab Their campaign last week to raise money for an orphanage in Kenya, led by 12 -year-old Ol- ivia Allen, who lost her mother in a car crash in May, has at- tracted tremendous support from students of all ages. Some of them might not be able to point out Kenya on a globe, but they understand . the basic fact that many children living there are sick and dying from malnutrition and neglect. According to the United Nations Humani- tarian Affairs Office, one in nine children dies before the age of five in Kenya, resulting in about 10 million each year. The number is ris- ing, mostly due to a shortage of skilled health workers, and malaria and pneumonia often goes untreated. Many middleclass kids here realize they're privileged to live in a country with access to life-saving immunization and healthcare. They might not know the statistics — that the richest two - per cent of adults still owns more than half the world's wealth and the bot- tom 50 per cent of the population owns barely one per cent - but they recognize the injustice when they're shown photos or video of starv- ing children on the other side of the world. They have a knee-jerk reaction to want to do help. For some, the motivation may pass, but others commit for months to fundraise and carry out campaigns to seetheir goal become realized. For any adult, it should be encouraging to see that. by David Lacey I think she ignored you first. SUBSCRIPTION RATES: LOCAL - 38.05 a year, In advance, plus G.S.T. $ENIORS. - 36.14 a year, in advanoe, plus G.S.T. Fes: 38.05 a year In advance, plus $195.00 postage, plus G.S.T. MAL, 38.05 a year In advance, plus $99.84 postage, plus Q.S.T. Published weekly by Sun Media at 11 Main St, Seaforth. Advertising Is accept- ed on condition that In the event of a typographical error, the advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signa- ture, wilt not be charged, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. In the event of a typographical error, advertising goods or services at a wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. 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