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Times-Advocate, 1985-10-23, Page 164A Tiples-Advocate, October 23, 1985 SPECIAL HATS — At the weekend Christmas Bazaar of the Lambton Heritage Museum, David Steele tries one of his special hat creations on Jenny Strang of Exeter. T -A photo Some find better than real mom Surrogate sow A surrogate sow developed at the University of Guelph in conjunction with Farmatic, a Canadian farm equipment firm, will soon be available to farmers to save piglets which would otherwise die. The machine is the brainchild of Animal Science professor Frank Hur- nik, and was designed by DonGordon, co-ordinator of the University's School of Engineering Research and Development Laboratory. Farmatic president Eric Jarmain explains that attempts have been made to develop an artificial sow in the past, but they have had limited success. "This model has a number of unique features developed by Frank Hurnik", he says. The animals are fed from birth to weaning at three to four weeks by the machine. 'These are piglets which may be runts, or rejected by mothers with insufficient milk. they share a pen with their mechanical mother, and don't seem to mind her stainless • r Lintas los.vwscrared In Bao rrortar. Er441. Art . flmaa On; SA lcl All the eggheads in the nation keep telling us that free trade is desirable. They say "in the long run" we will all benefit. What I would like to know is, what is going to happen to us in the short run? Who is going to keep the bankers at bay until the long run ends? And how long is this cotton-pickin' long run go- ing to be? Farmers, they tells us, will not have to worry because free trade will not in- clude agricultural products. That's what -t1 ey: say now.--What'II they -say --- in the long run ? Even now, rumblings are 'being heard about a north -American wine industry. As if the poor grape growers of this province were not in enough trouble all ready, now they're talking about hitting them below the belt. They took a beating last year when heavily subsidized wines from the European Common Market were dumped in Canada. Both senior governments -- federal and provincial -- stepped in and bought last year's surplus. • The action saveda few processors and growers from possible bankruptcies. California wineries are mad enough at Canadians now. We have been ex- porting to the border states. The cheap Canadian dollar has attracted these imports and had an effect on California wines in the northern United States.- The big wineries in the south are gleefully eyeing Cana- dian sales. If they could crack the market, it would spell the end of the Canadian wine industry. Why? Because they can produce grapes- at about half the price of Canadian farmers. That is just one example of this free subsidies Canadian farmers got trade business. allowed our hogs across the border at The talk is that agriculture would a disadvantage to Amercian farmers. -be excludedlrmrn all free trade deals So the Yanks slapped a countervail - but the thin edge of the ge is----►ng-Myon-all Canadian hogs,. a-dUty- already making grape growers edgy, high enough to curtail the shipment What'll it be next? • of Canadian pork south of the border. And the "disadvantage" was in- finitesimal. No matter. The duty was slapped on because the Yanks got snarky, petty and truculent. So, any talk of free trade may sound as though great masses of people are going to buy Canadian products. But the Americans will not =- and you bet- ter believe it -- sit back and let Cana- dians reap a big bonanza in new markets without us paying a price -for it. They may be generous people. but they ain't that generous. When bucks are involved, they become mean, petty and truculent. Just ask our pork producers. U.S. will open its markets to cana- dians without exacting a heavy price is, according to Peterson, "not a leap of faith -- it is a leap from reality." To those who think the Yanks are going to be tractablg may we respect- fully point to the recent fiasco on hogs. When Canadian farmers cap- tured a small percent of the American market, the Yankee farm lobbyists went toor•eat lengths to prove that the Premier David Peterson has wise- ly suggested that Canada should make haste slowly.' He has strongly suggested that Prime Minister Mulroney should constantly consult with the provinces before making any deals. Peterson maintains that reality is being ignored and more than 270,000 jobs could be lost or, at least, threatened, if free trade becomes a fact. It would be naive for Canadians to think all the benefits will come this way under any free trade agreements. The assumption by many free trade advocates that the By Jack Riddell MPP Free trade is in the news once again.' Premier David Peterson and Prime Minister Brian Mulroney have both made recent statements on free trade with the United States. The Prime Minister declared that Canada would begin discussions with the U.S. which could lead to a free trade agreement in 1987. That is, if formal trade talks between Canada and the U.S. are approved and if the deal is acceptable to Parliament and the U.S. Congress. Premier Peterson. in his remarks to a combined meeting of the Empire and Canadian Clubs in Toronto, em- phasized'that there are still many unanswered questions about how free trade will affect us and what the Americans would want Canada to give up. He pointed out that com- prehensive free trade with the U S. would Mean a threat to 270.000 jobs in Ontario, according to an Economic Impact Study from the Minister of In-• dustry, Trade and Technology. The Premier then outlined a 7 point agenda whit Canada's int the risks invo free trade. Th - excluding area QLJJW economy from trade discussions that could restrict our political or cultural autonomy or social programs. For ex - /Ian -pie, the autopact, financial ser- vices and agriculture. - maintaining Canada's commitment to the General Agreement on Trade and Tarriffs (GATT) as the main way of reducing trade barriers. - providing a longer free trade phase- in period for Canadian manufacturers to give them time to be able to com- pete with established U.S. companies. - undertaking a national commitment to improve our ability to compete in world markets - identification by the F'ederal govern- ment of jobs that may be displaced - and most importantly. consulting all provinces at every stage of U.S.: Canada discussions and negotiations so that each province has a say in the result. In his first statement in the Legislature in July, Premier Peter son announced the intent of the Liberal government to be open. ac- . cessible and fair in its dealings with h would broaden ests and cut down on ed in moving towards se include: / Discuss free trade the public and the public community. Putting this commitment in action, Elinor Caplan, Chairman of the Management Board of Cabinet has announced the new guidelines for government advertising contracts. Ms. Caplan stated it will be man- datory for all ministries arid major government agencies to publicly an- nounce their need for the services of advertising agencies on large con- tracts according to the rules set out by the Manual of Administration. This will apply to all advertising contracts valued at more than $500,000 over a three.year term. This means that ministries must issue a general news release or adver- tise their intentions in the industry press. As well. advertising contracts between $15,000 and $500,000 will still die tendered according to the existing Manual of Administration. Ms. Caplan said this system will en- sure that Canadian owned advertising agencies which win contracts with the provincial government wilt do so on the basis of their ability to be cost ef- fective, competitive, innovative and creative. She also announced the establishment of the Advertising Review Board to ensure that all ministry campaigns meet'govern- ment standards. The first or of business for the hoard will he t on - duct a search for the advertising agency of record for the government. -Turning to Community and Social Services. Minister John Sweeney was recently on hand, for the release of a new book on family violence at a con- ference jP Waterloo. The book is en- titled "Understanding Wife Assault: A Training Manual for Counsellors and Advocates." It is the first manual —BRANDY POINT— FARMS OINT FARMS CENTRED AROUND ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION • Our breeding stock provides our buyers with proven genetics from the top 3°° animals tested across Canada • Our program enables us to offer quality and health at a price shot is hard to beot • We hove on ongoing supply of A I sired 'Hornp Duro( York londrace boors & F I York londrace gilts • Our closed herd. is ranked Good by the.OMAF standards of Herd Health Classification Come ond'take a look at our stock anytime! Delivery available KURT KELLER R.R. 1, Mitchell, Ont. 519-348-8043 steel flanks. The milk, carefully for- mulated to the animals' stage of development, is delivered to the pigs through rubber nipples, just like the ones on baby bottles. The whole operation is controlled by the farmer on a micro -computer that tailors the amount of milk, length of feed and spacing between feeds to the age of the animals. Over several years, the machine has been refined from an octopus -like apparatus capable of feeding four litters to a portable "mother" for eight piglets. As a result of this innovation, feeding time in the pig pen has come a long way from Old MacDonald's Farm. The modern scene is more like this: Eight baby pigs drowse in a cor- of its kind to provide a detailed prac- tical guide on how to treat cases of domestic violence. Meanwhile, Lily Munro, the Minister of Citizenship and Culture announced that Ontario public libraries will receive almost $1 million in grants under the Communi- ty Facilities Improvement Program. Twelve libraries across the province will receive financial assistance. The arrival of fall also means the 3r•rival of duck hunting season. While there ;have been reductions in the number of ducks that hunters can • take in western provinces, Natural Resources Minister Vince Kerrio an- nounced that the bag limit. for duck hunters in Ontario will not be reduc- ed this year. soon available ner of their pen under the caress of a heat lamp. The lamp goes off, porcine "music" begins to play - sounds of motherly grunts and squeals which lure the animals over to the feeder where other heat lamps have switch- ed on invitingly. Each piglet nuzzles up to a favorite nipple, happily suck- ing. At the end of feeding time, the music switches off, the heat lamps dim, the milk flow dries up and the lamps switch on in the sleeping cor- ner. The piglets toddle away replete. Susan De Boer, who is just com- pleting her Master of Science degree on research related to the surrogate sow, says that she was somewhat sur- prised to discover that many piglets Prefer the artificial mother. In an ex - periment, where piglets were put in a pen with an artificial pig and a real mother pig, De Boer discovered that 40 percent of the babies preferred the surrogate. "I concluded technology can compete successfully with nature if it is designed correctly", she observes. Another graduate student, Nora Lewis, now a faculty member at the University of Saskatchewan, did her PhD research on the surrogate sow. Farmatic, Canada's leading manufacturers of on-farm feed pro- cessing systems, will show the new machine at farm shows next year. Meanwhile the University of Guelph is looking into patenting the process. HILL & HILL FARMS LTD. VARNA CLINFIELD ELEVATORS CONCESSION 2 STANLEY TOWNSHIP Are both Ready to Receive Your 1985 yr ., aa 7.0 • Soyabeans • Corn - All harvest services available - Our '5' dryers will ensure fast service - Custom combining and trucking available - Open 24 hours a day Our recently expanded receiving facilities will now unload at 7500 bu. per hour Clinfield Elevator Peter Rountree 482-3191 Hill AND Hill FARMS 11 T1l1) VARNA ONT. Hill & Hill Elevator Bev Hill 482-3218 IIOIEIIWL R. •Standard equipment: vibration isolation, electronic ignition, chain brake. Savings are on the suggested list prices with 16' attachments Offer ends November 30, 1905 at parlicipattnp dealers. 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