HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1987-12-09, Page 24One-third of record Ontario
Ontario bean growers set two
records this year, in total acreage
and in total production. Two and
one-half million hundred -weight
bags were produced on 167,000
acres. (The 15 -bag per acre average
does not represent a record yield.)
Ontario's competitors, Michigan
and Minnesota -North Dakota, ended
up with more beans than had been
predicted in August. Because of the
good fall weather, Michigan was
able to take off between 3.3 and 3.5
million bads, and Minn-Dak
changed their estimate last week
from 2.3 to three million bags.
This gives an overall combined
production record of approximately
10 million bags.
One-third of Ontario's 1987 crop
has been sold. The 876,000 bags
went for an average gross of $19.72.
This is down considerably from the
record high of $42.20 net to produc-
ers last year.
Ontario Bean Producers Marketing
r, rnt.enwr ; YdH
55 YEARS OF SERVICE - Bill, Valentine, Verna and Bob Becker show
the plaque received from Case International for 55 years of dedicated ser-
vice in the farm equipment business.
Board manager Charlie Broadwell
has been bringing these statistics to
the annual bean producers' meet-
ings being held in bean -growing
counties across Ontario. (This year
beans were grown in 38 out of the
50.)
Broadwell speculates that right
now regular buyers are sitting back
trying to second-guess the future
and expecting prices to go lower.
Referring to the two-thirds left to
sell, Broadwell expressed confidence
that the Ontario board will "get the
best buck out of these babies we
can".
The Board has received positive
responses from Canadian embassies
in a number of foreign countries
who were contacted in October in
Cologne, Germany, when Board
representatives attended ANUGA,
the largest food trade show in the
world. Among the prospective cus-,
tomers are Spain, Yugoslavikand
Russia, who imported-.whi ii ea
beans last year, though not 'from
Ontario.
When prices are in the lower
range, "some countries come out of
December 9. 1987
•
bean crop sold
the woodwork to buy", Broadwell
said. Meanwhile those on the pro-
duction end are trying to resist a
drop in prices.
Research to develop new uses for
beans is the other main avenue to
future stability being pursued by
Broadwell. He is currently talking
to provincial and federal govern-
ments about the importance of set-
ting up research projects aimed -at
developing more utilization of On-
tario's bean crop.
The majority of producers of
white and coloured beans are pro-
tected now with the tripartite sys-
tem that is being established. They
will be guaranteed their cost of pro-
duction.
"This year is an example of what
the tripartite system is all about. It
will perform.as intended to give
support on the long haul", Broad-
well said.
Tripartite enrollment is being re-
opened until December 31 to give
the IQ to 15 percent of producers
still n t participating the opportuni-
ty to sign up if they wish.
The annual meeting of Huron pro -
"The second priority that we sec...
is that of telling the farmers' story."
So said John King in his report to
the London Conference of the Unit-
ed Church. King is a retired dairy
farmer from Oxford County now
working as a rural resource officer
for the United Church.
He has been hard at work in rural
Ontario for more than two years,
talking to people, holding seminars,
trying to bring social agencies to-
gether in the rural areas and report-
ing to church officials.
Telling the farmers' story is
tough. I have been writing about
agriculture for more than 20 years.
This column is carried in more than
a dozen newspapers. Although it is
not always about farming, its main
focus is on the agricultural scene. I
can write about nuclear energy, cap-
ital punishment, grandchildren, the
weather, the months of the year, the
seasons and get more response on
these topics than any column on
farming.
For some reason I find it difficult
to understand, people stop reading -
well, many people - when the topic
is agriculture.
I have many urban friends who
seek out my column and then frank-
ly tell me that they quit reading
when I write about farming.
"I always read it when you write
about something else besides barn-
yards," said one urban housewife.
"That stuff is boring".
So, I can empathize with John
King when he states that telling the
farmers' story. is a tough assign-
ment. I honestly do not know how
to impress upon the rest of the
world that farming is in deep, deep
trouble; that rural Canada is in deep-
er trouble now than at any other
time in this country's history.
Some agricultural economists arc
saying that times will be tougher in
the next three or four years than
they were during the terrible days of
the Depression in the thirties. John
raia
1YA., - •WYN,M M ar ,•Nty. Hoe ti \Yrs O. *NAV
King says there is an clement out in
the rural community that is ap-
proaching Third World conditions.
"It's not just physical poverty.
The bitterness and hopelessness is a
part of the family conversation. Bel-
ligerent kids in school, abuse of al-
cohol and drugs, suicides, spouse
and family abuse, marital break-
down and stress pains are com-
mon... and the problem is expand-
ing like a creeping epidemic," states
King's report to the church.
Farmers have had tough limes off
and on for 40 years. In the past,
they could bury themselves in work
around the farm and at least exist
until things got better. They cannot
do that now because it is obvious to
most of them that things are not
getting better and they are not going
to get better. Things, in fact, will
probably get worse.
Any farmer with any kind of debt
is in trouble and I know of only a
handful without debts of some kind.
This should be a delightful time
on the farm. Barns *are full and the
most beautiful season of the year
approaches. Fall chores are done and
that glorious feeling of a year well
spent should bank the coals for an-
other season.
But few farmers have that feeling
of delight this month. Instead of
looking forward to next spring,
they are full of apprehension. Cash
croppers will have to go begging to
bankers. Beef and pork producers
don't know what to do. Dairy farm-
ers are worried about declining
sales. Only the featherssgroup -
eggs, chicken and turkey farmer -
are showing some confidence. And
tobacco farmers face a terribly bleak
future.
Getting this story across to the
rest of the nation is not an easy
task. John King and all the rest of
those agencies who have rural Cana-
da in mind are going to have to
change many minds if they want to
get the plight of farmers on the
front burner of urban households.
CHILDREN
Bring Mom and Dad in today and check
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TEST DRIVING - Clare Deichert of Zurich tries out the new Magnum CI
tractor at Becker's Farm Equipment. Assisting is Becker. salesman Stuart
McLellan.
ducers was held in Seaforth on De-
cember 2. Tom Consist, one of the
four Huron directors, said most
questioners at the Huron meeting
wanted more details on the tripartite
plan.
John Gaunt, Belgrave, replaced
Bill McGregor as a director. He
joins Consitt, Ken Carnochan and
Cecil Desjardine as the four Huron
representatives.
•
Page 9A
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