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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1991-10-02, Page 30Pape 30 • Times -Advocate, October 2, 1991 By Bob Trotter City dwellers certainly have a distorted picture of what life is like in the country. It is understandable, of course, because all they see is the peaceful part of it. They drive the highways and only now and then see the scenery. They are too busy listen- ing to monumental events on the car radio or in an altered state lis- tening to taped music. They sometimes see a herd of black -and -whites placidly chewing cuds along a wire fencerow. They may even notice a few white-faced cattle basking in the summer sun. They might even wonder what that blue tube beside the barn contains or they may even fleetingly ask themselves what that yellow stuff could be. Many urbanites watch haymaking in the hot summer sun and, in the comfort of their air-conditioned cars, tell themselves that maybe country life is not so great when they see how sweaty and tough making hay can be. Good farmers today are jacks-of- all-trades as well as good managers and perhaps semi-professional in their knowledge of soils, crops, ani- mal husbandry and property man- agement. they are also half-assed mechanics, carpenters, builders, bookkeepers and stonemasons. In between times, they are also, gener- ally anyway, preuy good husbands and fathers. But the bucolic picture most peo- ple see is erroneous. Farming is one of the most dan- gerous occupations in Canada, right up there with mining and lumber- ing. In fact, farming is now the sec- ond most dangerous occupation with lumbering at the top. And too often, the injuries and sometimes the fatalities involve young chil- dren because they are often part of the work force on a family farm. "It is not a safe occupation at all," warns Dr. James Dosman, director of Canada's only institute for agri- cultural medicine. Farmers are more likely than non -farmers to contract lung condi- tions such as asthma, bronchitis and pulmonary edema. Have you ever spent any time throwing bales around? Your would know in just a few minutes, after you have spit a few pints of saliva, why lung dis- ease is a big factor in farming. Older farmers suffer from hear- ing loss to a greater degree than their city cousins, too, because they work in and around heavy machin- ery all the time. Farm families are frequently beset by skin problems caused by chemicals, dusts and mi- cro-organisms. And these days, with the finan- cial strains and stresses that farmers are facing every day, psychiatric problems are common. There has been some suggestions, too, that farmers face an increased chance of getting some types of cancer because they use pesticides although studies are not conclusive. Farmers have to work long hours under stressful conditions. They are usually working alone and the ma- chines today are bigger and more powerful than ever before although there is a trend now to smaller trac- tors. The horsepower race seems to be over in tractors, just the way it happened in automobiles when san- er minds take over. The next time you are in the country and driving past those plac- id scenes, think about the people in- volved. They do not laze around in the sun, chewing on a piece of tim- othy. They are involved in one of the most dangerous occupations in Canada. The next time you read about them asking for more government help, don't sigh resignedly and say to yourself: when are these people going to stop bellying up to the public trough? Remember, they are producing food for you and your t family. You need them. Sweeter smelling pork GUELPH - To pig farmers, odor- ous meat is a real boar. The pork -consuming public, which likes its chops and roasts to have a subtle to mild scent, shuns the strong -smelling meat of sexual- ly mature male pigs. The industry calls the condition "boar taint" and even though the meat is healthy, the odor causes it to be rejected at packing plants. Be- cause of the risk of taint, pork man- ufacturers pay much less for boars (intact males) than for barrows (castrated males) and females. Preventing boar taint traditionally meant farmers had to castrate male pigs to stave off sexual maturity. But University of Guelph animal scientist Jim Squires says that through management and testing, boar taint can either be avoided hu- manely or stopped before tainted meat reaches consumers. "There are many good reasons to eliminate castration," says Squires. "Intact boars grow more efficiently than barrows and they produce a leaner meat." Boar taint is caused mostly by Androst-16-ene steroids, which are produced by sexually mature boars to attract females. These steroids are fat-soluble and will show up as an unpleasant odor in cooked pork. Squires has developed a new test for boar taint to replace the old im- practical "hot iron" test, which con- sists of cooking a piece of pork fat and smelling it. He created a chem- ical test that measures the amount of androst-16-ene steroids found in the salivary glands of slaughtered hogs. Salivary glands arc ideal for test- ing because they're a prime loca- tion for storage of boar taint ster- oids and are regularly removed at packing plants. Along with the development of his chemical test for boar taint, Squires is examining ways of pre- screening slaughtered hogs for vis- ible signs of taint. For instance, the size of sex glands and organs is an indicator of the level of sexu- al maturity a board has reached. This knowledge is useful because the risk of tainted pork from an- drost-16-ene steroids increases with sexual development. If effective prescreening tech- niques are implemented, the amount of chemical testing could be reduced, with only high-risk boars being checked out. In Canada, all male pigs not be- ing used for breeding are castrat- ed, but the advantages of rearing boars abound. "When male pigs are castrated, they stop producing androgens (growth -promoting hot- mones). The absence of these hor- mones results in animals that are up to 20 percent less efficient. Boars produce leaner meat and use less feed than barrows. "The use of intact males would result in immediate dollar savings," pre- dicts Squires. "There will be less feed consumed, improved carcass grade and less death loss." He also expects greater consumer accep- tance of pork because of leaner cuts and perceived improvements in animal welfare. The problem of getting boars to market before they begin produc- ing boar taint steroids is an impor- tant issue to farmers. Through col- laborative research with Guelph food scientist Elizabeth Gullett, Squires has determined that a low percentage of market -weight boards tests so far produce meat with a noticeable odor. With the WC of appropriate management techniques, Canadian farmers should be able to market intact males without significant risk of taint. The George Tiernan Memorial award for the best solid colour Cochin Bantam in the poultry division of the Exeter Fall Fair was presented to Jack Snell (right) by Shirley Tiernan. The award, donated by the Tieman family was presented for its first and only time this year at the fair. Record drop In food prices OTTAWA - In August, the con- sumer price index (CPI) for food purchased from stores fell 1.8 per- cent from July 1991, representing the largest recorded decrease since September 1978. The CPI for food purchased from restaurants rose 0.2 percent. Overall, the CPI for food fell 1.2 percent from the previous month but was 5.1 percent above August 1990. Seasonal price decreases of do- mestic salad and storable vegeta- bles resulted in a 22.7 percent drop in the retail prices of fresh vegeta- bles. Lower producer prices contribut- ed to the 2.4 percent and 1.4 per- cent drop in retail prices in August Agri -Food week starts Monday TORONTO - Agri -Food Week, the annual celebration that pays tribute to those who grow and pre- pare our food, kicks off the week before Thanksgiving, on October 6. Now in its ninth year, Agri -Food Week will be celebrated throughout the province, this year with a new theme - "Good for You, Ontario!" "Ontario's agri-food and related industries generate some $17 bil- Junior farmers present awards AUBURN - The contributions dedication and leadership of its people have made Huron County a Leader in Agriculture. In recogni- tion of this the Huron County Jun- ior Farmers are hosting an Agri - Food Dinner entitled 'Huron County: An Agricultural Leader V'. 'Huron County: An Agricultural Leader V' is a celebration of agri- culture and the rural community in Huron County. Speakers for the evening will be bob Humphries, Agricultural Representative O.M.A.F. and Suzanne Leitch, Vice -Chairperson Agri -food Educa- tional Trust discussing Agriculture in the classroom. During the evening the Huron County Junior Farmers will be pre- senting Rural Leadership Awards to outstanding people in Huron County. The following people have been nominated for the awards: Cliff Hicks, R.R. 1 Centralia; Aldea Murray, R.R. 2 Clifford; Robert Traut, RR 1 St. Marys and Lionel Wilder, RR 2 Zurich. The rural leadership awards winners will be announced that evening. 'Huron County: An Agricultural Leader V' will be held Monday, "October 7, at 7 p.m. in the Au- burn community Hall. Tickets for the evening, $10.00/person can be obtained by contacting Robert Hunking. 523-4316 or the Clinton O.M.A.F. 482-3428 or 1-800-265- 5170. Model BNG 450T 15' Corn Stock ChogOer NEW slightly weather beaten Reg. $16,580. ,rte $ Special Farm Equipment .W W. Phone 262-2605 Mk for To t,y, Joe or Bob We're your tow overhead - fair 1>riced stealer 'lo' • with a genuine commitment to Sato* fulfill your exact equipment nem Rea. 23 lion worth of economic activity each year and creates more than one in every ten jobs in Ontario. And that's 'good for you', " says Joyce Anderson, a farmer and chairperson of the 1991 Agri -Food Week Committee. During the week of October 6 to 12, special events throughout the province will help remind Ontari- ans of the unique role played by all those who help bring good food from the farm -gate to their dinner plate. Agri -Food Week is sponsored by the Ontario Federation of Agricul- ture and the Christian Farmers Fed- eration of Ontario, by several of the commodity organizalions that help farmers sell food, by food proces- sors and retailers, and by the Onta- rio Ministry of Agriculture and Food. "Agri -Food Week gives Ontari- ans an opportunity to pause and give thanks for the men and women who provide us with an abundance of wholesome, quality food at rea- -ionable prices." nn,LAI "let's all join in and say 'Good for You, Ontario'. Ontario produces some 200 dif- ferent types of food products on 14 million acres of farmland. for pork and cured meat. And retail egg and chicken prices fell 2.1 per- cent and 1.1 percent respectively. Consumers can expect prices for fresh vegetables to fall further as the main harvest for storage of po- tatoes, carrots and onions begins in September. Seasonal retail price de- creases for apples are expected from September through Novem- ber. Retail beef and pork prices are also expected to decline, due to in- creasing North American meat sup- plies, recent lower producer prices and reduced demand for popular summer barbecue cuts. Consumers can also expect to see lower turkey prices in the coming weeks as tur- key is featured for Thanksgiving. ■ ■ Winner of draw for Pickett Rod Cutting Demonstration Mike Parsons RR 2 Staffa m a tg. FARM EQUIPMENT LTD. Sales, Service & Rentals since 1932 EXETER, ONTARIO (519) 235-2121 1-800-265-2121 FAX (519) 235-2791 PICKETT ■ 1 We are ready to meet THE FALL RUSH DELIVERIES ON • Soybea n s •Co rn - fat unloading -prompt payment - large storage and drying - up to date market - facilities information - competitive prices FERTILIZER - 15 flotation custom fertilizer - custom spraying of applicators Round -up and other - liquid or dry fertilizer fall chemicals Call for prices SEED WHEAT - Hyland Brand, Karena, Rebecca, Augusta & Houser - Harus and Fredrick The "Blue Tag" assures you of Certified #1 seod. For Purity, quality and top yields sow Hyland brand certified seed. The staff at W.G. Thompson & Sons Ltd. are ready and looking forward to serving you this fall. Seaforth 345-2545 Pt. Albert 529-7901 . Hansell 262-2527 Allaa Craig 293-3223 Mitchell 348-8433 Granton 225-2360 4