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Times-Advocate, 1984-02-29, Page 16"wants to make OFA a household wd, both in the country and c ty." He said he plans to raise the federation's profile so farmers who don't belong to it "will be convinced beyond a doubt that the work we do for them is invaluable, and will join the strongest farm lobby goup in Ontario". Pelissero said he plans to "spend time travelling the concessions and talking to farmers about OFA, face-to- face." He said unless urban dwellers understand farmers' problems and appreciate their concerns, the lobbying function of the OFA will be more difficult. "If a consumer doesn't know what it costs to run a farm, and how much a farmer makes from the food he sells, he can't appreciate our need for better govern- ment programs or for better marketing systems," he said. He said the OFA will continue to be involved in consumer - education programs like the annual Agri -Food Week, scheduled for October. Pelissero said that with both federal and provincial elections looming, "the OFA will have to sharpen its lobby- ing skills and raise its public profile. We've got a lot of lear- ning and changing to do if we're to continue fighting suc- cessful battles on behalf of Ontario's farmers." He said it was going to be necessary for the OFA "to change and improve internal- ly to ensure that we offer our members the best possible service." ATTENTION AREA FARMERS Its Time To Check Your Grass Seed and Plowdown Requirements. For the 1984 season We are writing orders now for spring delivery to your door prepaid. Competitive prices Plow down mixture $1.50 Ib. Call: WES HODGSON RR 2, Ailsa Craig, 293-3073 For Information and Bookings ishop farm seeds Ninety three years of service You can trust our seed EAVESTROUGH ALUMINUM and VINYL SIDING DOAORSLUMKINUMandWINDOSTORMWSALUMINUMV41 AWNINGS . rs_�.--I REPLACEMENT WINDOWS • RENOVATIONS and GENERAL CONSTRUCTION • FREE ESTIMATES • JIM BEAKER CONSTRUCTION DASHWOOD 237.3526 N Times -Advocate, February 29, 1984 Ittf Iootlnth. 1$WOWObVXF2 Federal anti -combines of- ficials have cost Canadian taxpayers a potful of money by charging newspaper chains. The government tried hard to get a conviction in New Brunswick when the huge Ir- ving complex, owners of every daily newspaper in the province, was charged. The battle went on for years and the convictions were never realized. The Thomson and Southam newspaper chains were also charged with collusion. Fighting that battle took great gobs of money on both sides but, once again, the government lost the case. Which is why it is understandable that govern- ment officials have done nothing but talk about the dangers represented in the big five food buying groups. Estimates are as high as 86 percent of all food bought by Canadians is funnelled through these five buying groups. The groups buy the groceries that stock -shelves in more than 14,000 stores. Anti - combines officials claim they are keeping a close watch on these buyers to see that com- petition laws are not broken. The five buying groups in- clude Foodwide of Canada which buys for Loblaws and Provigo, Zehrs, National Grocers, Red & White Stores and Lucky Dollar Stores; Volume I which buys for Dominion and Steinbergs, Miracle Food Marts, Valdi, Mr. Green Grocer and Min -A - Mart; IGA-Safeway which buys for Towers, Dutch Boy, and, of course, all IGA and Safeway stores. United Grocery Wholesalers are Independent Wholesale Grocers were, at one time, extremely power- ful. They bought for many in- dependent grocers, small - store owners who were fighting competition from supermarkets. Those two groups today have less power than the Big Three, Food - wide, Volume I and IGA- Safeway. To date, no charges have been laid against this buying power and I am not sug- gesting that any charges should be laid. Until such time as the federal government gets off its collective posterior and changes the anti - combines and competition legislation, no one is breaking the law. Thai? companies are simp- ly taking advantage of ideas they have every right to put into practice. Buy why worry about such buying power when no laws are being broken? Well, because a handful of people in those five groups decide ex- actly what you find in food stores. They decide what stock will be on the shelves, no matter whether that stock is nutritious or gives good value for the money spent. The buyers are, naturally, going to give more thought to profit, corporate convenience and dividends than to the con- sumer. And they are, just as naturally, going to stifle com- petition as much as they can. I would respectfully sug- gest that if you or anyone else has an idea for a new food product or you want to get in- to the food processing business, you will be forced to deal with one of these groups before your product reaches the market in sufficient bulk to be profitable. As aforementioned, no laws - yet - are being broken. These groups are doing the best for their stores. But their massive clout in the marketing of food is absolute- ly awesome. I have been proponent of marking boards for 20 years. No single farmer can possibly compete with the power of these conglomerates. All the more reason why every farmer in this country should support collective marketing. All the more reason why marketing boards should re- main in existence. And if you're worried about the power of marketing boards, I can only suggest that the big buying chains should be exposed to the same scrutiny as marketing boards. There are too many wat- chdogs watching the marketing boards and shooting from the mouth. More scrutiny should be directed at big business. But big business buys votes. Big business aids political slush funds. Farmers now make up less than five per- cent of the population. Not enough votes to really count. ON BOIL • ERVATI ISTRIC T CONSERVATION DAY — Getting together during Conservation Day at the Seaforth Arena, sponsored by the Huron Soil and Crop Improvement Association, are Bruce Shillinglaw, (left) post president of the Association and present chairman of the soil and water conservation district, Tom Prout, general manager of the Ausable- Bayfield Conservation Authority, John Schleihauf, guest speaker and OMAF specialist in soil conservation and tillage, Jim Ross, first v/p of the Huron SCIA, Ray Hogan, v/p of the soil and water conservation district, Gerald Hayter, secretary of the HSCIA and Ray Hartman, HSCIA treasurer. Budget not enough for farmers The new federal budget doesn't go far enough to help Canada's farmers, Harry Pelissero, first vice-president of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA) said to- day. "It's a 3-D budget: disap- pointing, depressing, but it's got one delightful element," he said. The OFA has been lobbying the government for years to allow full-time farmers to roll-over taxable capital gains from the sale of a farm into a Registered Retirement Sav- ings Plan (RRSP). The budget announced that farmers will be able to con- tribute up to $120,000 of their taxable capital gains to an RRSP. The amount eligible is $10,000 for every year farmed from 1972 to 1983. "Up to now, a farmer's pension has been his property, and capital gains took a big slice of it." "This finally gave farmers some security for their old age. After dedicating most of their life to the land, they won't be penalized for it when they retire," Pelissero said. "I'm concerned that any contributions farmers make to an RRSP after 1985 will be deducted from the $120,000 limit. We'll have to check the fine print to see just how generous the change is." The government's decision not to change Section 31 of the Income Tax Act was "disap- pointing," Pelissero said, "but at (east they're still will- ing to talk about it. The OFA is going to take that oppor- tunity to convince the govern- ment once and for all that the CROP SEMINAR — Talking together at a crop planning day in Exeter sponsored by Cooks are Art Bell, technical sales manager at the Centralia plant, William Harvey, Cooks' chief executive officer,, formers Jim Thompson, Aliso Craig and Peter Fervery, Centralia, and Earl Reichert, Centralia plant manager. Agriculture... a vitalindustry What's in store for '84? Come and find out! Educational Programs, Acres of Exhibits and 1984's Newest Farm Machinery and Equipment Open May 10 A.M. to 10 P.M. (Closes Friday at 5 P.M.) western ftih' FARMI March 6 to9, 1984 SPONSORED BY: The Wertern Fah &medallion. In cooperation with The Middlesex Soil and Crop Improvement Association WESTERN FAIRGROUNDS, LONDON PROGRESS BUILDING. QUEENS PARK ADMISSION $2.50 (Children under 12, accompanied by an aduh FREE) FS.I•rr f inequities and discrepancies of Section 31 must be changed." Under Section 31, farmers who aredeemed to be part- time can only deduct up to $5,000 in farm losses against their other income. "Many farmers are forced to take off -farm jobs to finance their farming ven- ture. That $5,000 is ridiculous- ly low when you look at what it costs to farm these days," Pelissero said. "The amount should be indexed _ to inflation." The budget makes no provi- sions for additional funds to the Farm Credit Corporation and "that's the disgusting part," Pelissero said. "At least $250 million more should have been allocated to the FCC to ensure that funds for loans don't run out as early as they have in the past." The budget should also have extended the FCC's Emergency Assistance Pro- gram, and given some relief to farmers who have long- Cetrtalia By MRS. TOM KOOY Neil School in McGillivray held their euchre, February 20 with 10 tables playing. Winners were ladies high Olive Atkinson; lone hands Margaret Caper; low Marian Thompson; man's high George Cunningham; low hands Joe Carter and low Tom Kooy. The next party on March 5 will be convened by Harvey and Lois Hodgins, Ilene Hodgins and Jessie Lewis. The Faith Tabernacle is is- suing an invitation for area residents to come out and en- joy a presentation of the gospel in play form put on by Teen Challenge from London, Sunday, March 4 at 7 p.m. The tee" class enjoyed a game of broomball at Huron Park on Wednesday evening when they played against the Oldsters from the church. The oldsters won 7 to 6. Mrs. Clara Cunnington, Mrs. Helen Klemke and Joan visited Thursday evening with Mr. and Mrs. Norm Mcisaac, Crediton. Mrs. Clara Cunnington was a Sunday guest at her son's Mr. and Mrs. Howard Cunn- ington and family, Thames Road. Mrs. Minnie Harrison, Mr. and Mrs. Ken Tilley and fami- ly, London:were Friday evens, ing dinner guests with Mr. and Mrs. Rby Harrison. Introduce Katimavik My name is Karen Kolbe and I am another one of those Katimavikers! Like the rest of my group 1 have been in Katimavik since September. From February 5 to 19 our group was billeted: I was staying with Niall and Rosemary Straw and family. I would like to take this oppor- tunity to thank them as well as the Usborne Central School staff for making my stay so enjoyable. We are now all back at our house on Carling Street. I have returned to my job at the Ausable Bayfield Conserva- tion Authority and at Hensall Co-op Nursery School. term loans as high as 163/4 percent. "Farmers saddled with a loan like that aren't go- ing to be able to run a business in the black," he said. The government should have taken the OFA's advice and developed agri-bonds to provide farmers with an af- fordable source of credit, Pelissero said. "Agri -bonds are the perfect solution to our money problems. They wouldn't strait' the govern- ment's tax flow, and best of all, they would provide Cana- dians with an attractive way of investing in agriculture." Under the plan proposed by the OFA, the FCC would raise capital for loans through agri-bonds. Purchasers of the bonds would get a tax credit given to shareholders of tax- able Canadian corporations. "The federal government has finally conceded to talk about agri-bonds in their Finance Committee, so we've got a foot in the door," Pelissero said. "It's an in- telligent, realistic solution, so we won't stop pushing it until something constructive is done with it." Niagara area man named new Federation president Harry Pelissero has been acclaimed president of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture. He was chosen by the OFA's Board of Direc- tors at a meeting in Toronto. The election was made necessary by the resignation of Ralph Barrie. Several other changes were made in the executive: Brigid Pyke, 37, a dairy farmer from Wolfe Island in Frontenac County, was acclaimed _ first vice- president. That left her previous position of second vice-president vacant. Jack Wilkinson, 32, who runs a mixed farming operation in Camfachie in Lambton Coun- ty, was elected second vice- president. Brenda Ward, 30, a hog farmer from Monkton in Perth County, is . the new member on the seven -person executive. The other members are Keith Buchner, a - dairy farmer from Brownsville in Oxford Coun- ty; Lynn Girty, a fruit, vegetable and cash -crop farmer from Blenheim in Kent County; and Mary Wicks, a dairy farmer from Bobcaygeon in Victoria County. Pelissero, a 32 -year old egg and pullet replacement farmer from St. Anns in Niagara North Region, has been the first vice-president since July, 1983. He said he CROP DAY — Cooks' Hensall and Centralia plants hosted a crop planning day in Exeter which attracted 232 farmers. Among those present were Jack Brintnell, manager of the Hensall branch, September MacAlpine, Hensall plant clerk, Ray Huether, Walton, Ted Geoffrey, Cooks' sales rep and John Moore, Ben Miller. Timbrell disappointed with new d f r ee al budg et the budget papers addressing the major needs of agriculture. Many proposals on this crucial area have been made by farm and agribusiness groups and by provincial governments, which have been ignored" said Timbrell. He said, many farmers will be disappointed that "badly needed revisions" to Section 31 of the Income Tax Act per- taining to small and part-time farmers are put off for further study by a consultative group. The negative and inequitable implications of changes in the interpretation of this section brought about by a supreme court case in 1977 are widely known and have been the sub- ject of intensive study and discussion at all levels. He said, Ontario will be pleased to present the results of our studies to the con- sultative group at the earliest possible time so that the cur- Whille there are a few positive signals for the agriculture sector in the re- cent Federal budget, there is little concrete evidence that the long-term requirements of this sector are being given serious consideration, Dennis Timbrell, Ontario Minister of Agriculture and Food, said today. A modest benefit is the in- terim arrangement 'allowing a tax free rollover of up to $10,000 of the taxable capital gains from the sale bf farms for each year of full-time far- ming between 1972 and 1983 during Stage 1 of general pen- sion reform. From 1987 on- wards, farmers will be sub- ject to the same R.R.S:P. pen- sion provisions as other small businesses. In the same vein is the modest changes made in thearrangementfor intra - family transfers. "I am disappointed that nothing concrete appears in rent inequitable treatment of this group of farmers can be rectified as soon as possible. A chronic cigar smoker, Winston Churchill is believed to have smoke about 300,000 cigars in his lifetime. Farmer sm Book Now .To have your spring grain and beans custom cleaned on YOUR farm. We clean, treat, bags or bulk and we offer germination tests. CANADIAN MOBILE SEED CLEANING LTD. 1-519-459.5602 or (416)775.6994 j Announcing the only safe, effective solution to stray voltage for under=350 �1: + w ' r� 1 The Hammond Tingle Voltage Filter is a new development in the tech- nology of stray voltage reduction. The Tingle Voltage Filter is a static. magnetic device.. (similar to a transformer) with current limiting characteristics. The unit should be professionally installed on the main electrical panel in the barn. The filter will reduce stray voltage by.a • ratio of 10:1 which drops the tingle effect to well below • critical threshplds of livestock. Tingle Voltage Filters are inexpensive (about $350) and are. completely maintenance free. 4 4'1,-- '' For more information and installation of Tingle o a e Filters ri 1 V It g Filt .e� CONTACT: NESBIT ELECTRIC LTD.. S 229-8222 KIRKTON, ONTARIO Ken McCann Enterprises Limited ANNOUNCEMENT We hove sold an interest in our eavestrough business to Jack Glavin. We thank you for your business in the past and look forward to serving your eavestrough requirements in the future. The new partnership will be known as: FLO—RITE EAYESTROUONINO Ken McCbnn `234-6401 Jack Glavin 237-3707 J Attention Farmers We are dealer Reps for the follow- ing equipment in this area. • International Harvester Farm Eq. • Kongskilde Field Cultivator and Row Crop Cultivators • Hardi Sprayers • J 8 M & Market Gravity Boxes • Horst Wagons • Vicon (White McKee) Sprayer • Field Cultivator and Harrows • Allied Farm Equipment • Turnco Farm Equipment "Check our prices on S. Tines and Shares" • Sweeps to fit all makes V.L. Becker & Sons Ltd, Dashwood 237-3242