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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1984-09-05, Page 221 Page IOA Times -Advocate, September 5, I984 Aita\ keth/ We wish to thank everyone for making the Hyland plots Open House such a success - The Draw winner was Ken Pickering, RR 2 Dashwood. Doug Shirray FARMERS BOOK NOW To have your fall grains custom cleaned on your farm. Canada 1,Certified, Registered We clean and treat bags or bulk and of- fer germination testing. Time, Trouble, $ave•• T ransportation Call: Jerry O'Toole 1-519-289-5602 or Canadian Mobile Seed Cleaning Ltd. 416-775-6994 (Collect) 1-800-263-2021 A division of AGMEN Corp. Area Co-ops not threatened by 1110 It's business as usual at both Exeter and Hensel! Co - Operatives this week, with managers at both businesses explaining that the financial problems being experienced by United Co -Operatives of Ontario will have little effect on them. Earl Wagner at Hensel! Co - Op and Ed Rodenburg at Ex- eter Co -Op note that their businesses are independent and UCO serves them primarily as a supplier. ' Both Co -Ops have shares in UCO, and while there is some concern over those shares, neither would be placed in jeopardy if UCO failed. Wagner said he expects the financial problems at UCO will be worked out. Rodenburg said he was still trying to get the current situa- tion with UCO clarified, but emphasized with Wagner that the situation will have little ef- fect locally for the indepen- dent businesses they operate. Both managers plan to cir- culate information within the next week or two to explain the situation to their members. After three consecutive years of operating losses. compounded by mushroom- ing interest rates, United Co - Operatives of Ontario is in the hands of an interim receiver who will supervise efforts to reorganize debts which top $140 million. UCO sought and received protection from its creditors from the supreme court of On- tario to buy time to refinance its debt load. But chief ex- ecutive officer Albert C. Plant said at a news conference Tuesday the development does not mean the company has gone bankrupt. "This is not a bankruptcy, this is not a receivership. This is very clearly business as usual" with added court pro- tection from creditors, Plant said. Farmers who have taken grain or livestock to UCO operations for sale are not in financial danger, he added. "There has been concern that UCO wasn't viable, that it could be acted on by a predator, a bank. Now we have court protection... We cannot be sued and the banks must support us. They cannot call a loan," Plant said. UCO has been squeezed since January when $75 Any major political clout was lost to agriculture 40 years ago when the great rush to urban centres came during and after the Second World War. Farm population has steadily dwindled until now it makes up less than five per- cent of the population of Canada. No longer can farmers "elect" a govern- ment. Why should politicians pay heed to five percent of the people? It's enough to discourage farmers into staying at home instead of voting. Now that the election is over, though, it is obvious that farmers can still swing a lit- tle club. The difference bet- ween the Liberal and Conser- vative philosophies has not been that great in recent years and those many undecided votes across this country can be the difference between victory and defeat or minority and majority governments. Take a look at the electoral map of any province in this vast country and you will see that more than 50 seats are up for grab in an election. And of those 50 -plus seats, the majority are in rural ridings. It is, therefore, a du- ty of farmers to vote. These many swing ridings are won or lost by less than five per- cent of the vote. C.G. Farm Supply at their new location 22 Main St., Zurich 4 Thurs., September 14, 1984 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Door prizes Refreshments Special 15% Discount on Parts Cash sales only FREE hat with every purchase over $10.00 1st prize: 12 speed drill press 2nd prize: bench grinder 3rd prize: 3/4 drive socket set We are dealers for: Case - Hesston - New Idea - Kongskilde - Eastern - Allied - Turnco - Starline - Market - Mitsubishi Company representatives will be on hand at the opening. FARM SUPPLY LIMITED Sales and Service - Repair Phone 236-4934 236-4321 Now at 22 Main St., Zurich million in debts tell due and could not be refinanced. Ma- jor creditors include the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce ($40 million) , Canadian Co-operative Credit Society ($30 million) and Barclays Bank Canada ($5 million). As well, the company Owes $24 million to its members and others in unsecured debentures and $10 million to a consortium of institutional lenders in first mortgage bonds on its Windsor grain terminal. In all, UCO has "massive debts" of more than $140 million which it could not • L.,u.s ... .....<m.o e, Bob boo., 114..4 b =La 0. This is a fact that the Pro- gressive Conservatives understood all too well in this campaign, a fact that the Liberals, in their obvious disarray, failed to take ad- vantage of. It seems to me that farmers in Canada should be voting, not for a party leader, but for a candidate, no matter what his or her political stripe. In rural ridings, farmers should have been pumping their local candidates just to see how much they knew about agricultural issues; whether they are a couple of bales short of a load when it comes to farm problems. Those who are conversant with rural problems should get the farm vote. Those who can talk in- telligently about agriculture should be supported whether they are Tory. Grit or Socialist. Staunch party supporters with a tradition of party loyal- ty may not like this idea but the merits far outweight the demerits. My old grandad would kick the bottom out of his casket if he knew I e\'er voted for anything else but Conservative but ole Grum- py, as we called him, did not live in these times. Drastic circumstances need drastic solutions and these are momentous times. It is called single -issue politics by the Americans. The Canadian government is facing tough times but no other sector of the economy needs more attention than agriculture. Grain growers on the Prairies need more than just token help. When feed grain is in short supply, the cattlemen are in trouble. And $48 a cow is simply not enough. We need cheaper produc- tion money in Canada, money for hard-pressed farmers at an interest rate that stops short of usury. Grape growers and some other sectors of agriculture need protection from the dumping of imports. Farmers need major ad- justments in the income tax act which would relieve families trying to keep the farm afloat' with off -farm income. The new government should take a long, hard look at helping young farmers get started, some sort of deferred tax system and some help with input costs that would give younger farmers who are trying to get started a leg up the ladder. And some system of con- trolling quota costs for those products under supply management. When the cost of quota can almost exceed the capital costs of land and buildings, as it is now in the dairy business, something drastic needs to be done. At $200 a litre, the price of dairy quota is a national disgrace and that is what some farmers are paying. The federal and provincial agricultural ministers are in for tough times. These pro- blems need solutions now. In the next four or five years, farmers will be watching closely and lobbying hard. Farmers will remember that those 50 swing seats in rural areas can make or break a government. A con- certed effort by all members of the rural communities may become a reality in Canadian politics. repay without restructuring. A press release Tuesday from the Mississauga head office said the situation was caused by major expansion in the 1870s, financed "almost en- tirely by short-term, interest- sensitive borrowings." When interest rates shot up in 1980, the cost of servicing the loans became "unbearable". Mr. Justice L.W. Houlden granted protection under the Companies Creditors Ar- rangement Act, a piece of federal legislation, and ap- pointed Price Waterhouse Ltd., of Toronto as interim receiver. UCO has until Sept. 30 to file a plan of reorganiza- tion with the court. It will later be submitted to creditors and members for ratification. Plant agreed that many farmers, particularly livestock producers at the On- tario stock yards, have been worried about their financial security if they deal with UCO. Their fears are "com- pletely unfounded," he said, adding the livestock operation finanelal woes. is "completely separate" and creditors "can't take title to livestock". Plant said UCO's financial problems stem from having had "roaring success" during the 1970s, which led to the ad- dition of new facilities and operations, all financed through the banks at floating interest rates. "No one asked the meinbers," said Plant. who joined the company in 1982. Plant said UCO decided to seek court protection after Barclays attempted to call its loan earlier this year. He declined to release details of a tentative refinancing ar- rangement UCO has already worked out but said if it had gone into effect in February the company's interest - payment situation would have greatly improved by now. He said he is confident the company can be turned around. While UCO finished its last fiscal year on Sept. 30. 1983. with operating losses of $12 million. "at the end of the first nine months of this fiscal TREE -LINED DRIVEWAY — The Sunday evening storm paused on its way to London to fell trees and branches along Vern Alderdice's driveway at RR 2 Kippen. Guests could not leave until Alderdice cleared some of the larger logs with his chain saw. year we were reporting a $700,000 profit". In material filed with the court Tuesday, Plant stated UCO's revenues exceed $500. million annually and its assets are worth more than $165 million. Plant said in the release he thinks the final arrangenpnts will be close to the informal restructuring UCO has already worked out with its major creditors and the pro- vincial and federal govern- ments. (deafly, UCO wouldn't have sought a court order "but in view of the cpmplexi- ty of the task, the number of parties involved and the fact that each party quite proper- ly placed its own interest above those of others," court supervision was necessary. Horse club has session A meeting of the Exeter 4-li horse and pony club was held August 23 at the home of Pauline DeVries. The first issue that was discussed in the evening was the awards and plaques. It was decided that there would be awards for the following: best' project book, highest mark at achievement day, best decorated stall, highest mark over-all and everyone over 900 marks, top novice, top junior, top senior person. Marks are to be: Horse or pony - 100; project book - 200; project visit - 100; meeting and attendance -100 and judg- ing - 100. Members discussed the achievement day, which will be held at Exeter fair grounds on September 22 at 11:00 a.m. Roll call was taken, and an account of the trip to Canada's Wonderland was given. It had been a very en- joyable day. A review of the exam was then given by the 4-1-1 leader, and a date was set for writing the exam. The exam is to be written September 13. If you are not able to write on this date, the exam can be written before September 16. The next meeting will be held September 13 at Adriaan Brand's, where members will be judging. Order Your Seed Wheat By Quality. By Name Certified Augusta Wheat - "Certified Houser Wheat" In Hyland Brand Bags These varieties by any other name or in any other bag are not the same You will not go wrong if you order these top yielding varieties from any Thompson Branch or Hyland seed dealer. For top yields, Germination, Purity...Sow Certified Seed Custom fertilizer spreading Soil analysis fertilizer recommendations from a qualified staff 1