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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1996-02-28, Page 11, .► 4 IP A F 4 Denfield Livestock Sales The market at Denfield traded under pressure on all but the fancy fed handy weight cattle. Once again American orders were a good support to the market with 2/3 of the cattle going stateside. Cows sold a little lower. Veal steady, pigs steady, sows and boars strong. 420 cattle, 190 pigs on offer. Don Eedy and Mark Van der Ploeg, Denfield sold 10 heifers avg. wt. 1228 lbs. avg. price 84.03, sales to 90.50 purchased by M.G.T. Margaret Steele, Bothwell sold 8 heifers avg. wt. 1212 lbs. avg. price 82.94 and topped the sale for a heifer at 95.00 purchased by Dendekker Meats. ' Steve Vokes, Sarnia sold 5 head avg. wt. 1263 lbs. avg. price 82.68 sales to ', 85.25. Cord Hardy, Lucan sold 16 mixed steers avg. wt. 1373 lbs. avg. price 80.50 sales to 89.25 purchased by Holly Park. Choice steers Good steers Heavies Choice exotic cross heifers Good heifers Common and medium Good cows Canners and cutters Shells Bulls Good veal Pigs 40-60 lbs. 80-95 Over; 61) lbs. 70-85 Sows 38-48 Boars, 36-39 84-86 sales to 89.25 80-84 72-77 8488 sales to 95.00 78-83 60-75 45-50 38-44 15-25 40-62 60-70 Brussels livestock sales BRUSSELS - Sales at Brussels Livestock for the week ending February 23, 1996. -1444,814kilam.- s303: Veal calves 236 Sheep & Goats 27 Stockers 1189 Pigs 92 The market at Brussels Livestock saw fed steers and heifers selling at $1.00 lower. The cows sold on a steady trade. On Thursday all weights of veal sold steady. On Friday the stockers traded on an active steady market. There were 565 steers on offer selling from 77.00 to 82.00 to the high of.93.75. Fifteen steers consigned by Darren Johnston, Bluevale averaging 1382 lbs. sold for an average of 80.60 with a char weighing 1390 sold to Norwich Packers for 93.75. Thirty-three steers consigned by jack Culbert, Dungannon averaging 1343 lbs. sold for an average of 83.97 with sales to 92.00. Fourteen steers consigned by Tom Dickson, Stratford averaging 1424 lbs. sold for an average of 80.02 with sales to 90.00. Thirty steers consigned by Paul Johnston, Bluevale averaging 1387 lbs. sold for an average of 80.22 with sales to 89.25. Twenty-three steers consigned by Cunningham Farms, Lucan averaging 1463 lbs. sold for an average of 78.84 with sales to 86.75. Fifty-three steers consigned by Ron Coulter, Creemore averaging 1430 lbs. sold for an average of 80.18 with sales to 85.00. Nine steers consigned by Oscar Bloch, Elmira averaging 1532 lbs. sold for an average of 78.81 with sales to 84.50. Nine steers consigned by Ed Walsh, Loretto averagingb 1354 lbs. sold for an average of 78.79 with sales to 84.00. Three steers consigned by David Bowles, Brussels averaging 1323 lbs. sold for an average of 81.40 with sales to 83.75. Six steers consigned by Dwayne Dickert, Ayton averaging 1423 lbs. sold for an average of 76.86 with sales to 83.00. There were 215 heifers on offer selling from 77.00 to 82.00 to the high of 87.50. Twelve heifers consigned by Russ Faber, Kippen averaging 1212 lbs. sold for an average of 79.66 with a gold weighing 1425 lbs. sold to Holly Park Meat for 87.50. One heifer consigned by Jeff Bloch, Elmira weighing 1165 lbs. sold for 87.50. Three heifers consigned by Geo. Paul and Mark Pennington, Mildmay aver- aging 1222 lbs. sold for an average of 83.07 with sales to 87.25. Eight heifers consigned by Donna Corbett, Exeter averaging 1076 lbs. sold for an average of 80.86 with sales to 85.25. Forty-two heifers consigned by Wayne Rowe, Woodham averaging 1293 lbs. sold for an average of 78.95 with sales to 84.50. Eight heifers consigned by Woodham Farms, Woodham averaging 1090 lbs. sold for an average of 78.57 with sales to 82.00. Two beifers consigned by Jim Cronin, Dublin averaging 1177 lbs. sold for 80.85. There were 303 cows on offer selling from 32.00 to 50.00 to the high of 61.00. Five cows consigned by Leon Carter, Gowanstown averaging 1073 lbs. sold for an average of 49.45 with sales to 61.00. Three cows consigned by Jim Moffatt, Wingham averaging 1287 lbs. sold for sin average of 47.61 with sales to 58.00. Three cows consigned by Steve Weishar, Teeswater averaging 1396 Its. sold for art average of 48.45 with sales to 57.50. There were 11 bulls on Offer selling from 46.00 to 61.65 to the high of 68.50. One Limo bull consigned by Hammond Bros., Monkton weighing 1925 lbs. sold for 68.510. One Limo bull consigned by Ross Myercough, Holyrood weighing 2110 lbs. sold for 67.50. �� were 236 veal on offer. Holstein - 55.00 to 70.00. Beef veal - 70.00 to 90.00. A Char veal consigned by Don Smith, Mount Forest, weighing 685 lb& sold for 84.50. A Hol. veal consigned by Gary Caldwell, weighing 750 lbs. sold for 75.00. Stockers Steers: 400 - 499 lbs. 65.00 to 91.00 500 - 599 74.50 to 91.00 600-699 72.25to80.25 700 - 799 70.00 to 84.50' 4100 - 899 69.25 to 93.00 900& river 68.00 to 94.00 Heifers:, 300 - 399 lbs. 50.00 to 79.00 400- 409 62.50 to 75.00 500- 599 63.00 to 84.00 500- 694 63.75103 76.00 700.799 651 to 73.75 1100 & over . 15.75. lcf 1116 Above, Ross Daily, second from right, par- ticipates in a discus- sion with audience members following his talk at Huron Tractor's Farm Industry Show '96 on Friday. At right, from left, John Rudderham, Peter Hakvoort, Ross Daily, Paul VanOss and Frank Winters. Daily is the producer/host of 'This Business of Farming' and 'Week- day Agri -News Market Report on CFPL-TV.' The other men are Hu- ron Tractor partners. Times -Advocate, February 28, 1996 Page 11 Farm industry show stars Ross Daily EXETER - CFPL-TV Producer/ Host Ross Daily spoke at Huron Tractor's Farm Industry Show '96 on Friday. After joking about the new two dollar coin, saying "some people call it the American loonies' and congratulating Huron County on its official International Plowing Match site near Dashwood, Daily began an animated discussion on numerous topics including farming success, new technology and ag- riculture cutbacks. Citing 1996 as the year to talk about site specific farming, he stressed the need for yield mon- itors. "If you expect to be farming in five years...and don't use it, con- sider selling the farm now," he told the crowded room. "This alone is going to change the face of crop production." But, he emphasized, "technology always presents a problem...You've got more information than you've actually got time to input." It may be more beneficial, he ex- plained, to consider field variances rather than sectioning land into plots and taking samples from each Plot "Everybody's gojng to have to think about the land that they farm...You're going to be offered some really big packages you sim- ply do not need...The promise right now precedes the performance." Daily mentioned the fact no one knows land better than the people who farm it, adding companies that ignore farmers' advice should be avoided. One form of technology he spoke highly of was the Internet. "You have got to be on the Inter- net," he said. "There are just thou- sands and thousands of places to go in agriculture." And as for the fact some feel ag- riculture does not get enough media coverage, he expressed the view that agriculture as a special cat- egory never should have existed. The well -attended farm show held on Friday and Saturday also included new product displays, agri-business exhibits, films, a toy tractor and combine trade-in day, a kids' play area and refreshments. • GA • sutures, market CIJJ!ITON - Hero is an opportuni- ty for beef producers to learn bow the futures market really works. Participants will use basis charts and real live examples to experi- ence short selling. The Cattle Price Options Program is designed to pro- tect finished beef cattle from falling prices. The program features an over the counter "put" option con- tract written on the Canadian dollar value of a Chicago Mercantile Ex- change (CME) live cattle futures price. The contract is for 10,000 lbs. of live weight. The Huron County Beef Produc- ers and OMAFRA, Clinton are sponsoring a special price options information meeting on Thursday, March 21, 1996 from 7:00 p.m. un- til 9:00 p.m. The resource people for the evening are Colin Reesor and Cheryl Russwurm from OMA - FRA, Walkerton. Please pre - register by calling 519-482-3428 or 1-800-265-5170. There is no charge for this workshop. ATV stolen CREDITON - Shawn Glavin re- ported to Exeter OPP a four-wheel 1990 Yamaha ATV was stolen from a utility shed beside his home on Feb. 21. Entry was gained by cutting the padlock of the shed with bolt cut- ters. A gas barbecue was also sto- len from the back patio deck. The property was valued at $3,000. Opinion Invisible ice dangers By Bill Kilburn - Naturalist At the beginning of February, in the midst of our annual deep- freeze, I wrote about the enjoy- ment that can be had by ob- serving the ice-scape on regular winter walks. Since that time, faithful outdoor observers will have noted that the glaciation of Lake Huron's shores has begun 'to disappear, receding into the waters whence it came. The ice ridges, although still present, have changed dramatically, both to the naked eye, and in ways unseen. It is especially the un- observable changes in the ice that explain my recent en- counter with Bud Markham, Su- perintendent for Public Works in Grand Bend. "Having people walking on those ridges is exactly what we don't want," he told me. "If peo- ple listen to you, and don't think for themselves, we're going to be in for a lot of rescues this spring." Following this short ex- change, I arranged to sit down with Markham for a discussion. I asked him if it is possible to enjoy the thrill of the shore in the spring while remaining per- fectly safe. Markham didn't of- fer the easy affirmation I was hoping for. "The public has to use rea- sonable sense when they go out to observe things," Markham says pointedly. "The safest thing would be to stay off the ice, but at least make sure you recognize the dangers. If you un- derstand the risks and are prepared for them, then go ahead." That sounds reasonable. So, tell us, what are the dangers? "Honeycomb ice and shale ice can be especially dangerous, " says Markham, referring to formations of ice made up of arrangements of Targe, open cells, or thin sheets stacked together. From the surface these ice formations can appear thick and sturdy, but because they contain large air spaces, they can be far from solid. Add to this a pe- culiarity of water that allows life on this planet to exist, and these for- mations become even more haz- ardous. Let me explain. Water is a unique substance in that it attains its greatest density at four degrees Celsius. This means that at temperatures above and be- low four degrees, an equal quan- tity of water will be less dense than at four degrees. Why is this so im- portant to life? Because when wa- ter freezes into ice, which happens at zero degrees, the ice is less dense than water, and thus will float on water. Were this not to occur, bodies of water would not enjoy the insulating effect of ice in the winter, and would lose consid- erably more heat to the air. Also, ice would form at the bottom of water bodies first, serving as a seed for more and more ice forma- tion. If these two things happened, complete freezing of small and large bodies of water would be more common. This would be cat- astrophic for aquatic creatures, and for those land animals that de- pend on aquatic insects and larger life -forms for food, which is, in the great scheme of things, all of us. Indeed, the strange properties of water provided our ancient an- cestors with the time to get bored of the sea, and crawl out to ex- plore the land. Now back to the original point: the fact that ice forms on the sur- face of water means that it hides what is going on below. While the ice may look firm, the water tearing it away from below could be transforming it into a trap-door, triggered by the weight of your un- suspecting body. Or the water level may have dropped beneath the ice. As Markham describes it: "A strong wind blows water up to the shore. The water freezes above, then settles back under- neath, leaving a visible crust of ice with nothing to support it, and free water to erode it from under- neath." Markham also cautions to be careful on the Grand Bend pier, a popular local spot to enjoy a view of the lake. "The pier is not a public walkway and therefore it isn't looked 'after," he points out. "When the ice disappears from the lake, and the nights are still cold, the spray of the waves freezes on the walkway at night, and makes it hazardous until the heat of the sun melts it the next day." Over the years Markham has seen broken bones - "a hip, an arm, a wrist" - along with numer- ous sprains. A more serious in- cident he remembers is a cit- izen's rescue a few year's ago of a child that fell off the pier and into a blowhole, a hole sculpted by water rushing up through an opening in the ice. He suggests that those who walk ac- companied by pets that enjoy frolicking on the ice, should be especially watchful for these. Although Markham openly warns that the pier can be haz- ardous, you won't find warning signs to remind you to use cau- tion. Markham explains that the only way to keep the public safe is to instill them with the correct information so that they can make informed and safe de- cisions. "Signs," he says, "either get damaged or stolen in my ex- perience. And people just don't pay attention to the warnings." What precautions would Mark- ham take for venturing onto the ice during the spring thaw? "I wouldn't be on the ice right now. But if I absolutely had to, I would carry a heavy stick and check every step before I took it. Taking baby steps is not safety," he chuckles, referring to be- haviour he has often observed. So be careful around the ice as the days get longer and the sun creeps higher in the sky. .Think of your safety first, and then en- joy your view from the pier as the wonders of winter fade quickly into the setting sun. Consultations planned for Beef Financial Protection Plan TORONTO - A major review of the Ontario Beef Cattle Financial Protection Program is underway to ensure the program meets the needs of the beef , Agriculture, Food and rural No- ble Villeneuve announced at the an- nual meeting of the men s Associadonn, Ontario Cattb- " he program is hi need of ad- justment be 6olding conaultadons on ways trio make the program stronger and more in-line with industry needs," Villeneuve said. 'I'm asking all in- dustry group and producers to comment on the discussion paper and td participate M the meedngs to ensure everyone's views are heard." OMAFRA Is distributing a dis- cussioaa paper and is requesting written comments by April 10. A summary of the ootrurtents win be presented at four industry meetings to be held in May and will be chaired by OMAFRA Parliamen- tary Assistant, Harry Danford. OBFPP is funded by a five cent/ head ebeckdff fee paid by the seller and their agent. The bund pays producers 90 per cent of the loss if a licensed dealer defaults on payments. It also pro- tects licensed auction markets and eligible co-operative sales against defaults by producers. Compensa- tion for this type of claim is limited to 70 per cent of losses to a mini- mum of $5,000 and a maximum of $75,000. Consultation process includes : Discussion paper distributed - mid- February. Written comments to OMAFRA - April 10. Industry mestings - May. Recommendations to the Minister - June.