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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1994-11-30, Page 32Page 32 Times -Advocate, November 30, 1994 Middlesex Soil and Crop group names conservation winner AILSA CRAIG - The highlight of the November 24 banquet of the Middlesex Soil and Crop Improve- ment Association was the naming of the winner of the county soil conservation award. Middlesex warden Earl French made the presenta- tion to Carlyle and Alan Wood, owners of a 700 acre farm operation in Lobo township About 90 percent of their cultivation is by the no -till variety. The winner of the Middlesex Forage Masters' competition was Lynalwood Farms Ltd. of R.R. 2, Thorndale. Accepting the award was Allan Woods. The gate sign competition is growing by leaps and bounds according to crop and soil advisor Peter Johnson. He added, " There were four en- trants in $992, 15 the following year and 35 this year. We expect this total to double in 1995. In the Forage Masters' competiton, Johnson said judging was difficult this year as the weather was great for hay. There were seven fanners with perfect alfalfa. This competition was sponsored jointly by the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association and Northrup King. Middlesex SCIA president Tony Hendrikx was chair- man for the banquet held at the Ailsa Craig Commu- nity Centre. In his president's report, Hendrikx said, "The dem- onstration day at Strathmere Lodge Farm showed the latest in coulter configuration. The farm was a stop on this year's farm hiker tour. It was gratifying that the demo farm could be shown to our urban neigh- bours." On the same subject, warden Earl French said, "We are proud of the Strathmere Lodge Farm operation and realize how important it is for research." In his Soil and Crop advisor's report, Johnson said, " Production. It is the fuel that drives the world, yet it has been maligned and criticized for much of the wog Id's woes. Without increasing pro- duction, our agricultural industry would shrivel and die in the face of global competition. However, in- appropriate use of our land base for production could have far reaching negative impacts, at some point reducing our fertile lands to wastelands, as the once fertile lands of North Africa are now the Sahara Desert." He continued, " This delicate balance of maximum production with minimum impact is what our association thrives on. The Mid- dlesex SICA is undoubtely the most active association in the province, continually de- veloping, evaluating and communicating re- sults to its members, to farmers across the province and even to farmers in neighbouring states. This ability to be open minded, yet skeptical, allows the association the flexibility to investigate new techniques without being sold a "bill of goods". In his report on the Strathmere Lodge Farm, Nick Stokman said, " One of the mandates of the farm is to be a demonstration site. In late April at the plant- ing demo, primary producers had the opportunity to view the numerous coulter types and combinations that are available to them for no -till operations. This was the first time that we have been able to have demonstration on the clay segment of the farm allowing farmers to see the differences on soils oth- er than sand. We were also fortunate to be able to introduce many of the people present to the poten- tial of GSP and site specific farming." Middlesex warden Earl French, at the left, presents the county conservation award to Car- lyle and Alan Wood of Lobo township at Thursday's annual banquet of the Middlesex Soil and Crop Improvement Association. Want inequities addressed MILTON - The Christian Farm- ers Federation of Ontario is calling on Elmer Buchanan, Ontario's ag- riculture minister, to address some dramatic inequities within the Ca- nadian pork industry. "Ontario pork producers for the first time in more than a decade, are without a floor price for their production," says John Markus, the president of the CFFO. "We recognize that there is a commit- ment for some kind of per -hog payment to replace the early wind- up of the tripartite stabilization program but this does not provide any kind of floor price or stabiliza- ti n.' Bard members of the CFFO ob- served at their recent November meeting that Quebec pork produc- ers are not in this position and have continued to have a real safe- ty net during the recent dive in hog prices. Quebec's program provides a gross return to producers of be- tween $160 and $170 per hog. In addition, it was noted the Quebec program is generous, with one of their program goals being to guar- antee 90 percent of an industrial wage fora day's work in their pork indua Of concern to CFFO is the ap- pearance that agreed-upon provin- cial and federal limits to the top - loading of tripartite stabilization have been ignored by Quebec. Data obtained from Agriculture Canada shows that Quebec pro- ducers received $15.88 per market hog during 1992 and S19.55 per hog during 1993 in addition to tri- partite payouts. When Quebec's sow plan is added in, payments over and above tripartite have ris- en as high as $24.55. Elbert van Donkersgoed, CFFO's research and policy direc- tor, points out that the industry has been working through some serious challenges, such as the US counter- vail. However, he says the overall burden of those challenges has fal- len disproportionately on Ontario producers when compared to the rest of Canada. Van Donkersgoed points out that most other commodities still have a price protection mechanism in place -- dairy, grains, horticulture and poultry are all notable exam- ples. CFFO board members note that the resources and infrastructure within Ontario allow pork produc- ers to produce hogs for fewer costs. But the approach of "doing it for less' was deemed having gone too far and has now set in motion a pat- tern of decline for family farm agri- culture. • More than just toys Ford New Holland replicas are -more than lust toys. They're reproduced directly from engineering blueprints. Details like filters and fuel lines are designed to scale, so they look just like the original. And Ford New Holland replicas are die-cast for extra strength. They're built to last. Ford New Holland replicas make great gifts ... all year long. Treat yourself, or add to your child's collection. Stop in today. LONDON FORD NEW HOLLAND gp mviNo LMD A D1V181ON of COLD 8PRINO8 FARM LIM$TEO' It*v. 922 • woof of Hyda Park Rd, Hyde Pork At PTwM: (519)641-8910, Fax (519) 041-8756 Financing extension announced TORONTO - Ontario Agricul- ture, Food and Rural Affairs Min- ister Elmer Buchanan announced financing available through the ministry's Private Mortgage Guar- antee Program will be extended to include the purchase of machinery, equipment, breeding stock, and other farming assets. Buchanan made the announce- ment at the annual meeting of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture in Toronto. "The core of the program is still to help farm families transfer farm land to the next generation by pro- viding retiring farmers with securi- ty of their investments," Buchanan said, adding, "We have now made mortgage funds available for the purchase of other farm assets, in order to support the economic via- bility of agriculture in Ontario." The existing program, intro- duced in April 1993, allows farm businesses to borrow up to $500,000 from private individuals at affordable rates. The loan, until now, had to be for the purpose of purchasing new farm real estate or refinancing existing farm real es- tate loans. The Ontario govern- ment guarantees up to 80 percent of the original loan amount. Buchanan said the Program was changed to allow farmers more flexibility. They will now be able to use mortgage funds to buy ma- chinery, breeding stock, and other farm assets. Mortgage security on land will still be required as securi- ty on each loan. The fee structure has been simplified, and is now set to a flat percentage of 0.5 percent with a minimum $500 and a maxi- mum 52,000 fee. To allow farmers more flexibili- ty in their investment options, the cap of interest rates has been re- moved. Instead, the Provincial De- cision Committee will have the power to refuse a loan if they find the rate is too high. "We believe that meeting the needs of producers is key to the success of the Agriculture Invest- ment Strategy and the adjustments to the Private Mortgage Guarantee Program provide the flexibility pro- gram participants need," Buchanan said. The program was designed with the input of farm groups, as part of the ministry's overall Agricultural Investment Strategy, designed .to answer farmers' need for long-term programs to improve their access to farm financing. The Strategy in- cludes five components, including FARMPLUS guaranteed invest- ment certificates, which are sold through credit unions and caisses populaires to help finance local agri-food projects. Buchanan said the ministry con- sulted oo-sulted a number of stakeholders be- fore introducing the changes, in- cluding the Ontario Federation of Agriculture's Farm Finance Com- mittee, the Ministry of Finance, the Ontario Real Estate Association, rural real estate agents, the Ontario Mortgage Brokers Association as well as farmers, including potential borrowers. •Iensered •"SWEDISH - MADE" • • • • • Offer good until Dec. 31/94 With every purchase of Jonsered model 2045' - 2050' or 2054' receive free of charge a carrying case, a chain, a cap and a can of Duramax oil, total value of $80.00. •2045 = 45cc ! '2050 = 50 cc / '2054 = 54cc Sales & Service, Phone (519) 236-4934 Fax (519) 236-7330 22 Main Street, E., Zurich Till Dec. 10th Applies to reg. price uniform style cothing, insulated and non insulated leather boots. All insulated coveralls Hameln - Work Kang • Tuff Duck 1 pc. - 2 pc. all styles WE PAY THE TAX P`.\ Flannel Shirts (;REg1. c,Fr SPECIAL BUY!