HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1980-06-04, Page 57The Farm Edition, Week of June 4, 1980 — 9
unior agriculturalist program in its ninth year
The Junior Agriculturalist
Program celebrates 1980 as
its ninth year running! At
first, this program went
under the title of the Urban -
Rural exchange. The Junior
Agriculturalist Program is
designed to provide a prac-
tical learning experience for
young people from a non-
farm home who have a ser-
ious interest in agriculture, -
and who have had no exper-
ience working on a farm.
As a Junior Agriculturist,
the individual will be placed
on a selected commercial
farm, where he/she will
perform regular activities
relative to the farm opera-
tion. In addition, the Junior
Agriculturalist will have an
opportunity to develop an ap-
preciation of rural life
through living with a farm
family. and through partic-
ipating in local 4-H, Junior
Farmer, and other rural pro-
grams and activities. A Jun-
ior Agriculturalist will be
assigned wherever possible
to a farm, with the type of
enterprise in which he/she is
most interested. The duties
involved will vary consider-
ably depending on the indiv-
idual farm operations and the
demonstrated ability of the
Junior Agriculturalist.
The program's work per-
iod commences when the
Junior Agriculturalists arrive
at their host farmer's home
on June 16th, and lasts nine
weeks. Host farmers are
required to pay $6.00 daily
for the number of days which
a Junior Agriculturalist is
employed.
In the past, this program
has been very successful and
is launched province wide in
the spring of each year. This
OFA wantsi-fight to farm established
The Ontario Federation of
Agriculture has criticized the
Ontario government for.
protecting the farmers' right
to farm.
In their Annual Brief to the
Provincial Cabinet last
month, the OFA said resent
�governmiif reg
eua loris cry="`
f. ate a restrictive and almost
punitive system for the prov-
ince's farmers.
OFA's 35 -page Brief point-
ed out that the situation is
becoming more difficult due
to the increasing number of
urban people now living in
rural areas. The OFA esti-
mates that in the last eight
years, there have been. be-
tween 12,000 anti , 15,000
rural lots, severed each year.
The present total is now close
to 200,000.
The movement of urban
people to rural Ontario has
led to increasing harassment
of farmers and has prevented
many farmers from expand-
ing their operations. Some
not have even been_forced_out-of
business. The OFA said the
situation has become worse
as regulations are increas-
ingly imposed by urban -
dominated municipal noun -
mended the government en- long as they followed an
act legislation to affirm the agreed upon Code of Farm -
farmers' -right to farm, so log.-Praetices.
Want to locate
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carves( excrstontsts
To correct the situation,
the OFA recommended that
agriculture be given top pri-
ority in government planning
policies. As well, it proposed
a committee of farmers, ag-
rologists and civil servants
be formed to establish accep-
table farming practices for
the various commodities.
Once the Code is establish-
ed, the committee would
educate farmers asto accep-
table practice§ and inform
urban people of the priority
need for farming in agricul-
tural areas.
Finally, the OFA recom-
A University of Guelph
study being done by Gordon
Hak of the History Depart-
ment desperately needs to
locate people who went on a
Harvest Excursion from this
area during the 1920s.
Each fall during the 1920s
an 'average of 15,000 Ontar-
ions went West to help bring
in the Prairie wheat crop.
However, little is known
about this important part of
Canadian history.
"Because of the lack of
written records," said Hak.
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"The only way to recover this
part of our history is by
talking to the people who
actually went West on the...
Excursions."
Hak hopes to chat with at
least 50 former Excursionists
during the summer.
If you went on a Harvest
Excursion in the 1020s and
are willing to share your
knowledge, please write to
Gordon Hak, Department of
History, University of
Guelph, or phone (519) 824-
4120, extension 3887.
year we have received trem-
endous response from young
people willing to take on the
challenge and responsibility
of farm life. However, we are
in need of more farmers who
would like to participate by
acting as a host farmer.
Farmers are encouraged to
call their local Agricultural
Office as soon as possible in
regards to the Junior Agri-
culturalist host farmer posi-
tion, as the program's suc-
cess depends upon their
support. For a host farmer
application forma or ---pore
information call Barbara
Moore, Junior Agricultural-
ist, Program Co-ordinator for
the counties of Waterloo,
Huron and Perth, in the
Stratford Agricultural Office
at 271-0280.
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