HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Times Advocate, 2008-07-02, Page 25Wednesday, July 2, 2008 25
Agriculture
TIMES -ADVOCATE
Goats sell lower this week at Brussels
For the week ending
mm.mmJune 27, 2008.
E-mail us at info@brus-
selslivestock.ca
Total Receipts
2,018 head of cattle,
886 lambs and goats.
Summary:
Tuesday
Fed steers and heifers sold steady.
Choice steers and heifers sold 91 - 96
with sales to 105.25. Second cut sold
88-91. Cows sold steady.
Thursday
Veal sold steady. Lambs and sheep
sold steady and goats sold lower due to
less demand.
Friday
Calves and yearlings sold on a good
strong active trade.
Steers
There were 271 steers on offer.
Amos M. Martin of Wallenstein con-
signed 18 steers averaging 1380 lbs.
selling for an average of 94.15 with one
blonde steer weighing 1320 lbs. selling
to Holly Park Meat Packers for 105.25.
Fred Powell of Elmwood consigned
four steer averaging 1271 lbs. selling for
an average of 94.59 with two limo
steers averaging 1465 lbs. selling to
Ryding Regency for 100.
Lloyd Frey of Harriston consigned 13
steers averaging 1357 lbs. selling for an
average of 95.32 with one char steer
weighing 1360 lbs. selling to Holly Park
Meat Packers for 99.50.
Weigand Farms of Dashwood con-
signed five steers averaging 1203 lbs.
selling for an average of 96.07 with one
limo steer weighing 1210 lbs. selling to
Norwich Packers for 99.25.
Neil Edgar of Wingham consigned
eight steers averaging 1459 lbs. selling
for an average of 96.69 with six gold
steers averaging 1473 lbs. selling to
Holly Park Meat Packers for 97.75.
Schmidtbrook of Woodstock consigned
13 steers averaging 1625 lbs. selling for
an average of 92.05 with one limo steer
weighing 1570 lbs. selling to Dominion
Meat Packers for 97.75.
Mrs. Minerva Martin of Mount Forest
consigned 19 steers averaging 1400 lbs.
selling for an average of 95.92 with four
gold steers averaging 1350 lbs. selling to
Ryding Regency for 97.50.
Randy and Jean Pentland of Goderich
consigned six steers averaging 1640 lbs.
selling for an average of 92.20 with two
limo steers averaging 1510 lbs. selling
to Dominion Meat Packers for 97.50.
Geisel Cattle Co. of Elmira consigned
29 steers averaging 1513 lbs. selling for
an average of 93.88 with one char steer
weighing 1485 lbs. selling to Holly Park
Meat Packers for 97.
Alan Baker of Brussels consigned four
steers averaging 1471 lbs. selling for an
average of 94.40 with one limo steer
weighing 1435 lbs. selling to Dominion
Meat Packers for 96.75.
Heifers
There were 260 heifers on offer.
Darren Johnston of Bluevale con-
signed 34 heifers averaging 1241 lbs.
selling for an average of 92.65 with one
blue heifer weighing 1190 lbs. selling
for 97.75.
M -R Farms of Exeter consigned six
heifers averaging 1266 lbs. selling for
an average of 94.31 with two limo
heifers averaging 1235 lbs. selling to
Ryding Regency for 96.50.
Murray Switzer of St. Marys consigned
two heifers averaging 1508 lbs. selling
for an average of 89.93 with one blk
heifer weighing 1450 lbs. selling to
Ryding Regency for 95.25.
George Chettleburgh of Wingham con -
Agri -Food Institute concerned
GUELPH - Although spring
planting has occurred in Ontario
this spring with unusual optimism
triggered by higher grain prices,
the Ontario Agri -Food Policy
Institute is worried that current
conditions are too similar to those
of the 1970s, which led directly to
economic disaster for thousands of
farmers a few years later.
In the 1970s, grain price spikes
were triggered by the combination
of increased global demand for
grains crops, and high oil prices.
Many countries introduced export
embargoes, oil costs skyrocketed
and, in inflation-adjusted dollars,
price peaks for both gasoline and
grains were at least as high as they
are today.
The after -shocks for agriculture
were catastrophic. Grain produc-
tion increased, but global demand
didn't buy nearly as much as pro-
jected. Grain stocks jumped and
prices crashed. Many fanners who
had borrowed money to expand
lost their farms as prices plummet-
ed and interest rates soared.
Indeed, for Canadian agriculture,
the 1980s were mainly about
recovering from the after effects of
the seventies.
Institute managing director Terry
Daynard says there needs to be
close attention paid to lessons from
the past. He urges Ontario farmers
to be cautious and to resist the
urge to borrow major sums of
money simply to do more of the
same.
"Rather, current profits should be
used to reduce burdensome debt,
invest in new technologies, and
develop new ventures and market
opportunities which will be critical
for survival when prices drop.
Already, world wheat prices have
dropped substantially from recent
peaks."
Of special concern to farmers
should be the attack on the devel-
opment of biofuels, and other non-
food markets. Farmers and politi-
cians need to remember why bio-
fuels development occurred in the
first place. Biofuels provide an
environmentally neutral octane
enhancer for gasoline, reduce net
greenhouse gas emissions and
reduce oil imports for many coun-
tries.
Daynard agrees that the world
population continues to grow and
needs more food.
"However," he says, "the growth
is almost all in developing coun-
tries, and increased production
there, rather than increased
imports from us, is the most likely
source of the additional food need-
ed in future years.
"Grain producers in the western
world, especially Canada and the
United States, will continue to need
all of the market opportunities they
can muster."
"The use of renewable, bio -based
feed -stocks to partially replace
declining supplies of petroleum-
based products still makes com-
plete sense," Daynard says.
signed two limo heifers averaging 1493
lbs. selling to Ryding Regency for 95.25.
Francis Hunt of Walton consigned 15
heifers averaging 1251 lbs. selling for
an average of 92.34 with two char
heifers averaging 1293 lbs. selling to
Dominion Meat Packers for 95.
Tom Wylie of Durham consigned 27
heifers averaging 1144 lbs. selling for
an average of 92.45 with one limo heifer
weighing 1070 lbs. selling for 95.
James Wright of Kippen consigned
four heifers averaging 1279 lbs. selling
for an average of 94.11 with three limo
heifers averaging 1257 lbs. selling for
94.50.
Brian Bearss of St. Marys consigned
14 heifers averaging 1230 lbs. selling
for an average of 93.31 with eight gold
heifers averaging 1267 lbs. selling to
Ryding Regency for 94.25.
Cows
There were 378 cows on offer.
Beef Cows 53-60 sales to 64, D1 & D2
40-50, D3 30-40
Earl Reinhardt of Teeswater con-
signed one hol cow weighing 1425 lbs.
selling for 64.
Grant Pries of Ayton consigned six
cows averaging 1522 lbs. selling for an
average of 58.64 with one hol cow
weighing 1540 lbs. selling for 63.50.
Bulls
There were 22 bulls on offer 57-71.50
sales to 78.50.
Terry Richardson of Harriston con-
signed one blue bull weighing 2165 lbs.
selling for 78.50.
Jack Manz of Newton consigned one
blk bull weighing 1235 lbs. selling for
71.50.
Veal
There were 245 head of veal on offer.
Beef 95-130 with sales to 153, Good
Holstein 70-85 with sales to 90,
Medium Holstein 60-70, Plain & Heavy
Holstein Plain 45-60, Good heavy 70-
80
Sean Martin of Lucknow consigned
one char heifer weighing 690 lbs. selling
for 153.
Brian Wideman of Gowanstown con-
signed 10 veal averaging 721 lbs. selling
for an average of 125.26 with one limo
steer weighing 730 lbs. selling for 150.
Lambs
under 50 lbs. 182-212
50 - 65 lbs. 167-207
65 - 80 lbs. 153-192
80 - 95 lbs. 159-174
95 - 110 lbs. 162-171
110 lbs. and over 154-165
Sheep
40-76 with sales to 97
Goats
Kids - $40 - $70 per head with sales to
$85, Nannies - $50 - $100 per head with
sales to $120, Billies $150 - $250 per
head
Top Quality Stocker Steers
under 400 lbs. 102-135
400 - 500 lbs. 109.75-135
500 - 600 lbs. 108.04-127
600 - 700 lbs. 93.50-117
700 - 800 lbs. 96.50-115.25
800 - 900 lbs. 90-105.50
900 - 1000 lbs. 90-98.75
over 1000 lbs. 86-96.25
Top Quality Stocker Heifers
under 300 lbs. N/A
300 - 400 lbs. 107-112
400 - 500 lbs. 85-114
500-600 lbs. 93-108
600 - 700 lbs. 95-110
700 - 800 lbs. 87-102.50
800 - 900 lbs. 88-100
over 900 lbs. 84-97
St.Anne's receives provincial award
By Stew Slater
SPECIAL TO THE TIMES -ADVOCATE
DUBLIN - A scholarship
fund will be created for grad-
uating students entering agri-
culture -related apprentice-
ships or post -secondary stud-
ies, following the announce-
ment of a $5,000 provincial
award to St. Anne's Catholic
secondary school in Clinton.
The two-year old agricul-
ture -related Specialist High
Skills Major (SHSM) program
at St. Anne's was one of 55
recipients of the 2008 version
of the Premier's Award for
Agri -food Innovation
Excellence.
Huron -Bruce MPP Carol
Mitchell announced the win-
ners from Huron, Bruce, Grey
and Perth counties at a news
conference late last month.
The St. Anne's program
began as the sole agriculture -
related pilot project when
Ontario's Education Ministry
rolled out the Specialist High
Skills Major concept two
years ago. Others have since
been implemented in other
school boards.
According to Huron -Perth
Catholic education superin-
tendent Dan Parr, SHSM "set
out a pathway of courses
from Grade 9-12 that is
focused enough to prepare
students for a specific desti-
nation."
In the case of the St. Anne's
SHSM, that destination could
be apprenticeships in agricul-
ture -related fields, a move
directly into a farm career, or
qualifying for agriculture -
related programs at college
or university.
And the path taken by a St.
Anne's SHSM student
includes a few courses geared
specifically towards farm -
related subjects, several
courses of a more general
nature that have been
tweaked to include greater
relevance to agriculture,
some co-operative education
credits completed partially at
a workplace and some oppor-
tunities to participate in exte-
rior programs like the
Agriculture Ministry's pesti-
cide safety course.
At the SHSM program's out-
set, there were suggestions
the Education Ministry might
accept programs like 4-H or
the
pesticide safety course for full
or partial credit. That has not
become reality, but Parr says
that's fine.
"I think this really is a pret-
ty creative blend by the
Ministry of Education," he
said.
One thing that makes the St.
Anne's program so effective,
he explained, has been pro-
gram co-ordinator Sandy
Ennett's ability to attract
experts from various ele-
ments of the agriculture sec-
tor to come to the school for
sessions.
And winning the Premier's
Award for Agri -food
Innovation provides an assur-
ance that the approach is
working.
"It's evidence that the
broader community has con-
fidence in the program that
we began as a pilot two years
ago," the education superin-
tendent said.
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