The Huron Expositor, 1978-04-20, Page 17Letters ere ePcocitted by Bob Trotter. Wale Elmink:ptit N3B 2C7 •
Defending marketing boards
A couple of weeks ago, I took time out in'this column
to defend Canada's — and particularly Ontario's — farin
marketing boards.
Half a dozen letters arrived from articulate farmers
across the province congratulating me and asking for
more reasons"vhy marketing boards should be defended.
Why farmers should be asking me for reasons is beyond
me. They should know enough' about their, own boards
offer their own defence. But here are-nonce more good
reasons why I feel farmers should be fighting.
In the first place, I doubt if farmers would have found
it necessary to organize selling if the big busineSs 'con-
glomerates hadn't, organized buying. When 85 per 'cent
of the broilers, for instance, in Quebec are raised by
five or six vertipally-integrated operators, the independ-
ent farmer is forced to do something.
Feed companies across Ontario have done the same
thing. They really are not interested in making a big
profit on their hogs or their turkeys or .their chickens or
their steers. They are interested in making a profit on
their feed. Huge volumes are needed to make money in..
feed. So they got into competition with the same people
they are supposed,,to be serving.
And the farmers are forded to organize.
Other.-.big businesses control everything from the time
--it leaves the farm gate until it gets to the consumer and
the farmer is all alone, dealing with corporations too big
'to find a boss.
"Let's 'face, it,": a friend_otinine; who; is also in. the
feed business, said to me recently. "You knew as well .
as I do that marketing .boards keep the inefficient oper-
ator in business."
Now, I flinnrdiately mistrust—someone who Starts a
sente)ice, with let's face it because you know it • is prob-
ably ....something he will not face. I'm sure he would not
make such a statement if his broilers weren't controlled
by a feed company.
The hard facts' belie the, staternent. Since the Ontario
Milk Marketing Board came into existence, t1 number
of milk producers has almost been cut in half and the
'number continues to decline, If marketing boards pre.;
tected the 4nefficient, would so man.y. milk poroducers have
quit?
'The evidence 'shows, 'too, that despite'a fruit marketing
board, the production of peaches in Ontario has dropped
from million pounds a decade or more ago to less
than 15 million pounds today.
If Iheliiefficient producer was being kept in -buSiness
by marketing boards, would the number of 'farmers , be
dwindling every year? ft just doesn't add up.
Any suggestion that a stabilization plan ' be "Worked
out with the senior levels of government in. charge
doesn't make sense- .to me, I would rather see farmers
in charge of their own destiny than more "income stabil-
ization" plans which, so far, have been a bit of a laugh. ' -
Can a group of bureaucrats who are politically directed
and inspired be expected to examine objectively and just-
ify planned programs ona sound cost/benefit basis?
`We would surely be naive if we were to answer -that
question affirmatively. Any bureaucracy' must be sensi-
tive to the political reality on which it exists. Its decisons,
plans and programs must be politically acceptable to
the minister who heads up any particular department.
"Consequently, one , cannot, one must not, depend upon
that bureaucracy to produce commercially-sound, long-
range plans that have as their base, the needs of the
market plaee.
"OtUwa's isolation from Canadian_ reality; its depend-
ence on acceptable- politicial decisions, appears much
more remarked-than is the case with their proVindial
counterparts."
So much for fartn income stabilization. Do you know
who said it? Frank Warn, president of M. Loeb
Limited, a firm which cofifrols all IGA markets in Can-
ad
If
orward-thinking man like,Frank Warnock who
made .these statements at the annual marketing seminar
sponsored by the Rural Learning Association .can
,make such positive statements, then I suggest market-
ing boards are .here to stay. Until somebody . with a
better idea and can sell it to farmers of-this nation.
Fanami
THE HURON
,
XPOS TOR, APRIL 2O, i 11
V
y f6rms tax
OMA schedule, or .even aboNce
schedule, provided that they 'tell
their patients before treatment.
OHIP 'Iron reimburses the
patients to a . maximuin of 90 per
cent. of Schedule.. Doctors-in the
plan cannot bill patients..fot' the
extra 10 .: per cent or More...
• When the OMA schedule is no
longer used as'the baSis 'of OHIP
payments, opted-out doctors will
• •
bill patients according to the
OMA fee schedule. and those in
the plan will bill on 'the basis of
the' new* OHIP schedule. of
.penefits to "come into force next
May 1,• 'This will be roughly
6-1/4 per .cent more .than. the
existing, OMA - schedule
(approved May 1, 197,7) which is.
being'used as the starting point.
A six-month reduction in, retail
sales taxes which is part of the
federal budget package will Mean
a six-month reduction' from 7 pet-
The Clinton' police force are
"going to bb eracking down on
,drivers who h'aven't buckled up.
Lloyd Westlake, Clinton chief
of police, has announced that
drivers not wearing their seat-
belts will be fined in the future.
Seat belt legislation was in-
troduced by' the provincial gov-
ernment Over a year-and-a half-
ago and recently the Ontario
-1 W.D. Hopper
and Sons
4 MODERN ROTARY I.
RIGS .
PHONE • Neil 527-1737
Durl 527-0828
Jim 527-0775 '
cent to 4 per cent in, Ontario. and 'meads the reduction will have
a loss of revenue of $433 million. about the same effect on the
Two-thirds of it' is made up to' provincial treasury. as, a direct.
Queen's Park by the • Federal sales tax cut from 7 to 5 per. cent.
Government. The share paid by
Ottawa, about $289 million: r
iliVater . Well]
Police Commission informed. all
provincial and' municipal police
chiefs', ..that seat belt us age
legislation ' should be put into
effect immediately.
I
Clinton says buckle up DRILLING'
Motorists caught without their I
seatbelts faslened while driving
in Clinton will be fined $28. and
this applies to bath drivers' and I
their passengers. -
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The recent federal blidget
offered a' special plitm for cOners
of incorporated family farms.'
Effective immediately, the in-
corporated family farm will re-
ceive the same tax break as the
smaller farmer when it comes to
transferring ndsafuegr rhitnegr
daughters.
farm property to sons
or
. Until now, the "Tax-free roll-
over!: has .' applied only to
bonafide• farmers rather than
incorporated family operations.
e • Under the new law, the rollover
will co ver transfers to children of
shares and interests in the farm.
coporations or .partnerships.
The federal budget defined
qualifiers as those corporations or
pgtherships carrying on farm
'businesses in Canada who put
nearly all assets into the bus-
iness, and with one or more
family members actively engaged
in running the farm.
Mike Miller, assistant ag rep
.
for Huron County, said the new
law will likely affect 100 in-
corporated farms in the.. county.
He said according to the 1976'
k, census, there were 97 incorporat-
ed farms in Huron County. •
Mr. ,Miller said the new law
may not be as dramatic a reform
as it seems since many' farmers
incorporated their holdings with
the idea of estate planning
anyway.
_In. addition. to the capital-gains
tax breatD, the budget also_
allowed for the transfer of quotas
• among partners in an incorporat
ed farm.
Mr. Miller said the quptt,
transfer may prove even more
significant than the tax breaks.
He said currently quotas are
essentially given to one , person.
Mr. Miller said the question
facing farmers nowis whether the
quota transfer will be a one-shot
deal or whether it can be used
again.
For example, can a farmer give
his son one-third of his' Milk quota
now and one-third later, with the
son assuming the final third on
his father's death.
Mr. Miller said farm'ers will
-have to wait and see what sort of
provision has beeri made under
the new law 'regarding quota
transfers..
'Mi. Miller added thek;OaPital
gains tax break may encourage
farmers who have been consider-
Rig incorporation to go ahead with
i h e,i r plans.
Ross Proctor, of Bodmin
Farms, an incorporated farming
operation in the 'Brussels area,
said the tax. reform was long
overdue.
Mr. Proctor said a, good many
farmers are incorporating Totay
and the current reform will bring
the tax situat* them up-to-
date.
Harry ney, a Lethbridge,
Alberta mer visiting at Bodmin
Farms, = s been involved in the
proble• Of dividing , an in- ,
corporated farm among family
members for some time.
Mr. Haney said the future of
their family farm, a partnerShip
between his father'and uncle, was
in jeopardy before the passage of
the :capital gains -tax reform-
The farmer said the two brother
-wanted to, divide their-farming
operation -among-nterrib-ers-of-the
next generation.
Earlier this year, the govern-
ment passed Bill C-11, an a-
;,inendmptit to the. tax , act which
allowed for a division of assets
betCeen existing partners in an
incorporated business with a
deferment..of the capital' gains
tax.
Although'. Bill C-11 was an
improvement over previous tax
laws, it still-didn't allow for an
incorporated farm to be divided
among members of the next
generation without paying the
capital gains tax.
Mr, Haney said in the case' of
his family's business, 31 uer cent
of the value of the farm'I assets
mould have to be paid in taxes to
bander the farm to the next
generation
Mr. Haney said his family
vvould, have had to sell the
farming operation, "bring in the
Hatterites and have an auction
sale." • •
The tag reforni• now. allows
rollover to the the next geriPration
and deferment of the Capital gains
tax which will keeP the Haney
operation in the family,
Mr. Haney said he believes the
reform came about partly from
• significant pressure on the.
government from MPS from
Western Canada.
The farmer said Donald Mac
donald, the former finance minis-
ler, was not in favor of dividing
incorporated family farms due to
potential tax abuses.
However, Mr. Haney said Jean
Chretien, the:present minister of
finance, proved more receptive to
the idea. •
The farmer added there will
still be problems for government
officials in policing legitimate
divisions versus those; who divide
businesses solely to ,receive tax
Ivnefits.
Although the problem of divis-
ion of a family business have been
solved for farmers, Mr. Haney
said, "after a fair bit of study, it
seems to us that the capital gains
tax laws really allow large com-
panies to stag large companies
and prevent small-, companies
from ever becoming large."
He said the capital gains laws
deata death blow to many small
businesses when_taxes have to be
paid every time the business
passes from one .generation to the
next:
Mr. Haney said captial gains'
.taxes are still "a *killer to the
small bitsines.!'
P1x4'4t,
HURON 478
September 26 30, 1978
HURON COUNTY
•
Report from . Queen's Park
Committee still studying OHIP
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Call. Zenith 82110, leaving name,
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4-cycle Briggs & Stratton
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Fully baffled .•.. non-
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5-HP TILLER WITH
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7CG39
Stamped Meet teas case. 3-step chain same. kit, Heave. duty See shalt.
By Murray Gaunt , ,
Opposition Members lot' the
Legislature Committee-studying
OHIPpremitim increases,accused
Health Minister Timbtell of
giving the Copmittee a document
LW had been altered or tampered
. with to conceal opposition within
• the Ministry to increasing.ficalth"
premiums. ,
The 'document was a responSe
by, Ministry staff. to 'a report On •
ways of controlling health costs:
Under threat of subpoetia by the.
Committee, Mr, Timbrcll reluc-
tantly' produced two pages which
had been removed froM the
original doeurnent and replaced
with a ' letter from Ontario
Treasurer Darcy McKeough
defending, his decision to raise the'
premiums by 37.5%.
- The original pages included a
strong. attack on the concept of
health insurance premiums,:
terMing • •t hem regressive and'.
eostly to administer.
li is interesting to note that -the
report of a joint adVisory.
committee •on medical Costs 'no
• year said "those who are, self.
-----7-trrstriiiingslioold-partheir-way"
and the government should study
those now exempt 'frtini paying
O1-Ill" premiums to sec how many
could afford to pay them. The
Health Ministry's "proposed
response" was that irsupported
the principle of means testing and
endorsed the idea that those who
mild- afford to, pay for OHIP
should do so. •
Meanwhile. physiciiins in
, Ontario will receive an average
fee increase of 6-1/4 91: on May 1
from the provincial health
insurance plan, according to
Health Minister Dennis Timbrell.
Mr. Timbre]] told the Legisla-
ture that the increase will cover
the period ending' December 31
and "complies with • both the .
letter and spirit" of the federal
Anti,:Inflatien Board guidelines.
Negotiations are to begin in May
for a 1979 payment schedule.
Until now, the Government has
paid physicians who participate in
the health insurance plan 90 per
cent of the OMA schedule. •
Physicians who opt out of OHIP
may, charge 100 per cent of the
SHIPPER
. to
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.OF ONTARIO
LIVESTOCK
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If