The Lucknow Sentinel, 1985-08-14, Page 1BEST ALL ROUND COMMUNITY
NEWSPAPER IN CANADA
(Circulation Class under 2200) .
C.C.N,A. Better Newspaper Competition 1985
The Lncknow Branch of the Royal'Canad Legion presented the villagebranch of the
BruceCounty Library -with ' a copy of the egion book celebrating the •organization's. 60th
year. Bud Thompson, right, is Branch 309 Jubilee chairman, Fran McQuail bolds the
Volume, Joan Livingston' is public relations .officer and Len Clarkeis the branch'S:president.
(Photo by James Friel)'
rU -
Price drop stirs concern.
Area beef farmers are concerned that the
drastic reduction in beef prices may force
'some of the industry's farmers to go out of
business.
"It's hurt a lot of farmers in the area and
implement dealers and farm .suppliers are
going to' be hurt too," said Toro Helm of
Ashfield Township. He managed to sell his
animall.before the price drop but said that
Many . farmers, holding on to their cattle
seeking the prices speculated aboutin the
spring; have flooded the market with
animals 50 to 80 pounds over their usual
weight, adding to the problem..
"You certainly get hurt when your net
worth. is going out the Window," said Neil
Stapleton, a farmer from outside Dungan-
non .and a past president, of the Huron
County Cattlemen's Association.
He feels that while the market has begun
to turn around for the farmer, the drop has
been:a severe financial blow to many of
them. He mentioned that an • indicator of
the desperation somefarmers are feeling, is
revealed in the number of young heifers
and cows fattened for slaughter this year.
The substantial, increase in the' number of
females slaughtered could result in a sn%all
calf crop next spring., That would help
adjust., the .current problem.
In the last month beef prices have
Gary Kerr and his team give, their all at the Dungannon Fun Day
August 11, a warm up for the Dungannon Fair to be held August 16
dropped 22 cents a kilogram (10 cents a •
pound) although the market on August 9 •
offered farmers some hope with an encour-
aging rise. .
However, .the long-term price drop, 20
per cent since January, 1985, has forced
farmers to tryto develop long-range
solutions for the industry's woes. . '
One of the problems; according to
fanners and Canadian Cattlemen's Assoc- •
iation executive vice-president Charles
Graney, is that the 'country is accepting
large quantities of Europeanbeef, with a
potential total hovering around 90 million
kilograms (200 million pounds). .The
European Economic Council heavily sub-.
sidizes European fanners and some of
those funds go to shipping 'cattle to
Canada.
The cattlemen suggest a countervailing
duty be slapped on the EEC product,
thereby limiting the alinost 1,000 steers
entering this country from : Europe per
week and giving the Canadian 'market a
more stable arena to rover in. .
A . second idea is to form a fund,
contributed to by federal and provincial
.governmentssand the cattlemen tilemsely.
. es. This income stabilization fund would be
available foarthe farmers to delve;into when
the Market is down and limit the numberof .
bankruptcies in the industry.
Stapleton' is . enthusiastic about the
potential of such a' fund. He sees the
program as a method for Ontario fanners
to equalize someof the subsidization given
to cattlemen in other' provinces.
"I don't know the actual details," he
cautioned, "but I do know .that. Quebec has
quite a lucrative program, even helping •
with expansion. Saskatchewan and Mani-
toba also have' centive :programs."
If long-term Orograms are not devised,
there may be repercussions throughout the
.beef industry. "I guess less beef will have
to be raised to keep with domestic needs,"
said Helm, „ which,. would mean fewer
farmers to raise cattle.
OPP charge
gingham man
A Wingham than 'was' charged "with. •.
criminal negligence causing death, crimin-
al negligence causing injuries, failing to
stop for police and driving while under
suspension following ari accident in which
a Kincardine detachment Ontario Provin-
• ciali Police officer and two teenagers were
killed. . i •
Kevin Koehler, 20 of Wingham was
charged August 8 after a high speed chase
ended with a .vehicle broadsiding the
cruiser in which Constable Donald Camp-
bell, 24 and driver William O'Sullivan'were •
making a U-turn on Highway 9 east of
Kinloss:
Also killed in the accident were Hellen
Wattam, 17, a mother of two, who was to
be married later that same day and
Christine Lindsay, 16, of Honeywood.
Injured in the accident were Constable
O'Sullivan, Koehler, brother of the dead
woman's husband -to -be, and Tammy
Downey, 12 of Badjeros, Wattam's cousin.
17. The Queen of the Dungannon Fair for 1985 was also selected. A court date has yet to be Set.
(Photo by James Friel) '