The Rural Voice, 1979-06, Page 37Advice on Farming
Dead animals
complaints increase
The Veterinary Services Branch of the
Ministry of Agriculture and Food has
recently received several complaints re-
garding the improper disposal of dead
animals. O.J. Lutes, the Branch's super-
visor of The Dead Animal Disposal Act,
says that the substa ntially higher price
now being paid for cattle hides has
prompted a number of cattle owners to skin
their dead animals. However. as many
dead animal collectors are unwilling to pick
up skinned carcasses, cadavers are being
moved to inconspicuous areas on farms
and left'on the surface of the ground.
Such unsatisfactory disposal, besides
being illegal, produces an environmental
problem and encourages the spread of
animal diseases.
The Dead Animal Disposal Act requires
the owner of a dead animal to dispose of it
within 48 hours of its death. It must either
be buried with a covering of at least two
feet of earth, or be removed by a person
licensed as a collector under the Act.
As the owner of dead animals cannot
expect a collector to pick up animals that
have been skinned, he must be prepared to
bury the carcasses in accordance with the
law. Mr. Lutes requests the cooperation of
all livestock owners in ensuring that dead
animals are disposed of properly.
Attention
dreamers!
Program provides grants
Innovative farmers don't have to keep
their inventions locked in their imagin-
ations. A number of Ontario farmers have
turned their dreams into working projects
through the Innovator Incentive Program.
This federal program, administered
provincially, provides up to 50 per cent of
the cost for innovative technological
development related to the feed and grain
sectors.
"The program was established because
we realized the need for this type of
practical on-farm study," says Howard
Nodwell, project coordinator for the
Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food.
In the two years of the program, about 20
farmers have received grants ranging from
$4,000 to the allowable $10,000 maximum
toward innovative projects.
"Farmers participating in the program
must present a detailed proposal for the
intended project," says Mr. Nodwell.
"These projects must be innovative and
that means you can't buy the idea off a
shelf."
Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and
Food engineers and extension specialists
provide technical assistance and guidance
to the farmers. Projects are evaluated, and
measurements are taken regularly to
determine the economic feasibility of each
project.
"Because of increasing concerns about
energy, and dissatisfaction with the
equipment available, many of the projects
are looking into alternate energy sources,"
says Mr. Nodwell.
One farmer near Brussels constructed a
solar collector on the roof of his farrowing
barn to heat the barn.
There are also a number of projects
experimenting with solar energy to reduce
the costs of gram drying. One imaginative
farmer is using a heat exchanger to warm
the one million ducks his farm produces
each year.
More information about the Innovator
Program can be obtained from agricultural
representatives at local offices of the
Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food.
Ag museum highlights
Ontario's first industry
Ontario residents can now visit a
museum that's different. It's a living
museum that shows the evolution of the
province's first industry - agriculture.
The Ontario Agricultural Museum,
operated by the Ontario Ministry of
Agriculture and Food, is located on a 32
hectare (80 -acre) sit beside the Niagara
• •I
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•
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•
THE RUHAL VOICE/JUNE 1979 PG. 35