The Rural Voice, 1979-12, Page 21Rural News in Brief
Barrie new OFA president
Ralph Barrie 51, has been acclaimed
president of the 23,000 member Ontario
Federation of Agriculture at the OFA
convention on this week in Toronto. Mr.
Barrie replaces Peter Hannam, who announ-
ced his resignation last week. Ralph Barrie
was serving his third term as the first vice
president of the OFA. He is a dairy and
beef farmer near Perth, Ontario in Lanark
County.
After being acclaimed to the presidency,
Mr. Barrie said, "This will be the most
challenging year of my life, following in the
footsteps of Peter Hannam."
Mr. Barrie was very involved in the
Balderson Cheese Factory in Balderson.
He was president of the factory for four
years during the mid -1960's during which
time the factory underwent a major
rebuilding program.
Mr.Barrie has been an OFA director for
over six years. He served as second
vice-president for two years during which
period he was also on the Canadian
Federation of Agriculture board of Direc-
tors.
In announcing his resignation prior to
the convention39-year old Peter Hannam,
a Guelph grain farmer, said he was
stepping down to "encourage new talent"
in the organization, the largest general
farm organization in the province.
Mr. Hannam took over as OFA president
in 1976 from long-time president Gordon
Hill of Varna.
Crop Insurance
Commission defrauded
Kenneth Beverley Wright, 33, of R.R.2,
Seaforth, was convicted in provincial court
recently of attempting to defraud the Crop
Insurance Commission of Ontario of
$4,162.88 by making a fraudulent claim to
the commission for his 1978 white bean
crop.
This is the first time a case of attempted
fraud against the Crop Insurance
Commission has come to trial in the 13
years of the commission's history.
The accused was charged with selling
38,700 pounds of his own white beans to
the Ontario Bean Grower's Co-operative in
Seaforth under the name of Gordon Dale,
R.R.4, Clinton. The crown charged when
Mr. Wright filed his crop loss report on his
white bean yield in 1978 with the crop
commission, he didn't notify the
commission of the sale of these beans.
The crown said Mr. Wright should have
claimed crop insurance for only 7,106
pounds of white beans, instead of for the
45.806 pounds which were the subject of
his claim.
Mr. Wright told the court he had put the
beans in Mr. Dale's name in payment for
custom work Gordon Dale had done on his
farm in the spring and that the matter
slipped his mind when filling out the yield
loss report in November, 1978.
Judge Carter said, "I cannot accept the
accused's evidence that 38,000 pounds of
beans that he had harvested and put in
Gordon Dale's name. . . . had never
crossed his mind."
In finding the accused guilty he said, "1
am satisfied the accused had both the
intent to defraud and acted upon that
intent by signing the yield loss form."
The judge said he didn't see any
problem in farmers paying another farmer
with produce, "as long as the proper
government authorities" are notified of the
transaction. He said the Crop Insurance
Commission was the proper authority in
this case.
Walter Bain, area manager in the
Stratford Office of the Crop Insurance
Commission, said in an interview following
the trial, that the case "will certainly set a
precedent for the commission."
He said there were other cases in the
province that the commission was still
investigating, and some of those might also
come to trial. He said, "We still have some
right in this immediate area that we're
looking at." The area covered by Mr.
Bain's office includes Huron, Bruce, Perth,
Waterloo and part of Oxford and
Middlesex counties.
Mr. Bain said, "99.9 per cent of farmers
are honest and it's unfair to those who are
trying to do the right thing to have this (the
attempted fraud) happen."
The area manager said the Crop
Insurance Commission now insures ap-
porximately 38 different crops grown in
Ontario.
Mr. Wright will be sentenced on Dec.
11. His defence lawyer, Robert Rogerson of
Stratford, said following the trial that an
appeal is "under consideraton."
Farm severances
causes problems
Provincial Agriculture Minister Lorne
Henderson is encouraging severances on
the best agricultural land and is creating
concern among Those who want to save the
farmlands, Huron -Middlesex M.P.P. Jack
Riddell recently told the legislature.
Henderson has recently been quoted as
saying that too many rural communities are
outlawing severances that would allow a
retired farmer to have a second home onthe
farm while his children take over the
operation.
"These statements condoning re-
sidential severances contradict the govern-
ment's own policy statement," Riddell
said.
Housing Minister Clauda Bennett, who
has ultimate authority over severances
through the Planning Act said he under-
stands what Henderson "has been saying
in his leniency toward severances." The
government has tried to assess severance
applications based on whether there is an
appropriate use of the land. Henderson's
remarks follow the government's line of
thinking, he said.
Bennett added that a few years ago, the
government was cnticized tor being too
restrictive in allowing farmers to have
severances on their property. He then said
that some municipalities have not ex-
ercised "the greatest degree of good
judgment" on severance matters.
Henderson said he had been quoting
from the foodland guide on the issue of
severances and the opposition had never,
object to the guide's wording.
THE RURAL VOICE/DECEMBER 1979 PG. 19