The Rural Voice, 1983-03, Page 22IN THE NEWS
VOMITOXIN LEVEL
PROBLEM IN WHEAT
Don MacKay, district director of the
Huron County Wheat Producers gave an
overview of the production and market-
ing of the 1982 crop at their annual
meeting held in Clinton. Besides the
15% decrease in crop seeded for the
1982 season due to bad weather, last
year's crop was further reduced by
winterkill damage. In Kent, Lambton
and Essex damage was as high as 90%.
Huron County growers produced the
highest yields - an average of 54
bushels/acre.
Moist conditions during the growing
season caused excessive amounts of
vomitoxin. Processors, wary of Ontario
wheat without some confirmation of
safety from the Health and Welfare
Ministry, turned to soft wheat from
western Canada to mix with Ontario
wheat and bring vomitoxin levels down
to an allowable amount for human
consumption.
The marketing board is concerned
that the allowable vomitoxin level is far
too harsh and Ontario winter wheat may
have difficulty regaining the domestic
market it has lost to the "safe" western
wheat. This is a cause of great concern
for two reasons: wheat sold for domes-
tic human consumption ($212./tonne)
usually brings $80. to $90./tonne more
than sales on the export market ($115. -
$130./tonne), and at present the inter-
national grain market is depressed
making the sale of suspect wheat all
the more difficult. Because of lagging
sales. the marketing board has encoun-
tered problems with its usual program
of short term storage at terminals. All
in all, the greater carrying costs due to
higher interest and extended storage,
and the $8 to $9 million that went
unrealized in the traditional market
mean wheat producers will not be
receiving an interim payment.
Bob Holmes, from St. Pauls, the 1st
vice-chairman of the provincial board,
elaborated on some of the points
brought up by MacKay. At the annual
meeting of the provincial board, mem-
bers received verbal support from
Eugene Whelan that farmers alone
should not carry the losses for the
strict vomitoxin levels. Whelan has or-
ganized a committee to determine the
exact losses incurred by the board, but
definite arrangements for payment
haven't been discussed. The provincial
board hopes to meet with Whelan
within the next few weeks. As Don
MacKay mentioned, the provincial board
has been pushing for a change in the
vomitoxin restrictions. and plan to
organize a meeting with Ag Canada.
Health and Welfare and OMAF where
they hope to make some progress
towards increasing vomitoxin limits.
Holmes also promoted on-farm stor-
age as a means of reducing pressures
on storage at harvest time. while warn-
ing that farmers who did so, risked
their wheat being a lower grade when it
went to market. This prompted one
producer to move that the district
committee ask for an increase in on-
farm storage payments. Holmes also
touched briefly on the problems inher-
ent in trying to segregate stocks accor-
ding to grade and quality, but did not
discount the idea entirely.
On winter wheat diseases, John
Heard mentioned that some incidents of
the virus "yellow dwarf". commonly
associated with barley, had been found
in wheat fields this past fall. The yellow
discolouration begins at leaf tips and
progresses downward, and patches of
plants may eventually be affected, re-
sulting in stunting or improper heading
of the wheat plants.
The remainder of Heard's talk cen-
tered on head scab. This head blight,
caused by Fusarium graminaerum, at-
tacks the wheat plant in the 10 to 12
days that follow flowing. If the weather
is moist during this period. the results
are kernels that are shrivelled or com-
pletely lacking. and a bleached head
that often appears as premature ripen-
ing. Not only does F. graminaerum
reduce yields, it also creates the harm-
ful vomitoxin. Because grasses, small
grains and corn can act as hosts for
this fungus. and because the spores are
wind -and water -borne, control is diffi-
cult. Weed grasses should be controlled
in and around the field. Studies have
shown greater amounts of head scab in
wheat fields that followed sod, any
wheat sown into wheat, barley or corn
fields is likely to have problems, and
should be avoided. All grain and corn
trash should be completely buried.
The following committeemen were
elected: Chairman Ray Winter, Listowel;
Secretary/Treasurer Evert Ridder, God-
erich; Murray Dawson. Hensall; Maurice
Hallahan, Belgrave; Glen Miller, Park-
hill; Stephen Miller, Dashwood; Hugh
Rundle. Centralia; Barry Taylor, Clinton.
by Shelly Paulocik
MpKOWAY FARMS'
*YORKSHIRES
• LANORACE
•DUROC
Wayne Fear and Sons
PG. 22 THE RURAL VOICE, MARCH 1983
PERFORMANCE TESTED
Quality swine, performance tested, health
approved gilts and boars from a herd with
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x Hamp boars, also commercial gilts.
Contact
Wayne Fear
MONOWAY FARMS
1 mile east of Highway 4 on Huron Road #16
Brussels Phone 887-6477