The Rural Voice, 2000-06, Page 66BRUCE
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website: www.ofa.on.ca/bruce
County Federation of Agriculture NEWSLETTER
446 10th St., Hanover, Ontario N4N 1P9
519-364-3050 or 1-800-275-9551
• The Rural Voice is provided to Bruce
County Farmers by the BCFA.
Farmers must correct non -farmers' misconceptions
Well, Spring has returned to rural
Ontario for real this time, not to be
confused with the false start we
experienced back in February. Once
again farmers are back on the land,
working steadily to get the crops in
the ground in the most advantageous
manner. Most of the planting
decisions made back in the winter
have now been put into action.
As I go through this annual Spring
ritual there is plenty of time to ponder
the challenges of farming. Farmers
seem to have more and more issues to
deal with. We've .always had to
contend with weather, disease and
pestilence, low commodity prices,
rising costs, etc. but now there is the
growing issue of being good
neighbours to our expanding urban
community.
At one time we were more in
touch with people in town, but now
fewer and fewer urbanites have a
grandfather or uncle on the farm, and
most know little about what we do in
agriculture. It may be tempting to
chuckle at some of the strange ideas
we hear, but there is a more sinister
element with which we must deal.
Recently I heard a gentlemen
phone in on a talk show that was
discussing food safety and the present
role of science and technology in
agriculture. His idea was that there
must be a conspiracy between
government (U.S.) and the large
corporate market of BST. His
contention was that because some
farmers were not able to market their
milk labelled "BST free", Monsanto
must have some politicians in their
back pocket. He cited "numerous
health problems and even death"
related to its use. The food safety
expert from the University of Guelph,
Doug Powell's response was yes he
had heard the conspiracy theories,
and in essence they were Internet
rumours. Arguing that labelling must
be meaningful and accurate, he
pointed to the fact that since BST is a
naturally occurring hormone, found
in all, milk, labelling as "BST free"
62 THE RURAL VOICE
was misleading and inaccurate.
Powell went on to say that the
product has been used for six years in
the United States with "absolutely no
problems linked to its use".
More interestingly the caller
believed that cows on the hormone
got udder infections and that these
infections therefore contributed to
breast cancer in women. To this man,
this was a logical extension. Really!
There isn't a dairy person around that
doesn't deal with udder infection
(mastitis) at some level and never has
such a connection been made. This
logic would say we could get lung
cancer from eating beef, from an
animal that perhaps had pneumonia
as a calf. This was probably the most
convoluted thinking expressed and
I'm reasonably confident it's
atypical, but one person's perception
can become the next person's reality.
Perhaps this man is the same person
who, as a boy of eight, was very sure
that acid rain would eat the hair off
his pet rabbit. However wrong
he may have been it was still his
reality.
Then there's the case of the older
couple who moved to the country to
enjoy their retirement years, and upon
seeing farmers spraying their fields,
concluded that every well around
must be contaminated. They
expressed their belief to a farm
neighbour. The farmer was too busy
at the time to address such thoughts
and did nothing to allay their fears.
Later in the summer as the farmer
was finishing the excavation of a
pond, the new neighbours found
themselves without water. They
quickly concluded that the digging of
the pond had drained their well.
Ridiculous? Well yes, but still it
was their reality. The blown pump
fuse was only an afterthought.
These are extreme examples used
only to point out the need for better
communication with our urban
neighbours and consumers. So what
can we do?
As individuals we can take time to
address misunderstandings and
misconceptions. We need to reach out
to the public and be visible in
positive ways. • Some of us who have
more direct contact with consumers
(i.e. farmers' markets) must
remember to represent agriculture as
a whole, not just our own little
corner. The farm perspective needs to
be put forward in the media at every
opportunity. We need to be proactive
and not just crisis reactive. School
farm tours can help put a positive
face on our industry.
Programs like Roots of Bruce and
similar programs in other counties are
invaluable. The recent Agri Food
Choices Camp 2000 at the University
of Guelph is an innovative approach
to get the next generation involved
with agriculture and associated
industries.
Take time to connect and have a
good summer.0
- Ken Holtby
Kincardine Thu , hip Director
BRUCE COUNTY FEDERATION OF
AGRICULTURE
Directors' Meeting
Monday, June 26, 2000 - 8:00 p.m.
Walkerton Library - Seniors' Room
Members are welcome to attend