The Rural Voice, 1991-11, Page 36NEWS
GOVERNMENTS LISTEN TO FARMERS' PLEAS, MONEY PLEDGED
Following separate announcements
by two levels of government in the past
several weeks, financial help is coming
for area grains and oil seed farmers.
Facing prices for their crops —
'wheat, barley, corn and soybeans —that
arc the lowest in 20 years, farmers have
been pleading with provincial and fed-
eral governments to come up with some
financial aid this fall or they won't be in
business next spring.
First off the mark was Ontario NDP
Agriculture Minister Elmer Buchanan.
He announced October 1 that the prov-
ince will find $35.5 million in new
money to help farmers make it through
the winter until two new income stabili-
zation programs kick in.
Buchanan's new package includes
five components: an additional $11 mil-
lion to the $50 million Farm Interest
Assistance Program introduced last
April to offset interest costs; $15 million
to eligible grain and oil seed farmers
equal to the costs of premiums they paid
into the provincial income stabilization
program for the 1990/91 crop year; $5
million to producers of edible horticul-
tural crops; $1 million to apple, onion,
honey and fur producers; and $3.5 mil-
lion to farmers in the drought areas of
Essex, Kent and Lambton counties.
"We recognize that money is not the
solution to all the problems pressing our
farms and farming communities, and we
know that money alone is not enough.
But I remain confident that this new
injection of money, coupled with the
cash flow which will result from the
interim Gross Revenue Insurance Plan
(GRIP) payout, will help bridge finan-
cially troubled farmers until next year,
when long-term programs take effect,"
Buchanan said.
"It's a clear recognition of the seri-
ous financial crisis being experienced
by farmers," said Roger George, presi-
dent of the OFA.
Buchanan pledged that he would not
let farmers go out of business this win-
ter. "I intend to intervene. They won't
lose their farms," he said. When asked
how far the province was willing to go to
prevent farm bankruptcies, Buchanan
said "as far as legally possible."
Dave Lowry of Ripley, one of the
32 THE RURAL VOICE
organizers of the grass roots organiza-
tion "line in the dirt" which started in
Huron and Bruce counties last month,
said the new provincial money would
"help a bit. But if $35 million was all we
needed to address the problem, then we
didn't have a problem," Lowry said.
Estimates of $124 million in support
are needed for Ontario, farmers were
told at the "line in the dirt" meeting of
1,000 farmers last month in Lucknow.
About 500 "line in the dirt" farmers
disrupted the opening of Agriculture
Canada's new regional office in Guelph
'bar 4. Neither federal Finance
Minister Don Mazankowski nor Agri-
culture Minister Don McKnight, who
were scheduled to open the facility,
showed up. Huron -Bruce MP Murray
Cardiff, who is McKnight's parliamen-
tary assistant, took flack from the pro-
test group
"We will deliver you something this
fall outside of the safety nets," said
Cardiff. "We want to work with you
people and get you a fair dollar for your
product.. That's a promise." "You're
lying to us," shot back some farmers,
while another yelled, "manure
spreader."
Meanwhile, the farmers' protest
movement is spreading across the Can-
ada. Stung by low commodity prices
caused by an international grain trading
war, 1,000 farmers protested in Miami,
Manitoba last month, followed by
gathering of about 3,000 in Rosetown,
Saskatchewan; a large tractor blockage
in Lethbridge, Alberta, and a demon-
stration of 7,000 at the Legislature in
Winnipeg.
Then on October 10, Federal Agri-
culture Minister Don McKnight an-
nounced an $800 million relief package
for grain farmers across Canada.
While farmers agreed the new
money will help, many say it won't go
very far to address the depressed prices
for wheat, spring grains, corn, and soy
beans, which were at 15 year lows. The
money won't come in time to save thou-
sands of Canadian farmers, who are now
on the edge of bankruptcy.
About 1,000 Ontario farmers from
six counties, still concerned that they'll
get their fair share of the new money,
gathered in Dresden October 15.
So far, there haven't been any indi-
cations of how or when the Federal
money will be paid out. All McKnight
would say was: "money will be in farm-
ers hands before seeding next spring."
McKnight said that of the new money,
$700 mill- .i .vill go to grain farmers,
and $100 million will go to producers of
horticultural crops.° By Jim Fitzgerald
$billion
3.5
3.0 -
2.5 -
2.0 -
1.5 -
1.0 -
0.5 -
0.0
Grain farmers in+cccir�cC :.
Net cash income from sales of grains and oilseed in Canada
D Government payments
• Market income
'81 '82 '83 '84 15 '88 '87 18 '89 '90 '91 •
• Forecast Source: Agriculture Canada