The Rural Voice, 1998-04, Page 3R.V.
Editor: Keith Roulston
editorial advisory committee:
Bev Hill, farmer, Huron County
John Heard, soils and crop extension
and research, northwestern Ontario
Diane O'Shea, farmer, Middlesex Cty.
George Penfold, associate professor,
University of Guelph
Gerald Poechman, farmer, Bruce Cty.
contributing writers:
Gisele Ireland, Cathy Laird, Wayne
Kelly, Sarah Borowski,
Mary Lou Weiser -Hamilton, Ralph
Pearce, Susan Glover,
Bob Reid, Mervyn Erb, Darene
Yavorsky, Peter Baltensperger, Sandra
Orr, Carl L. Bedal, Kevin Shillinglaw
marketing & advertising sales manager:
Gerry Fortune
advertising representative:
Merle Gunby
production co-ordinator:
Joan Caldwell
advertising & editorial production:
Dianne Josling
Anne Harrison
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Behind the Scenes
People matter
There was something reassuring
about the conference in Shakespeare
called Stockmanship: The Art of
Swine Husbandry. In recent years the
emphasis, particularly in the swine
industry with the evolution of three -
site production, has been on
technology and systems. But this
meeting on the human and animal
side of the business, drew a packed
house, the largest attendance of any
of the sessions OMAFRA has spons-
ored at Shakespeare in the past few
years.
It was also interesting that Dr.
Peter English, keynote speaker, feels
the biggest potential for efficiency
gains in the swine industry in the next
20 years will come from finding ways
to teach stockmanship skills to more
people in the industry. He's working
on such a program at the University
of Aberdeen in Scotland. We have
extensive coverage of the conference.
People and animals werc also the
focus for Dave and Brenda Linton
whcn they began to design their own
dry -sow barn last year. They wanted
a pleasant atmosphere to work in for
themselves, and one good to live in
for their pigs. In our Profits in Farm
Building Construction section, we've
got the story of their research and
construction of their new barn and the
early results of the finished product.
Also in that section we talk to
some of the farm building companies
about the current state of the industry.
Building of another sort has been
going on with a group of western
Ontario Jersey producers. Five years
after the dream emerged, they have
produced the first cheese in their new
processing plant in Seaforth. It's been
a long and winding road. We talked
to Quality Jersey Products Ltd. pres-
ident Bruce Schmidt about the
experience.
At long last spring is here (on the
calendar at least) and planting dreams
abound. In her gardening column,
Rhea Hamilton Seeger talks about
one of the first flowers of summer,
the peony. Although the peony
bushes have been part of most farm
gardens for years and years, there are
exciting new developments.
Even if our own gardens aren't
producing yet, Ontario's greenhouses
arc and Bonnie Gropp looks at ways
to use greenhouse vegetables in her
recipe column.
Meanwhile, Patti Robertson visits
an elegant bed and breakfast and
witnesses some original decorating
ideas.0
Update
Win some, lose some
Back in April 1996, we featured a story on Grey County farmer and activist
Karl Brackcr. Brackcr has been dedicated in fighting for justice, often on behalf
of others — especially since becoming a farmer and getting involved in thc
Federation of Agriculture. Ironically, Brackcr has had success fighting on his
own behalf and failure trying to help others in the past couple of months.
On March 16, provincial Minister of Environment and energy Norm Sterling
travelled to Grey County to announce the province would pay to clean up a tire
dump on the farm next to Karl and Viki Brackcr. Back in 1990 he had found out
a huge tire dump had been established on the farm next door. He called in local
fire officials and the Ministry of Environment which agreed to bury thc tires to
prevent a disastrous fire. But the Brackcrs said that water tests showed the tires
had been breaking down and polluting the ground water. The Brackers launched
a lawsuit against the province. The government decided to remove the tires
though the suit has not been withdrawn.
Brackcr wasn't so successful on behalf of a local farmer whose tractor engine
was damaged by what he, and the Federation of Agriculture, felt was a design
fault which allowed water to enter the engine through the exhaust stack. An
earlier attempt to get help through the farm equipment board was rejected and
recently a small claims court case also went against thc farmer.0