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The Citizen, 1991-07-31, Page 15THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JULY 31,1991. PAGE 15. Corn, bean crops still showing remarkable progress Com crops continue to do well in Huron County, Allan McCallum, Crops specialist with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food office in Clinton reports. Double ears of com are standard this year, Mr. McCallum reports. Prior to Monday's showers, areas /along the lakeshore required more \moisture but inland areas weren't showing stress. In soybeans the story is also good, he reports. Earliest fields are fully podded. Weed escapes are a problem especially in later planted fields. There are scattered inci­ dences of inoculant failure. In edible beans, there are numer­ ous sightings of Mexican bean bee­ tle. Damage is scattered and light with only a few growers requiring control measures. Bacterial blight is evident in most fields and may have a significant effect on seed growers, Mr. McCallum reports. Heavy crop foliage and adequate soil moisture al the bud stage have growers worried about another white mold outbreak. The winter wheat harvest is essentially complete. Some hard red winter wheat remains to be har­ vested. The quality of the crop has been good but the yields just aver­ age. The barley crop is close to har­ vest with the odd field swathed, awaiting combining, Mr. McCal­ lum reports. Quality of the forage crop is good but yields quite varied as the second cut hay harvest comes off. Some farmers have completed the second cut harvest while others are just starling. Farm problems are yours too Farm By Jim Fitzgerald Because of the declining number of farmers in our society and the increasing complexity of the food processing and handling system, there is less contact now than at any other time in the past between the community and individual producers, even here in Huron, the top agriculture producing county in all of Ontario. Many of you may have read or heard about the “state-of-emergency” declared earlier this month by farm groups as they seek more government assistance to soften the blow from prices for some commodities that are at historic lows. This year has been disastrous for growers of com, soybeans, and winter wheat, as Canadian farmers get caught in the crossfire of an international trade war between the United States and the European Economic Community. And nowhere is this devastation more obvious than in Huron County. The public perception of Huron is that we think of it as a “rural county” because there are no large urban areas. But in truth, a recent background report for the Huron County study shows that today a large part of the population of 56,000 are considered urban, with 42.4 per cent living in towns and villages. Most of the population growth in the last five years — 6.73 per cent — has been in the towns. In the rural areas, although the rural population has remained relatively stable, the non-farm rural population has grown considerably recently and now makes up almost two-thirds of the rural population. These figures graphically illustrate how the farm economy over the past generation has dramatically changed the composition of our rural areas and the social institutions that it supports, as prices have failed to keep up with input costs. The resulting fallout (good or bad, depending on which side of the fence you're on) has forced many smaller farming operations out of business or amalgamated them into larger operations as families sold out and the land was added to a nearby operation. Partially because market pressures and gains due to technological improvements and efficiencies, livestock operations too have become much larger, with fewer people raising more animals. As well, agriculture-related industries have declined. As of 1986, only 19 per cent of workers in Huron were employed in agriculturally related jobs, compared to 25 per cent in 1971. Much of this can be related to the near lack of profitability in most of the agriculture sector over the past 20 years. With the exception of those in the dairy and feather industries who enjoy supply management and steady returns for their time and investment, other commodities have suffered increasingly smaller returns. Nowhere is that more evident than in the examples of returns from three major crops grown in the area, particularly in the last 10 years. A chart tracking the average price of those commodities versus the increasing cost to produce those crops is very revealing. This summer, as of July 17 (and there has been a slight improvement since) crop prices have hit rock bottom, with com selling for $90 per tonne, soys for $210 per tonne, and wheat for $75 per tonne, the lowest in 15 years. However, when you consider the cost to produce these has risen steadily every year, the resulting squeeze has many farmers wondering whether they'll be able to stay in business. Taking 1981 as a benchmark for instance, costs to grow the crops have risen 131 per cent in the past 10 years, while the returns have plummeted. In 1981, the price of com was $117 per tonne (which was below the 15 year average) and if the farmer was just to stay even with inflation, they should be receiving $153. Soys should be at $347, and wheat should be at $230. Sure, some of the shortfall will be made up from government subsidies, but because government payments (which at best only cover 80 per cent of the crop) are based on a rolling five or 15 year average crop prices, the level of support continues to spiral downward. And much of that government assistance won't come for the better part of a year, as the crop year doesn't end until August or September of 1992, after which average prices have to be calculated, enrollment forms sent out, then checked and audited. All that delays payments for another three to six months, which means a cash flow crises for farmers who have money borrowed al the bank and are trying to put food on their tables. What does that mean to the local economy in the terms of dollars and cents? In grain com for instance, a dollar a bushel difference in Huron which grows almost 17 million bushels of com (1989 statistics) means millions of dollars that doesn't come in to the county for farm machinery, cars, furniture and hundreds of other products and services (just look al what it’s done to our main streets in Clinton and Seaforth.) Our farmers grow about 2.5 million bushels of soys and about 4 million bushels of winter wheat. Add to that low prices for spring grains, white beans, and other market­ sensitive commodities such as beef and hogs and you can see the devastating effect lower farm incomes have on the prosperity of our region. And even though consumers are told that farmers are getting heavy subsidies, you can see they have fallen far short of what's needed and dramatically changed our rual society. And unless things start to change, our rural areas are facing a bleak future. Prices at Brussels sale hold steady last week Sales at Brussels Livestock for the week ending July 26 were: slaughter cattle, 418; cows, 131; veal and calves, 184; lambs and goats, 84; pigs, 70; stockers, 200. There were 285 steers on offer selling from $86.07 to $89.90 to the high of $93.25. Twenty-five steers consigned by John Barbour, Orangeville averaging 1229 lbs., sold for $90.04 to the high of $93.25. Forty-four steers consigned by W. B. Pletch Co., Ltd., Rock­ wood, averaged 1200 lbs. and sold for $88.62 to the high of $92.75. Thirty-four steers consigned by Cunningham Farms, Lucan, aver­ aged 1265 lbs. and sold for $86.44 to the high of $89.90. Four steers consigned by Allan Becker, Ayton averaged 1255 lbs. and sold for $86.12 to the high of $86.50. Thirty-six steers consigned by Bill Hayden, Goderich, averag­ ing 1289 lbs. sold for $86.06 to the high of $86.90. Eight steers con­ signed by Ron Codlin, Grand Val­ ley, averaging 1269 lbs. sold for $85.94 to the high of $86.75. There were 133 heifers on offer selling from $82.63 to $85.90 to the high of $89.75. One heifer consigned by Dennis Dolmage, Londesborough, weigh­ ing 1050 lbs. sold for $89.75. Seven heifers consigned by Greg Luyten, Wingham, averaging 909 lbs. sold for $85.90. Three heifers consigned by Frank Dolmage, Seaforth averaging 1047 lbs. sold for $85.42 to the high of $85.75. Three heifers consigned by Fred Pushelberg, Stratford averaging 1087 lbs. sold for $83.79 to the high of $84.80. Twelve heifers con­ signed by John Van Nynatten, Mitchell averaged 1041 lbs. and sold for $83.43 to the high of $85.50. Fifteen heifers consigned by John Hunter, Grand Valley, averaging 1042 lbs. sold for $82.67 to the high of $84.50. Two heifers consigned by Bill Empey, Auburn averaging 1060 lbs. sold for $82.56 to the high of $84.50. Five heifers consigned by Neil Rinloul, Lucknow averaged 1244 lbs. and sold for $82.35 to the high of $84.25. Three heifers con­ signed by Gary Mikel, Mitchell averaging 1143 lbs. sold for $81.90 to the high of $83. Two heifers consigned by Carl McLellan, Brus­ sels averaging 1100 lbs. sold for $80.17 to the high of $83.75. There were 131 cows on offer selling from $58.17 to $62 to the high of $63. One cow consigned by Gerald Schuler, Kincardine weighing 1370 lbs. sold for $63. One cow con­ signed by Garry Falconer, Teeswa- ter weighing 1250 lbs. sold for $62.25. Two cows consigned by Lazy Meadow Farms, Blyth, aver­ aged 1515 lbs. and sold for $60.96 to the high of $62. Three cows consigned by Paul Dewar, Atwood averaged 1093 lbs. and sold for $60.12 to the high of $61.50. One cow consigned by George VanderEyk, Listowel weighed 1490 lbs. and sold for $60. Three cows consigned by Roy Collins, Ripley averaging 1277 lbs. sold for $59.57 to the high of $62. Two cows consigned by Wayne Bilton, Clifford averaged 1350 lbs. and sold for $59.43 to the high of $60. Two cows consigned by Cran- brook Farms, Brussels averaging 1290 lbs. sold for $59.40 to the high of $61. Two cows consigned by Pat Marrinan, Lucan averaging 1035 lbs. sold for $59.20 to the high of $60.50. Two cows con­ signed by Alfredd Zwep, Monkion averaging 1585 lbs. sold for $58.96 to the high of $60. There were 184 veal on offer selling from $82.20 to $90 to the high of $100. One veal consigned by Bill Hackett, Lucknow weighed 460 lbs. and sold for $100. One veal consigned by Albert Miller, Luc­ know weighed 520 lbs. and sold for $93.50. Two veal consigned by Hugh Jackson, Atwood, averaged 350 lbs. and sold for $91.50. A growing problem could be the leafhopper numbers which were increased by the recent heatwave. Some fields in localized areas have been sprayed for control. Farm crisis meetings scheduled Leaders of four major farm orga­ nizations will lour Ontario, includ­ ing slops in Mitchell and Walkerton Thursday to discuss what they call a "state of emergen­ cy" in Ontario agriculture. The tour comes after a meeting of representatives of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture, the Ontario Com Producers Associa- tion, the Ontario Soybean Grow­ ers' Marketing Board and the Ontario Wheat Producers' Market­ ing Board met in Toronto, July 3 as a result of plummeting prices for grains and oil seeds. Prices arc now well below the cost of production, the groups say, and in real dollars are lower than the depression years of the 193O's. The tour will slop in Walkerton Thursday from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the boardroom of the Bruce county OMAF office. From 2-3:30 p.m. the representatives will be at the Mitchell Town Hall. TIME FOR TREES Visit our nursery to choose your tree, flowering shrub or rose from this area’s largest selection of Quality Plants Landscape Design and Planting now available MAITLAND MANOR NURSERY 335-3240 2 Ml. E. OF BLUEVALE, HWY. 86 BACKHOEING JAMESTOWN 887-9061 BULLDOZING, LOADING & HAULING SAND AND GRAVEL We would like to congratulate Glenn McKercher on his retirement and we will continue to keep up the quality service. JOHN MCKERCHER CONSTRUCTION LTD. Announces We've now added.... and offer demolition type CONTAINER BIN RENTAL SERVICE