Times Advocate, 1984-12-12, Page 33Exeter man says only symptoms treated
Huron pork producers upset with
The Huron County Pork parent marketing board in
Producers Association sent a Toronto - it doesn't like the
message Wednesday to its tone of an industry study that
A
WITLOF FOR SALE - Bert Visscher checks on some
heads of witlof at his vegetoble stond on Highway 83,
west of Exeter. T -A photo
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the Huron group feels puts
farmers down.
"One word sums it up.... ar-
rogance," Larry Dillon of RR
1 Clinton, said of the Future of
the Industry report complied
mainly by provincial and
federal civil servants and
academics.
"There are too many ex-
perts who've never shovelled
shit out of a pen and yet they
tell us what to do," Dillon
said. He moved the
marketing board dissociate
itself from the tone of the
study and refute suggestions
the government spend "ex-
cessive" funds to help clear
up the problems.
County associations elect
directors to the Ontario Pork
Producers Marketing Board.
Storefront
centre open
A storefront centre to
answer questions on
agriculture, horttculturr: and
home economics has o•, ened
in the Ministry of Agriculture
and Food building in
downtown Toronto.
Agriculture and F't.:»»!
Minister Dennis Timbrell an-
nounced that the Consumer
Information ('entre opens on
the ground floor at 801 Bay
Street to serve the general
public.
"Storefront staff will
answer questions by phone,
by mail and in person on
preparation and preservation
of various foods, recipes, on
gardening and lawn care, and
any number of general ques-
tions on agriculture," said
Timbrell.
An important function of
the centre will be the handling
of ministry publications.
The Consumer Information
Centre will operate from 8:30
a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday -
Friday.
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OVER 500 LBS.
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A LOT DEPENDS ON THE SIZE AND CONDITION OF THE ANIMAL (FRESH)
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(Autopsy available by local vets)
FOR FAST EFFICIENT SERVICE
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EVERY DAY — 7 DAYS A WEEK
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Only three of about 20 Pro-
ducers present voted against
the motion. Most agreed on
how producers, government
and meat packers can pull up
their socks in an industry in
which many farmers are
plagued by debt.
Board director Ted Jensen
of Sunderland said many
board members also disagree
with parts of the report, but
he emphasized it is an in-
dependent report, even
though the board financed it
to the tune of about $37,000.
But Dillon said the "ar-
rogance" expressed in the
reports is exemplified by one
statement that some fanners
should opt out of the business
because "not everyone is a
manager". ,
Jensen, who said he is sym-
pathetic with farmers who
are aver -capitalized, said he
is one of a numbed' of farmers
satisfied with present prices
because he has little debt. Ile
added that the media have
picked up on that part of the
report and "sensationalized"
it, ignoring the,good parts.
But Jensen echoed the
observation in the report that
offended Dillon: "I'm afraid
Times -Advocate, December 12, 1984 Pag# 13A
'arrogant' industry study
some of us are going to have
to quit. We've got a problem...
a big problem."
Martin DeBruyn of RR 1
Exeter, said the report is
treating only the symptoms,
not the disease. Farmers
have to be paid enough for
their animals to cover pro-
duction costs, he said.
"They're talking about
colds and the sniffles when
the partient has cancer." He
criticized numerous sugges-
tions in the report that
farmers will have to be more
efficient or drop out.
"We're being told all the
SALAD FIXINGS -- Bert Visscher is shown with one -of his
lettuce type vegetoble originates ill The Netherlands.
-•it all boils down to
washing machines," says
Gisele Ireland of Teeswater,
one of the most articulate
farm women in Canada.
"Well, it's a matter of
trucks. too," says a grizzled
neighbor of ours.
Their stories explain the
problems fazing farmers
these days far more
graphically than the
economics or the agricultural
experts with their degrees
and their statistics.
First, my neighbor: in 1951,
he Nought a pickup truck. for
$1.783 and he still has the
receipt to prove it. He was
getting 40 cents for his hogs.
Thirty-two years later, the
same truck cost him $12.800.
Ile is getting about 76 cents
for his hogs.
in other words. his price
has increased from 40 cents a
pound to 76 cents a pound, an
increase -- i think -- of about
47 percent in 32 years. But the
cost of his truck increased 700
percent. he says. All other
costs on the farm have had a
similar increase.
The only way most farmers
have managed to stay in
business is by increasing ef-
ficiency and enlarging pro-
duction so that unit costs are
lower. Many, simply to keep
afle,at, expanded in the good
years. if there were any. and
got caught with spiralling in-
terest rates
Lel Gisele Ireland explain
it : "Nine years ago. i bought
a new autoillatic washer for
$265 and received 78!1 cents a
pound for the pork we produc-
ed During those years the
washer chugged through load
after load of dirty laundry and
our land values increased
"The increase was a paper
value it never seemed to find
its way into real cash that i
could spend on the family- We
shared with hydro. fertilizer
companies. the fuel dealer.
machinery dealers and we
paid salesmen well for their
goods and services. Then. the
paper value of the farm drop-
Ix'd but we did not see the cast
of goods and services
decrease
"11 all comes down to
w•ashmg machines I need a
new one now and it will cost
$700 but we are getting atxxtl
70 rents for every pound of
pork we produce. nine cents a
pound less than we got nine
years ago'
The farmer does nol need
pity but a sensible approach
of how to get out of his situa-
tion I wonder how many city
people would be paying their
1984 mortgages with less
salary than they received
nine years ago' 1t just all
comes down to washing
machines
There you have it from a
farmer who is approaching
retirement, a man who has
faced great problems in his 45
years as a son of the soil, and
from a bouncing. attractive
young farm wife who has
written intelligently and
humorously about life on the
farm, one of those young
farmers who is willing to he
innovative. the kind of farmer
needed in this country.
The latest figures and
forecasts indicate that even
the best -managed farms
could be in trouble in Canada.
Certainly, the Irelands have
one of the best -managed
farms in Canada.
first crops of witlof. The
T A photo
..d r., B.K. r c. ,. F ,ie 1 i . . Onr %MI 2C,
They are not begging for
help but they, along with
thousands of other farmers in
Canada, are seeking a solu-
tion that will keep them on
their Blazing Emblem Acres
as happy and productive
people.
They are, these farmers,
the salt of the earth. They are
honest. forthright, in-
dependent and articulate.
It's time the rest of the nation
listened 10 them.
time to be more efficient...
We're growing more hogs
than ever before, we're doing
it faster than ever before...
we're setting records.. and
we're losing more money
than ever before."
Several farmers at the
meeting said those caught In
the financial squeeze may
have to face the music, even
though they may be efficient
because they made wrong
financial judgements. A re -
.cent Farm Credit Crop.
report which pointed out
many squeezed farmers are
efficient was cited by several
present.
"Whether they're good
farmers, or bad fanners, if
they're going to fail, they're
going to fail," said Gerry
Gobb of Goderich. "I don't
think anybody is going to save
them, or wants to."
Jensen said the industry is
also threatened by reduced
pork consumption and a lower
share of the consumer meat
market.
"In the U.S., chicken is
outselling pork. We're not
that bad yet, but poultry is
picking up. If the price were
to go down on our (Canadian )
Exeter area firm
has chicory witlof
Visscher Farms on
Highway 83. west of Exeter
are currently growing a
winter vegetable which is
ideal for salads.
Bert Visscher says he is one
of about a dozen growers in
Ontario producing chicory
wit lof.
The witlof is popular in the
Netherlands and the seeds
come from that country.
Visschers planted four
acres of the seed this past
spring which produced the
roots now being planted
locally.
The Visschers are planting
the roots systematically in six
rooms which are 25 feet long
and 10 feet wide.
It takes about four weeks to
produce the witlof ready for
market from the time the
roots are started in a darken-
ed. humid atmosphere.
The witlof roots produce
heads with very little cover of
soil
Witlof is becoming an at-
tractive vegetable throughout
the world because it can be
prepared in many ways and
production costsonly a very
small part of the energy need-
ed for crops such as lettuce.
cucumbers and tomatoes
from autumn to spring.
Bert Visscher said witlof
heads provide excellent
salads and a number of recipe
pamphlets are being
prepared which will be
available at their produce
outlet.
Ile add. "During the winter
months. witlof makes a
welcome change. It is
delicious as a salad. but can
make an excellent dish when
braised, baked or cooked.
The variety of recipes in-
clude witlof with melted but-
ter and hard boiled eggs: with
ham and cheese: beetroot :
scrambled eggs and mashed
potatoes.
Egg prices
drop,again
Eggs should be an even bet-
ter -buy for bakers this
Christmas season than they
were a year ago.
The Canadian Egg
Marketing Agency (CEMA)
dropped the price paid to egg
producers for Grade A Targe
by two cents on Monday.
CEMA cited declining feed
costs and lower interest rates
for the decrease.
The drop in the producer
price will mean that in most
provinces eggs will be three
cents a dozen less than last
December. Prices will be four
cents less in Manitoba and
New Brunswick and two cents
less in Quebec.
The producer -run agency
sets the farm -gate price for
Grade A large at the beginn-
ing of each month based on
producers' costs.
Price adjustments are
reported in advance to the
federal government's Na-
tional Farm Products
Marketing Council.
Egg prices paid by con-
sumers generally reflect ad-
justments in the producer
price but are actually deter-
mined by wholesalers and
retailers.
chicken like it did in the U.S.,
we're in trouble," he said.
Pork consumption in
Canada in 1983 was 28.6
kilograms (63 pounds) per
capita and is falling, while
chicken consumption was 22.9
kilograms (50 pounds) per
capita and rising. Canadian
beef consumption last year
was at 40.1 kilograms (88
pounds) per capita, and it,
too, is falling.
Jensen said the report
pointed out 18,000 Ontario
farmers now produce five
million hogs. The same
number could be produced by
2,500 farmers with 100 -sow
herds.
He hopes a pending federal
stabilization program will
help equalize competition for
Ontario farmers who have
been competing against
heavily subsidized pork from
other provinces, particularly
Quebec.
on(frafulafiorts
Grace Merner
retires this f11' itlri)
after more than 20
years as a recep-
tionist at Huron
Tractor. •
Her cheery
"Thank you for call-
ing Huron Tractor"
will be missed by
many customers.
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