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Times Advocate, 1994-10-19, Page 19U.S. group taking over UCO New control of the money-losing parent co-op won't affect the Hensall and District Co-op too much, agrees local management By Adrian Harte T -A Editor MISSISSAUGA - An Amer- ican co-operative has announced its intent to acquire the assets of the United Co-operatives of On- tario. Thursday, the announcement came that a letter of intent has been signed between Growmark Inc. and the UCO. The Bloom- ington, Illinois based company would also purchase the UCO's 50 percent share in UCO Pe- troleum Inc.. which is a joint venture between the UCO and Sunoco Inc. Terms of the purchase have not been revealed. Growmark is a regional farm supply and grain marketing co- operative, retailing through more than 90 local member co- operatives with several hundred locations in Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin. Growmark's plans to acquire UCO includes a letter of intent to enter into co-operative re- lationships with the member co- ops that previously owned UCO, now under bank control. Grow - mark's representatives say they plan to retain most UCO em- ployees to run a regional office and facilities in Ontario. The announcement comes af- ter several years of financial losses for UCO, even though the largest farm supply and mar- keting co-operative in Ontario predicts sales this year will total $179 million, plus another $200 million from the petroleum divi- sion. "UCO members and leaders have been searching for a solu- tion to provide exceptional ser- vice to the province's farmers, and maintain the longevity and financial strength of the ag- ricultural co-op system in On- tario," said UCO chief executive officer Gordon Cummings. "By working with Growmark Inc., Ontario's agricultural co-ops will remain firmly fixed in grass-roots Ontario but have greater global influence and fi- nancial security." Earl Wagner, manager of the Hensall and District Co -Op said he expects few changes to the local operation with the change of hands of the parent organiza- tion. "Basically, we don't see it af- fecting us at all," said Wagner. The Hensall Co -Op wrote off some $400,000 in UCO shares last year, when they became worthless, capping what Wagner described as a decade-long poor financial history for the UCO. Wagner said the UCO's mis- fortunes were a "combination of things that weren't working for them". The Windsor Grain Ter- minal purchase proved a bad in- vestment, in hindsight, and cor- porate overhead remained high. Wagner said Growmark, on the other hand, is a "strong fi- nancial business" that he under- stands will "take on UCO, busi- ness as usual" with few changes for member co-ops. He said he expects the Hensall and District Co -Op will begin to accumulate dividends under the new Growmark system. "Hopefully, they'll be worth something this time," said Wag- ner. I'I\t,i\l A New Spirit of Giving A national provers giving and vollineierieg EARMJIPDATE Cattlemen converge in Hensall Times -Advocate, October 19, 1994 Page 19 The sales arena was busy as buyers and sellers look for the best deals Story and photos by Fred Groves T -A staff HENSALL - It's 11:30 a.m. and slowly the anticipation builds. Dozens of cattlemen (and some women) from across South- western Ontario pace the manure -bottomed stalls, looking for something only their experienced eye can spot. An hour -and -a -half later they remove themselves from the stalls and take their seat in the bidding bleachers. The fruits of their intense labour begins to harvest as they see what they want and bid on it. October is the time of year when the Hensall Livestock Sales Arena comes alive. Buyers and dealers alike try and get the best value for their buck. On Saturday, Lucan's Bob Tindall and his son Rob came to sell some of their cattle. They weren't in a buying mood but were very curious to the days proceedings. "We're selling and we're looking for the best price we can get. Your whole years work is gone in 25 minutes," said Bob Tindall. The two have been coming to the Hensall Sales for five years and as they sat in the stands awaiting the cattle to be brought into the auction pen, were optimistic about re- ceiving a good price for their livestock. "We feel it's going to be off but we're optimistic. One thing about an auction, you sell to the highest bidder." The owner -manager of the Hensall Livestock Sales Arena is Barry Miller and prior to the sale he was taking buyers through the pens to get a close up look at the over 800 cat- tle. For the past 35 years, the Sales Arena has been an outlet for farmers to buy and self not only cattle but on Tuesdays it is pork which is on the auction block. Miller explained that the arena basically had five types of cattle on Saturday - Charolais, Limousin, Hereford, Angus and Blondes. A year ago, the price was about $1.40 a pound but that is slipping down to $1.20. "Yearlings and calves are $15 to $20 cheaper than they were last year," said Miller. An experienced cattleman himself, Miller said that a year- ling would conte in at about 700-950 pounds while calves were 400-650 pounds. While the pens in the back of the arena had various num- bers and breeds, Miller said he and his staff have to separate them so the buyers in the arena can buy them in lots. "They are sorted into bunches of 10 to 20 by quality and breed." Stocker sales are held in both the spring and the fall and anyone wishing to sell cattle at the sale, contacts Miller and he has them picked up and trucked to Hensall where they are usually all in by Friday night. "They arc picked up at the farm from a 50 -mile radius." Some cattle farmers will have calves born on their own farm and raise them all the way up and then sell them. Oth- ers, like those who participated in Saturday's sale, buy them from others and raise them up to where they will be sold. "These are all stockers, they all go back to feed on the farm," said Miller. Curious spectator: The arena was filled with over 100 Demo Days in Hensall Hyde Brothers of Hensel! offered a "demo days" event on a field just north of Exeter on Friday. Here Mike Crunican (left) checks out a new Agco Allis tractor with the help of Agco area representative Mark Jeffries. `Healthy calf' workshop returns to Tavistock TAVISTOCK - Veal producers will learn to identify and treat dis- ease in calves, combat shipping stress and formulate good starter ra- tions at the 1994 Healthy Calf Workshop: Tavistock Dairy Sales, Thursday, November 3 at 8:00 p.m. The Ontario Veal Association and the Tavistock Dairy Sales arc hosting the Healthy Calf Workshop following the success of the BVD awareness program held last fall. Sponsored by Sanofi, Shur Gain and SmithKline Beecham, the calf health theme will give producers the opportunity to learn good health practices for young stock. The two-hour program will fea- ture demonstrations of proper vac- cination and esophagael tube feed- ing. Good housing and ventilation, disease protection in the dairy herd, parasite control and the role of calf feeds and growth promotants round out the program. Cost of the Healthy Calf Work- shop is $5, free to all kVA mem- bers. A Tight lunch wilt served. Contact the Ontario Veal Associ- ation for more information at (519) 824-2942. buyers and sellers and there were even some curious onlook- ers who just wanted to keep a close tab on the cattle market. One of those was Vama's Dean Aldwinckle who doesn't buy stockers but, rather raises them right from calves. On Saturday he was keeping an eye the prices. A cattle man for 40 years, he knows what the buyers were looking for. "You are looking for conditioning. Some of them will have no stomachs and they bring more money," said Aldwinckle. What he was referring to was when the cattle are brought in the night before, they are not fed and therefore empty out their systems. Buyers won't buy bloated cattle which just ate, they can tell the difference. When he arrived, Aldwinckle was surprised that the arena was not very full even 15 minutes before the 1 p.m. start. But as he was speaking to his colleagues, dozens more arrived. "I've never seen 1 o'clock come and you were able to get a seat. I know it's good weather. These guys will get some bar- gains out of here." Farming is, and always has been a gamble. That not only includes cash crop operations but, as Aldwinckle will admit to, even after 40 years, cattle farming is a risk. "We finish out," he said of his operation. "We fatten every- thing we raise. In Denfield (another sales arena) we got less than a dollar a pound. That's the lowest its been this year." "We have lots of problems we had a cow that had twins. She didn't know she had twins and killed them both." At the end of the day, Miller said calves averaged about $1.20 per pound while the yearlings went for about 92 cents per pound. There were 800 cattle up for sale on Saturday at the stocker sales. Above, one of the lots in the pens behind the arena. At right, buyers and sellers get a close look during the auction. 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