Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Farm Org. Funding.

Today's Ontario Farmer had an interesting letter which proposed calculating the funding for farm organizations on a per acre basis. The intent, I suppose, would be to spread the cost according to potential benefit.

The acreage could easily be calculated from the existing Agricorp files.

Views: 234

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Dale Ketcheson on December 1, 2009 at 1:15pm
Maybe... if all acres were created equal and all farms were dependent on acreage. They aren't. Should an acre under glass in a greenhouse be counted the same as $800 rough pasture? Should 20,000 broilers on a 5 acre lot be counted the same as a 5 acre pick your own?

Haven't seen it yet, probably won't until the weekend so I'm just guessing on the content of the letter.
Permalink Reply by Wayne Black on December 2, 2009 at 2:33pm
You are correct Dale - close enough anyway.
Another question would be - what about the farmers who do not own or crop any land at all? The ones who rent barns to feed cattle or milk livestock? There are so many different types of arrangements for a farm operation today it would not make sense to set the fee based solely on acreage or livestock units because of "assumed benefit".
The arguement a few years ago was: If Large Farmer pays $320 per year and little farmer pays $80 per year - does that mean the Large Farmer gets 4 votes for every vote the little farmer gets? The General Farm Organizations are suppose to represent their members. The membership includes all landowners and farmers who have a Gross Revenue from Farming operations in excess of $7,000 per year ("gross" not "net"). Each member is entitled to one vote.
Permalink Reply by Joann on December 16, 2009 at 4:45pm
the bigger question is.... do we need the present farm organizations? or are they completely stale-dated in today's environment?

if the present farm organizations were disbanded, will farmers be served better or worse?

if one looks around, i believe one will see that there are some very big farm operations that are more effective and efficient as individual lobbyist. ... farm operations are getting bigger and fewer.

is there a new farm lobby-organization on the horizon that will effectively meet the needs of the next generation of farm operations?

Wayne Black said:
You are correct Dale - close enough anyway.
Another question would be - what about the farmers who do not own or crop any land at all? The ones who rent barns to feed cattle or milk livestock? There are so many different types of arrangements for a farm operation today it would not make sense to set the fee based solely on acreage or livestock units because of "assumed benefit".
The arguement a few years ago was: If Large Farmer pays $320 per year and little farmer pays $80 per year - does that mean the Large Farmer gets 4 votes for every vote the little farmer gets? The General Farm Organizations are suppose to represent their members. The membership includes all landowners and farmers who have a Gross Revenue from Farming operations in excess of $7,000 per year ("gross" not "net"). Each member is entitled to one vote.
Permalink Reply by Avia Eek on December 17, 2009 at 5:16am
I have more of a statement to make, since I haven't read the paper yet--will get to that later. Generally, though as far as farm organizations are concerned, a good question would be how does the Farmer benefit from them. I know the Holland Marsh Farmers are, and continue to fight the peaker plant being built in the Holland Marsh, but I don't know that any OFA representative has stepped in and added their voice to this issue which will affect all the people in Ontario. Not to mention the precedent this is setting for prime agricultural land versus the need for energy. Our own local organization, the Holland Marsh Growers' Association is fighting this, but it seems we're on our own! The only benefit I see, right now, with OFA is cheaper taxes.
Permalink Reply by Ken McCormack on January 31, 2010 at 3:47pm
This idea has a lot of merit, particularly for the new Grain Farmers of Ontario. Since most of their members grow corn, wheat and soybeans in rotation on approximately the same acreage it would be a stable funding for them independent of yields and specific crops.

The only real breakdown is for those who grow crops for 'own use'. They would end up paying on acres they plan to feed to livestock. It can be said they still benefit from improvements in the crops, but it would be a harder sell.

▶ Reply to Discussion

RSS

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

SaskOilseeds October Newsletter

Closing out the 2026 growing season With harvest nearing completion across Saskatchewan, canola and flax acres are among those still coming off the field. As of October 19, canola harvest was 96 per cent complete provincially, while flax was 88 per cent complete. Provincial yield estimates currently sit at 40 bu./ac. for canola and 26 bu./ac. for flax. Rain and snow slowed harvest and fall field work in many areas earlier this month, but the added moisture was beneficial for harvested acres heading into winter. Post-Harvest Storage & Agronomy Protect Your Harvest: Oilseed Storage A lot of work goes into getting a crop from the field to the bin, and every season looks a little different. These resources can help maintain quality in storage: Conditioning Tips for Stored Canola Factors that Increase Canola Storage Risk Tips for Drying Damp and Tough Canola Flax Harvest Preparing for Next Season Canola Disease Testing: Submit canola stem samples by October 30. Blackleg and verticilliu

Canadian Centre for Rural and Agricultural Health celebrates milestone 40th anniversary

The Canadian Centre for Rural and Agricultural Health (CCRAH) began more than four decades ago for a simple reason: to support the health and safety of rural and agricultural people in Saskatchewan. “Saskatchewan is the breadbasket of Canada. Agriculture and rural are what make Saskatchewan,” said Dr. Shelley Kirychuk (PhD), the current director of CCRAH. “We are rural, we represent agriculture, and we support the people that bring food to the world.” Where it started In the 1970s and ’80s, a phenomenon was noticed by Dr. James Dosman (MD), the eventual founding director of CCRAH. People who worked in grain elevators were reporting lung health issues due to grain dust exposure. These findings led to an International Symposium on Grain Dust and Health in the late ’70s, which eventually led to the development of a national grain dust medical surveillance program for Canada. From there, USask and the Saskatchewan Lung Association established the Centre for Agricultural Medicine in Ja

USask soil science class partners with Wanuskewin on restoration project

That was Jessica Gunn’s mantra when she put on waders and climbed chest-deep into the cool water of the opimihaw Creek at Wanuskewin Heritage Park in mid-September. Gunn was there with a group of University of Saskatchewan (USask) students who were engaging in a unique learning experience: constructing a beaver dam analog (BDA) in the creek. “A big part of why I wanted to do this course is because it’s so hands-on,” said Gunn, a third-year renewable resource management student who enrolled in SLSC 450.3: Practical and Applied Restoration, a soil science course taught by Dr. Katherine Stewart (PhD), an associate professor in USask’s College of Agriculture and Bioresources. For Gunn, the day at Wanuskewin was unlike any other school day she had experienced. “We had a great time as a class,” she said. “I feel like we learned so much.” The students were invited to Wanuskewin to help the park build a BDA — essentially a “starter” dam that beavers can take over and use to construct their

U.S. Canola Use Forecast to Jump 16% in 2026-27

U.S. canola use is forecast to climb sharply in the 2026-27 marketing year, supported by record domestic production, expanding crush capacity and rising demand for canola oil in biofuel manufacturing. According to the USDA's latest Oil Crops Outlook, total U.S. canola usage is projected to increase 16% from 2025-26, while domestic crushing is expected to rise 11% to 2.4 million tonnes. The stronger crush outlook reflects growing domestic demand for canola oil and meal, which has supported processing margins. A new crushing facility is also expected to be completed during 2026-27, adding to U.S. processing capacity. Meanwhile, U.S. canola oil use in biofuel production is forecast to surge to 2.54 million tonnes, up from 1.68 million tonnes last year, an increase of more than 50%. The USDA attributed the growth partly to stronger renewable fuel mandates for 2026 and 2027, along with new eligibility for the 45Z clean fuel production tax credit for biomass-based diesel made from No

Protect Grain Quality During Wet Harvests

Wet harvest conditions can increase the risk of OTA development in stored grains. Proper drying, cooling, cleaning, and monitoring help protect crop quality and value.

© 2026   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service