Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Quebec's impact on Ontario Hog Farmers

After reading yesterday's post about ASRA's latest payout to Quebec hog farmers I did some simple math and based on the amount of market hogs produced, Quebec farmers have received close to 50 dollars a market hog in support from their provincial government this year.

This would sting a lot less if Quebec was eating all of the pork that they produce but it is no secret that truckload after truckload of market hogs are heading west down the 401 and displacing Ontario hogs at our kill plants. Furthermore, it is subsidized Quebec produced pork that retailers are buying in place of our Ontario products. (Consider that Quebec produces approx 7 mil market hogs while only consuming 2 mil)

How is it that we have a system in our country that allows one province to act on their own, ignoring national policy surrounding hog market support. As a farmer here, this upsets me, my farm is being threatened because of the actions of fellow Canadians.

It is time that we put some funding together to estimate the damages that Quebec producers are causing Ontario farmers. These payouts must stop and the playing field must be leveled. We cannot control the actions of the American government but one would hope that our governments would seek to make sure ALL Canadian hog farmers are being treated equally.

Stew

Views: 168

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Peter Gredig on October 3, 2009 at 12:34am
Stew - it is crazy to have trade/safety net disparity within our own country. I guess the way ag support programs are cost shared between feds and prov enable this potential for have/have not policy?
Permalink Reply by pigsrgr8 on October 4, 2009 at 4:50am
Good points Stew:

If this was not bad enough in these tough times......this is likely another result of the strong Canadian dollar....

I noticed that when shopping at a Loblaws store this past week that are Ontario consumer markets are being overrun by cheap US pork products. Smithfield bacon was on sale for $1.97/lb, Cook's Spiral Hams were being sold at $1.97/lb and Farmland cryovac back ribs were being sold for around $6 per Kg....

Now Loblaws is also selling the Farmer Highlighted story pork - picture of the farmer...raised naturally etc...nice packaging. But the price was 3 times what the regular pork was priced at... I doubt you will build a market when the price differences are so great.

It seems like it is bad and only getting worse...
Permalink Reply by John Donkers on October 7, 2009 at 1:28am
I totally agree with your comments Stewart, as we speak there is a major grass roots initiative being formed that will strive to include all sectors of the pork industry within Ontario. Unfortunately this uneven playing field developed by Quebec has been known to us for many years but nothing was done about it causing Ontario to be become literally the dumping grounds for pork at the expense of the Ontario producer and packer.

We have an opportunity here to hold our Ontario government accountable for the lack of leadership shown, and to demand action immediately before there is a complete wipeout of the Ontario pork industry. The Canadian Pork Council by design is also very flawed because of Quebec's influence around that board table. When we ask the CPC for help in this matter they basically say, "sorry we cannot go there if fear of what Quebec's reaction might be"! Is this not rediculous?

Time is running out, all Ontario producers have to stand up to this injustice and demand action.
Permalink Reply by rein minnema on October 9, 2009 at 12:08pm
John,

You did hit the nail right on the head, why is this a public secret?????????????????????

John Donkers said:
I totally agree with your comments Stewart, as we speak there is a major grass roots initiative being formed that will strive to include all sectors of the pork industry within Ontario. Unfortunately this uneven playing field developed by Quebec has been known to us for many years but nothing was done about it causing Ontario to be become literally the dumping grounds for pork at the expense of the Ontario producer and packer.

We have an opportunity here to hold our Ontario government accountable for the lack of leadership shown, and to demand action immediately before there is a complete wipeout of the Ontario pork industry. The Canadian Pork Council by design is also very flawed because of Quebec's influence around that board table. When we ask the CPC for help in this matter they basically say, "sorry we cannot go there if fear of what Quebec's reaction might be"! Is this not rediculous?

Time is running out, all Ontario producers have to stand up to this injustice and demand action.

▶ Reply to Discussion

RSS

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

Tariffs In Key Markets Underscore Urgent Need For Action

Today, Pulse Canada released the following statement in response to India’s decision to impose a 30% tariff on pea imports. “While Canada’s pea export program to India got off to a good start this fall, the recently announced tariff will challenge future sales, and the impact will be felt across the industry. “Canada’s pulse industry needs progress from the federal government on removing tariffs that threaten our competitiveness and damage our global reputation. While the government may not be able to influence domestic policies in other markets, we do expect it to resolve issues within its control. “The Government of China has been clear that its 100% tariff on Canadian peas is a retaliatory measure and will require a negotiated solution. We are hopeful that meetings this week will mark a timely and important step toward a resolution that allows Canadian peas back into the Chinese market. “Canadian growers and exporters have worked for decades to build trusted relationships with c

SARM’s Huber wants Western concerns heard in Ottawa

The head of the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities is wanting to see Western concerns addressed by the federal government. “We've been neglected for 10-plus years in western Canada, and Saskatchewan is in western Canada,” said Bill Huber, SARM president, to reporters following his morning address at the mid-term meetings in Regina. “And we've got an agriculture industry here that's struggling right now with tariffs and trade, and our farmers are really suffering because of the non-movement of grain, especially canola seed, to China. We've got one of our biggest trading partners just across the 49th parallel that we do have to do business with [the USA]. They're the closest and one of our largest trading partners. And we need to see those goods, livestock, beef, cattle, pigs, pork, those things continue to cross that border. So we need those exports.” Huber said it was also "disappointing to see that there's a $112 million decrease over the next year in agriculture spen

APAS expresses mixed feelings on Tuesday's federal budget

The President of the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) has mixed feelings about Tuesday's federal budget. Bill Prybylski, who farms in the Willowbrook area, was pleased to see that agriculture was actually mentioned in the budget. He says there were some positives in the budget, like investment in infrastructure, the reinstatement of the accelerated capital cost allowance, and red tape reduction. Prybylski was also pleased to see the permanent reversal of the Capital Gains tax increase. But he says the announced changes to AgriStability won't make a difference to most producers, dealing with canola, pea and pork tariffs. Prybylski notes budget details are still quite sparse, so there's more work to be done in studying the document. He's also worried about possible budget cuts to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, which could affect agriculture research.

Ag in the 2025 federal budget

The House is expected to vote on the budget on Nov. 17

Statement from FVGC President, Marcus Janzen

The Fruit and Vegetable Growers of Canada (FVGC) President, Marcus Janzen, wishes to announce that Massimo Bergamini will begin a transition from his role as Executive Director as he moves toward retirement. The Board is grateful for his leadership and for the organizational achievements made during his tenure.

© 2025   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service