Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

After hearing that both levels of government want to do more meetings and discuss the future of agriculture in Canada I wonder if it is time to bring all non supply managed farmers and their elected officials together for a major rally to get the point accross that wait and see is not an answer and we need results now. Is this a good idea and if so how do we get the ball rolling.

Views: 677

Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Tom Murray said:
JoAnne Caughill said:
I agree with John that it is the Provincial Government that needs to help us out right away to save this Industry. However I would not let the Federal Government off the hook so quickly. They have AgriStability which (even though Gerry thinks it does) IS NOT working for producers. His 80% satisfaction rating has to be many years old. They need to fix this program. Sheila Frasier, Auditor General has spoke severely against this program and it's ability to work as it should as outlined in the Farm Income Protection Act. We need to take Gerry to task on this program and make it stand up to their (Government's) own test of FIPA.

I think we need a MAJOR protest - and yes as pointed out in another email - it would be great if all Provinces could agree to protest together on the same dates. Anyone interested in this from other provinces can contact me through this chat forum. Let's work together.
To pull off a major rally, there needs to be more than a grass roots revolt....there needs to be organization and lots of communication...where are ofa and cfa on this? they have the time and ability...do we need to push them into action?
It is not wether we need to push them but how we push them. I do not think they are listening and understanding how bad things really are or they would be organizing something already.
RoadRunner

I see you asking where the OFA is and why they have not been organizing rallies. As a vice president in the Bruce County federation of Agriculture I am going to turn the question around and ask where have the members been? OFA has been asking for the RMP and other programs and changes. We have not been getting much response from Government to our requests. We know things have to change BUT we are not seeing much from our members. Last fall at our county annual meeting ( with almost 1400 members in the county) we had 70 people out, about 1/2 were directors and spouses, plus media and politicians, hardly any regular members. There were NO resolutions presented for us to do anything different and I think the hog and beef sectors were in trouble last fall too. We always make our monthly board meetings open to members, and we never have any come. If you want to push OFA to do more you have to show up. Go to your county meeting and ask them to do more. Better yet take 25 of your neighbours with you. If 5 or 6 regional directors go to the next OFA board meeting and say they each had 50 or 100 members out to the last county board meetings demanding rallies/protests etc then more is likely to happen.

The leadership of OFA can't do everything for the members without some help. Our county can't even fill all the township director chairs, and most of us have off farm work besides, so we need more help. If you want to provide it, we will accept.
Do you think that there might be to many orginizations. I belong to several and the same message is being put out but like you say not enough people coming forward at each groups meetings. Maybe we need less groups working for us in order to have a united voice. I wonder if one orginization stepped up and really started to push how many people would come out. I feel most people do not bother because they see it is a slow process and of little value. One load group seems to work in places in Europe as well as in Quebec.

John Gillespie said:
RoadRunner

I see you asking where the OFA is and why they have not been organizing rallies. As a vice president in the Bruce County federation of Agriculture I am going to turn the question around and ask where have the members been? OFA has been asking for the RMP and other programs and changes. We have not been getting much response from Government to our requests. We know things have to change BUT we are not seeing much from our members. Last fall at our county annual meeting ( with almost 1400 members in the county) we had 70 people out, about 1/2 were directors and spouses, plus media and politicians, hardly any regular members. There were NO resolutions presented for us to do anything different and I think the hog and beef sectors were in trouble last fall too. We always make our monthly board meetings open to members, and we never have any come. If you want to push OFA to do more you have to show up. Go to your county meeting and ask them to do more. Better yet take 25 of your neighbours with you. If 5 or 6 regional directors go to the next OFA board meeting and say they each had 50 or 100 members out to the last county board meetings demanding rallies/protests etc then more is likely to happen.

The leadership of OFA can't do everything for the members without some help. Our county can't even fill all the township director chairs, and most of us have off farm work besides, so we need more help. If you want to provide it, we will accept.
I have to agree with both Tom and roadrunner. Like who is the Bruce county federation of agriculture. When I start looking around there are way to many groups all trying to work towards helping agriculture but not unified enough with each other to make a difference. I have not been to my own cattlemens meeting for 15 years or more mainly to busy but I am going this year because everyones voice is important and now is the time to stand up or soon there will be nothing to stand up for.

Tom Murray said:
Do you think that there might be to many orginizations. I belong to several and the same message is being put out but like you say not enough people coming forward at each groups meetings. Maybe we need less groups working for us in order to have a united voice. I wonder if one orginization stepped up and really started to push how many people would come out. I feel most people do not bother because they see it is a slow process and of little value. One load group seems to work in places in Europe as well as in Quebec.

John Gillespie said:
RoadRunner

I see you asking where the OFA is and why they have not been organizing rallies. As a vice president in the Bruce County federation of Agriculture I am going to turn the question around and ask where have the members been? OFA has been asking for the RMP and other programs and changes. We have not been getting much response from Government to our requests. We know things have to change BUT we are not seeing much from our members. Last fall at our county annual meeting ( with almost 1400 members in the county) we had 70 people out, about 1/2 were directors and spouses, plus media and politicians, hardly any regular members. There were NO resolutions presented for us to do anything different and I think the hog and beef sectors were in trouble last fall too. We always make our monthly board meetings open to members, and we never have any come. If you want to push OFA to do more you have to show up. Go to your county meeting and ask them to do more. Better yet take 25 of your neighbours with you. If 5 or 6 regional directors go to the next OFA board meeting and say they each had 50 or 100 members out to the last county board meetings demanding rallies/protests etc then more is likely to happen.

The leadership of OFA can't do everything for the members without some help. Our county can't even fill all the township director chairs, and most of us have off farm work besides, so we need more help. If you want to provide it, we will accept.
Well the BCFA is the local level of OFA. We deal with local issues, and act as a voice for members to interact with the provincial OFA.

I do agree there are too many groups, and that the Quebec model works much better, getting there is going to be an interesting process but some parts are starting (Grain Farmers).

The real question is if we do decide to become more active, (and rallies are just one option, a very concentrated lobby on MP/MPP's may be just as effective, if say every MP/MPP had a personal visit every day, and a call and fax every 15 minutes for 2 or 3 weeks) how many people are going to support us, and how many have just given up?
The real point is one of our leadership has to step up and tell us what needs to be done and tell it so that we get a huge majority on board. If not we might as well quit right now. I will support anything that is seen as helping the cause but I am sick of going to meetings that do not accomplish anything. The farm can no longer support my family so my wife and myself ( just like many others ) have found it necessary to work full time jobs and run the farm, how much time do we have to attend meetings that appear to be going no where......none

Reply to Discussion

RSS

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

Secretary Rollins Takes Decisive Action and Shuts Down U.S. Southern Border Ports to Livestock Trade due to further Northward Spread of New World Screwworm in Mexico

Yesterday, Mexico’s National Service of Agro-Alimentary Health, Safety, and Quality (SENASICA) reported a new case of New World Screwworm (NWS) in Ixhuatlan de Madero, Veracruz in Mexico, which is approximately 160 miles northward of the current sterile fly dispersal grid, on the eastern side of the country and 370 miles south of the U.S./Mexico border. This new northward detection comes approximately two months after northern detections were reported in Oaxaca and Veracruz, less than 700 miles away from the U.S. border, which triggered the closure of our ports to Mexican cattle, bison, and horses on May 11, 2025. While USDA announced a risk-based phased port re-opening strategy for cattle, bison, and equine from Mexico beginning as early as July 7, 2025, this newly reported NWS case raises significant concern about the previously reported information shared by Mexican officials and severely compromises the outlined port reopening schedule of five ports from July 7-September 15. There

University of Manitoba appoints Dr. Filiz Koksel as Manitoba Strategic Research Chair in Sustainable Protein

The University of Manitoba is pleased to welcome Dr. Filiz Koksel as the new Manitoba Strategic Research Chair in Sustainable Protein, a role that continues to advance sustainable agri-food innovation and leadership in plant and animal protein research and innovation. Dr. Koksel, an associate professor in the Department of Food and Human Nutritional Sciences, leads an interdisciplinary research program that aligns closely with Manitoba’s Protein Advantage Strategy. She holds BSc and MSc degrees in Food Engineering and earned her PhD in Food Science from the University of Manitoba.  “My vision for this Chair is to position Manitoba as a global leader in sustainable protein innovation by uniting scientific discovery with industry partnerships,” said Dr. Koksel. “Together, we will create solutions that advance food security and climate resilience for generations to come.” Dr Koksel’s current work focuses on developing novel, environmentally friendly protein ingredients from crops such

Support staff recognized for contributions to Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences

Each year the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences calls for nominations of a support staff member or team who have made outstanding contributions in support of the teaching, research, service and outreach goals of the Faculty. At a celebratory barbecue to celebrate all nominees held on July 9, six individuals and four teams were recognized for their service to the Faculty. Sheldon Beichter, Technician, Carman Research Station Becky Dueck, Technician, Department of Plant Science Atanas Karamanov, Technician, Richardson Centre for Food Technology and Research Minami Maeda, Technician, Department of Biosystems Engineering Finley Makila, Technician, Richardson Centre for Food Technology and Research Donna Ryland, Technician, Department of Food and Human Nutritional Sciences Charlene Hawryluk, Wajiha Shahzad, Uldis Bourne, Jennifer St. Laurent, Dianne Dugald and Vanessa Ryplanski, Departments of Animal Science & Entomology and Glenlea Research Station Minami Maeda, Daniel Benedet an

Some crops look good and other not so good in Saskatchewan

A drive around Saskatchewan provides a wide range of crop conditions, based on rainfall received. Timely thunderstorms, combined with spring rain, are producing decent-looking crops in some locations, particularly the southeast. The poorest crops are in the southwest, but there are areas across the northern grainbelt that are much drier than normal as well. Saskatchewan Agriculture’s weekly crop report puts provincial cropland topsoil moisture conditions at 55 percent adequate, 33 percent short and 12 percent very short. Many fields are at relatively uniform stages, but there is some inconsistent staging which is making spray timing challenging. Areas that have received moderate to high rainfall over the last few weeks are applying fungicides to some of their pulse, cereal and oilseed crops.

AGRI-FOOD 2050 Industry Event

The Agricultural Adaptation Council (AAC) is bringing industry leaders together to envision the future of agri-food in Ontario. The inaugural Agri-food 2050 Event will draw attendees from across the broader agri-food sector including representatives from primary agriculture, agri-business, food processing, agri-food research, and government.

© 2025   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service