"Free" Hay from Ontario/Maritimes...???

[cowman]

My Dutch hog farmer neighbor tells me that just about all the feed in the Netherlands has fusarium. Said it never was a big deal. He just laughs at the stories that pigs can't eat it. One way or the other its coming here and why would Lacombe county even bother to try to keep it out? Red Deer county and Lacombe share a common boundary.
I agree that some people are going to have a tough time adapting to a new way of life. It would have been helpful if the various governments could provide some retraining(like they did for the cod fishing industry) rather than try to save a dying situation. Hay from down east is nice but it won't make it rain!
In a way it is kind of ironic that people who are worth millions in assets are getting government aid. I mean they own their land, they own their cattle, they own their machinery. I don't think they would starve if they had to sell it all. Compare that to the starving kids in Africa.

[jmillang]

We have been importing feed forever from Fusarium affected areas. We are concerned about the level of infection and how we can slow the spread but to indicate that Lacombe County is free of fusarium is a bit silly. I was talking with two feed companies the other day an dboth indicated that they do test for fusarium on selected lots of grain purchased locally and both have found fusarium in locally grown feed. so to think that stopping the importation of corn is a bit like closing the gate after the cow is out the door.

[cakadu]

If fusarium is nothing to worry about, then what is the purpose in having at least one person tasked with studying it and/or keeping it out full time? It wasn't too long ago that we were reading a number of articles in papers about this "problem" and how we were trying to keep it out. Didn't the Minister even make comment on it?

This is a vicious cycle that seems to never have an end. If it takes a greater hold here and the grain guys have to start dealing with reduced yields and that whole scenario, what have we gained?

Maybe it is unrealistic to think we can keep it out and not have it affect us, but once on the slope, it's pretty hard to get off.

As for Dutch agriculture, they've had to come out with some pretty strict regulations over the years so how little of a problem was it over there?