Rural Development

[ValueChainFX]

Farm Management is tougher this year then ever before. Many producers are facing a big challenge and I am sure we will find some of them leaving the farm sooner rather then later.

Part of the challenge we see is the system we find ourselves in is not really producer friendly. Many of the producer require a total restructure program, but really don't know where to start.

I would be interested in what the financial experts have to recommend for producers that have been caught in drought conditions, high feed costs and a meat market that will only pay a price lower then the cost of production.

What can a producer do?

[ALLFARMER]

Don't you read the Western Producer? Drive for Yankee and do like 60% of all farmers already do have off farm income.

[ValueChainFX]

I see many producers already doing this. The Western Producer does cover many ag issues, but the long term fix is not in making an income off the farm it is looking at something we can do to make income on the farm.

Producers are going to have to take control one day and sooner rather then later.

Producers are not the only ones that are going to have to protect their incomes. Also rural communities are going to have to work on it as well. Time for rural people to work together to make our rural communities viable again.

Thank you for your input ALLFARMER.

[bmj182]

Good one Allfarmer! Keep posting
your ideas guys.

[rookie]

Let me try this again , the first post vanished..... I just hear the word trucking and I shiver. I have hauled enough logs in the middle of the night at 40 below to seriously question agricultures long term viability. I spent 15 years at various seasonal jobs and although it did help, it needs more. Now thats where things have to stop. I am 33 with post secd. education and really wonder somedays that the future of agriculture is all about being that good manager equally as much as knowing how to chain up tires. Just an opinion. Time to get back to work......

[flatbroke]

Boy do I agree with rookie! Been there, done that, 4 yrs. trucking and I'd rather shave my head with a cheese grater while chewing tin foil than do it again! Between my wife and I, we currently hold down 4 part-time jobs. The only "good farm managers" I see around here are those who had the skill to arrange 40 to 50 wells worth of oil under their land. I'd really like to see more by way of income tax breaks, as safety nets inevitably either pay only those who don't need it, or reward those who don't even try. Tax, however, seems to be bore mainly by those of us somewhere in between. I'd love to hear of anyone's ideas for the "perfect" safety net- rural development plan. Let's kick some ideas around!

[lonewolf]

flatbroke.. this is the information age and it seems that our urban counterparts cannot seem to stop investing in information technologies. Lets start by refusing to answer stats Canada's calls until they start paying us for the valuable information that they get and use to undermine our ability to farm.

[ValueChainFX]

Well part of the answer is to stop putting our processing in the cities. If we need to add value then let's do it in the rural communities. However, the rural communities have to add some incentives for business to come.

Farm managers need the assistance of so many people these days just to understand the many components of the supply chain they deal in. Pulling together to cut costs would be a start, but farmers are very reluctant to try anything new.

I heard once doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results is the definition of insanity!

The question now becomes;

HOW DO YOU SEE FARMERS COMING TOGETHER TO HELP EACH OTHER?

Thoughts, comments, ideas!

[Deb]

I have been pondering something. I don't know, you might think I'm crazy. The Ogallala aquifer in the States is disappearing. The rivers used for irrigation are disappearing. The costs of transporting food 2,000 miles to our stores is increasing. The population of the U.S. is increasing.

Relying on the U.S. to produce our food may not be sustainable. Canadian farmers will have to grow our food. Urbanites generally are unaware of where their food comes from and would be surprised to know how much is shipped from California, etc. and they would be anxious if they heard there was a possibility that they maybe would not have the vast selection of food they have now, in the future.

We need lots of small to mid-size family farms (especially community supported farms) all across this country. Too many folks don't even grow a garden anymore. Small family farms are going to be the most precious resource in the decades to come. What do you think?

[flatbroke]

Deb, I couldn't agree with you more. It's unfortunate, but it appears to be the government's mandate to rid the country of small to medium sized farms through direct and indirect means. VCFX,as for farmers coming together to help each other, ...sounds good, but I'm afraid many farmers nowadays would only extend a hand to grab another's wallet. It's not without consideration I make that statement, as I still believe farmers are the finest people in the world, but more and more I see the "me" mentality creeping in. (I might add it seems to be most prevalent in the largest farmers, or should I say "agribuisinessmen"?) Case in point, and I know I'm kicking a hornets nest, those that would dismantle the wheat board. O.K. guys, fire away!!!

[rodbradshaw]

I was at a meeting a month ago and a fellow made a comment that really struck home. He asked "When are farmers going to quite subsidizing their farming operations and the products they sell?". As long as we go out and keep producing, no matter whether it is profitable over the long run, we send the wrong message to our customer whether that be the hog or beef operation or the flour or pasta plant in some other country. Maybe the Focus on Sabbatical guys had the right idea but we just need to quit producing more than what is needed and the price will come up.

It is not going to pay to diversify and value add as long as there is no shortage, there will be no profitable times in agriculture.

[rhg]

I am pleased to see the positive direction this conversation is headed. As an urban resident interested in rural affairs, I have been disappointed that agricultural leaders have not brought positive ideas forward on how to deal with the rural problems.

Here is an example of a positive program that could be promoted:
We are aware that Europe directly supports the prices of many commodities, and we in Canada are moving away from that approach. But Canadians are generally not aware that European countries also provide payments for certain agricultural practices, regardless of whether any "product" is sold. For example, hedgerows that support wildlife may generate a payment of $? per metre, and refraining from using herbicides may result in $?? per hectare.

This is one way for urban tax payers to pay for what they value. In these examples, the product would be songbirds and wildflowers. Other "products" could include forested watersheds, wildlife management or recreational access.

The program is voluntary, as it should be, but recognizes the many services provided by landowners.

What do you think? Would the Species At Risk Act make more sense if ranchers received a couple of hundred dollars for every Burrowing Owl nest that they could document on their land?

The bottom line is: there are positive solutions, but we need to work together to find them, and convince politicians that they will be welcomed by farmers.

[rodbradshaw]

rhg
That is one way, and a more palatable way for the SAR legislation. The problem up to now with it is that the producer suffered all the consequences for the benefit of society as a whole.

Having looked at subsidies and what they do in other countries, we would all be better off if they were eliminated altogether as they soon get capitalized into the operation and then you need more, sort of the heroin of the business world.

[ianben]

As a beneficery of subsidies I see some benefifs to society.

The main problem I have with the world today is that in rich countries people continue to spend less and less of their earnings on food.

The rich become richer and fat while the poor get poorer and hungrier.

At least a subsidy allows the rich to pay more than the poor as they generally pay more tax.

Just how will unsubsidize food solve this problem.

I agree subsidies are capitalized but removal will just result in farmers going broke and the land being farmed by different people producing possibily even more.

There is no food surplus just a shortage of people who can afford to buy it.

A way to make the rich pay a realistic part of their income into the food chain would be the solution.

But how?

[flatbroke]

ianben; did I miss something? when did the rich begin paying more tax than the rest of us? ...on a more serious note, I heard an interesting idea on a call-in radio show this summer. In a nutshell, this city-dwelling caller sugested a tax on all derivative products at the retail level to be returned directly to primary producers. (provincial level, as we all know anything that goes to the feds ends up in Quebec.) The problem, however, is that whenever ANYTHING happens to put more money in farmers pockets, be it subsidies or just higher prices, the price of our inputs mysteriously increases accordingly. Unfortunately this trend does not follow on the way down.

CHEERS!