When Ontario Pork goes lobbying for financial aid in Queen’s Park next time, it won’t be alone. And it will be carrying with it a position that some producers, like Gerald Kolkman and John Nyenhuis of Perth County, find to be on the conservative side.
Last fall, Ontario Pork signed on as part of the Ontario Agriculture Sustainability Coalition (OASC). The other partners include grains and oilseed growers, beef, veal and fruits and vegetables that aren’t grown under glass and plastic. All these agriculture sectors are under financial stress.
“If we are going to get anywhere with the province it will not be as a single commodity,” says Wellington County producer Steve Illick, chair of Ontario Pork’s safety nets committee. “It is not just pork that is in this dilemma.”