NFU coordinator affirms commitment to family farms

Monday, December 5, 2011

by SUSAN MANN

The National Farmers Union’s Ontario branch is committed to maintaining the family farm as the province’s main food producing unit, says Ann Slater, the group’s newly elected coordinator.

“The main thing is to continue to advocate for family farms,” says Slater, who was elected at a special meeting for the Ontario branch held during the 42nd annual national convention in London last month.

Other matters members have asked the branch to work on include trying to ensure genetically engineered alfalfa isn’t commercially released in Ontario, better community control over green energy projects, and refocusing attention on the loss of small abattoirs.

With a new agriculture minister in Ontario and a somewhat new provincial government “we need to refocus on what we need to do to keep small abattoirs in place,” she says. For many union members, direct marketing is a very important part of their operation. Without a small abattoir, anyone who’s raising livestock can’t market directly to customers.

Nationally one thing the union is focused on is ensuring supply management isn’t turfed out when the federal government negotiates various trade agreements, such as the Canada-European one. In other news, a number of Ontario farmers were acclaimed to positions on the organization’s national executive, including Colleen Ross of Iroquis, first vice-president; Don Mills of Granton, second vice-president; Joan Brady of Dashwood, women’s president; and Paul Slomp of Ottawa, youth vice-president. 

During the union’s Ontario branch accreditation hearing this fall some members raised questions that lead to a continuation of the group’s hearing but Slater says she doesn’t think their reaccreditation is in jeopardy. “Like the other three organizations, we’re just waiting to hear,” she says. BF