TORONTO Ñ In the face of farmer fury over falling incomes and failing government programs, Ontario agriculture minister Steve Peters has appointed a committee of former farm leaders to examine the programs that are available.
One of the advisers, former Ontario Federation of Agriculture president Jack Wilkinson, quickly warned farmers not to expect radical new program suggestions.
“We will not be operating in a void,” he said.
“None of these issues are new. I think we will be examining the programs and what consensus there is in the farm community about how they need to be changed.”
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Wilkinson, a northern Ontario farmer and president of the International Federation of Agricultural Producers, said he does not want to make it a long process.
“Some see it as a delaying tactic and some say it is this government’s style to deal with a problem by studying it but I think we can do this faairly quickly,” he said.
“I would like to see a report to the minister before seeding time. Whether there is any role beyond that, we’ll see.”
Wilkinson is joined on the advisory panel by former Ontario Corn Growers’ Association executive Terry Daynard, former Ontario Cattlemen’s Association executive director Graeme Hedley and former horticulture industry leader Hector Delanghe.
In an open letter to Ontario farmers published the day of a farmer rally at the Ontario legislature March 2, Peters said the advisory panel will “study the business risk management system. I am asking them for advice on how to ensure a strong agricultural sector now and into the future with an eye toward our fiscal constraints.”
In an interview, Peters said he wants the advisers to look beyond the province’s companion programs Ñ market revenue insurance and self-directed risk management Ñ to see what is possible.
They also will look at business risk management programs included within the agricultural policy framework.
“I want them to review the whole range of what is available.”
Wilkinson said a number of problems have been identified with existing programs, from timeliness of payouts and funding to poor responsiveness to gradual income drops.
However, trade rules that limit how farm support programs can be structured are also a problem.
“There is no point designing programs that will be subject to countervail because there is no stability there,” said Wilkinson, a former Canadian Federation of Agriculture president.
“One of the issues is whether you want to push the envelope harder to say that we can’t just live within trade rules and let’s see how far we can go.”
