In 1984, Ontario cattle producer Ron Oswald did the almost unthinkable.
The then-president of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association announced he was seeking the Liberal nomination in his home riding, at a time when the cattle industry looked with deep suspicion at the federal Liberal government and its promotion of a marketing board for cattle.
The CCA board asked him to step aside while he was pursuing politics. He lost the election and resumed his term as CCA president.
“There’s no doubt that not all members of the board were comfortable with me being a Liberal candidate, particularly those from the West,” Oswald said recently.
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“There was a lot of suspicion about the government agenda.”
It came from the heated political debate in Parliament when Alberta Liberal Bud Olson pushed through National Farm Products Marketing legislation in 1970-71 and resisted demands that the cattle industry be exempted. It also came from the continued arguments by Eugene Whelan that the cattle marketing system was a mess that needed central marketing discipline.
Two decades later, times have changed.
It is not unusual to hear cattle industry leaders praise the Liberal government for its support during the BSE crisis.
“If I had my hat on, I’d take it off to you,” former CCA president Neil Jahnke said to federal agriculture minister Bob Speller during a Par-liament Hill reception last March.
Calgary Liberal candidate Ted Haney, president of the Canadian Beef Export Federation, said it is time the industry moved beyond its traditional suspicion of the Liberals and alliance with the Conservatives.
“I believe the industry must and does recognize that there must be a good working relationship with the government, whatever party is in power,” he said.
“And I know I’m partisan on this but I believe prime minister (Paul) Martin has signalled to the industry that he wants a new relationship. The feeling of invincibility in the industry no longer exists. We need a more comprehensive relationship with government”
CCA president Stan Eby said the past year has shown that the export-dependent industry is vulnerable to international political disruptions and market failure that requires government leadership and at times, financial help.
Still, closer relations with govern-ment do not mean the industry is changing its view that market forces, rather than government policy or involvement, must determine success, say industry leaders.
