NAPANEE, Ont. – Thirty-year-old dairy farmer Kevin MacLean, wearing his
best dark suit and freshly cut hair, stood March 12 when it was his
turn to speak to MPs on the House of Commons agriculture committee.
He was brimming with optimism and gratitude for his chance to join his
parents last year in their successful dairy operation.
“I have the luxury to stand here with a full stomach and the ability to
speak to my elected representatives,” he said. He called himself “a
Read Also
Final crop reports show strong yields, quality
Crops yielded above average across the Prairies this year, and quality is generally average to above-average.
proud farmer and a proud son.”
After a speech that included a call for larger capital gains exemptions
for intergenerational farm transfers, better succession planning and
more federal leadership, MacLean was applauded by MPs as an optimistic
voice of youth.
But he was the exception during the second day of agriculture committee
hearings in Ontario.
Many of the witnesses said attracting young people to the industry is a
tough challenge.
John Williamson, president of the Frontenac County federation of
agriculture, told MPs the greying of farmers is a huge issue.
“Our farmers are aging and in the next 10 years we shall lose a lot to
retirement or the scrap heap,” he said. “As a profession, we likely
have one of the oldest average ages. Believe me folks, we are getting
older, we ache and 14 to 16-hour days are no longer job perks.”
Iain Gardiner, 31-year-old president of the Lennox and Addington
federation of agriculture, said a large issue in urbanizing provinces
like Ontario is finding a way to reduce land costs.
Gardiner and MacLean appeared at the committee hearing sitting beside
their fathers, both established farmers.
One MP travelling with the committee said privately later that hearing
farmers talk about ways to attract their children into the business
contrasts with a sense of defeatism heard at many stops in Western
Canada where parents are advising their children to avoid farming if
possible.
“There seems to be more optimism, more of a can-do attitude here,” he
said. “But don’t quote me.”
During the hearing, MPs heard a variety of proposals for new farm
policy:
- William Rendell, a local farmer who does consulting work in the
United States, said Canadian farm policy should be more driven and
directed by the federal government. “Americans would understand it
better.”
- Several speakers worried about environmental rules, water
requirements and fisheries department regulations for rural waterways.
- Peter Dowling, Ontario representative for the National Farmers Union,
called for policies to attract young people, maintenance of orderly
marketing, stronger food safety regulations and mandatory labelling of
genetically modified food.
Meanwhile, MPs listened with rapt attention as young farmer MacLean
said he had gone to school, worked at a job off the farm and decided
last year that his future was in farming.
“I have a father and mother who are progressive and they have a viable
operation,” he told an MP who asked why he came back. “I could join
them. Succession means I just have to continue with that they have
built.”
