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CHRISTIAN FARMERS FEDERATION OF ONTARIO
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
President’sComments
FederationBusiness
Policy Notes
SPRI
NG
Newsletter
DistrictNews
April 2014, Volume 12, No.1
The year 2013 has been an interesting and optimistic year for farmers across Ontario. Many sectors of the agriculture com-
munity are having a very satisfying year. The year was not without its share of challengers. The continuous rains in part of
the province during the normal planting, haying and recent harvest season has tested farmer patience. Our grain and oilseed
producers are not experiencing the robust prices they received last year but the pork, beef and sheep sectors are welcoming
the chance to move towards better margins. The fruit and vegetable sector are encouraged by the keen interest of consumers
in local foods.
This is also the time of the year to look ahead. The CFFO has a dual role of dealing with current issues and to look ahead to the
challenges and opportunities that farm families will face in the future. Are there ways to make the world we live and work in
a better place for all of us?
The landscape of rural Ontario is changing rapidly, during the last few years over a half million acres of hay and pasture has
been converted to annual grain and oilseed crops. The CFFO is asking what impact these changes have on long term soil health
and the other species that we share the environment with. Will we be able to maintain and improve the organic matter con-
tent productivity of our soils? Will pollinators adapts and thrive without the biodiversity that was traditional in Ontario agricul-
ture. Will our rapid adoption and dependence on new technology have some unintended consequences for those other plant,
insect and micro-organism species. The CFFO is working with the Sustainability Chair at the University of Guelph to research
these issues and looking for guidance from this research. We want our child and their farm families to have the same or better
opportunities than we have had. Being good stewards of all of our resources – land, water and air is the legacy we will pass to
our children.
Last month Premier Kathleen Wynne challenges the Agriculture and Food industry to become the engine of growth and pros-
perity for the Province. The agriculture and food industry already challenges the automotive sector as the largest sector in the
Ontario economy. In Ontario we have some of the best farm land in the world, a very desirable climate and a resourceful and
talented farm population. To rise to the challenge we will have to use all of our resources to their potential. We will have to
welcome new technology and incorporate new operating techniques. We will have to do so under the watchful eye of our ur-
ban cousins while providing safe nutritious food, sustaining the environment for future generations, and assuring the welfare
of our farm animals. I am confident that the farm families of Ontario are up to the challenge.
I am very optimistic about the future of agriculture in Ontario. These are opportunities around every corner. Yes there will be
challenges, but I know that farmers of Ontario love a challenge and will channel their resources to meet every challenge, and
will enjoy the gratification that comes from achieving success. May I wish you and your family every success in the year ahead.
Lorne Small
PRESIDENT’SCOMMENTS
Lorne SmallPRESIDENT
Page 2
CFFO Newsletter
April 2014, Volume 12, No. 1
Page 3
April 2014, Volume 12, No. 1
• The CFFO has purchased a property
in Guelph. The CFFO office will be
moving as soon as a number of reno-
vations have been completed.
• Board and staff members set aside a
day in February for a strategic plan-
ning session. The session will focus
primarily on effectively communicat-
ing the CFFO’s message.
• President Small and several staff
members have met with experts on a
number of issues, such as neonicoti-
noids, predation and trade.
• Board members are representing the
CFFO at a large number of other or-
ganizations’ annual meetings.
• The Executive Board has in principal
agreed to undertake a Cross-Com-
pliance Project with the Wheeler
Group. The project is meant to look
at long term sustainability from a
pro-active standpoint – based on
the triple bottom-line approach that
includes economical, environmental
and societal pillars. The project will
result in a discussion paper for CFFO.
FEDERATION BUSINESS
DISTRICT NEWSPaul Bootsma
FIELD SERVICES MANAGER
The 2014 South West Ag Conference
held at Ridgetown College was an-
other successful event. Farmers were
out for the two day event which fea-
tured speakers on current issues and a
trade show hall with vendors eager to
engage with visitors, the C-K-E district
was there as well with a display.
The Grey-Bruce district held its annual
meeting on January 30, 2014 in the
Keady Community Centre. CFFO presi-
dent Lorne Small spoke on the work of
the CFFO’s task teams of the last 2 years
and how they are setting the stage for
the federation for the next number of
years. District president Ian McCombie
reported that the past work the dis-
trict was involved with about the clos-
ing of small abattoirs has paid off since
changes have come in how they are in-
spected. He also updated the group on
the Canadian Foodgrains Bank project
the district is involved with in connec-
tion with the CFFO’s 60th anniversary.
FARM SHOWS
CFFO Staff & board members will be
hosting a booth at the following farm
shows in the next few months.
London Farm show, March 5-7
Ottawa Farm show, March 11-13
East Central Farm Show in Lindsay
March 5&6.
Earlton farm show April 11&12
CFFO Newsletter
Page 4
CFFO Newsletter
POLICY NOTESNathan StevensGENERAL MANAGER,
DIRECTOR OF POLICY DEVELOPMENT
April 2014, Volume 12, No. 1
THE PREMIER’S CHALLENGE
Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne re-
cently challenged the agriculture and
agri-food sector to double the rate
of growth in the sector and produce
another 120,000 jobs. The growth
portion of the challenge is one that
farmers can take on through new
technology and better management.
The job creation side seems destined
for the food processing sector, but
Ontario’s farmers can be the ones to
provide them with the raw materials
they need to succeed. Despite recent
setbacks in the sector with the clo-
sures of the old Kellog’s and Heinz
plants, we believe that focused ef-
fort on the part of the province and
host municipalities can bring in new
business.
For agriculture, the CFFO is focused
on the opportunity of better wa-
ter management for farmers. Many
farmers are already strong propo-
nents of drainage systems as a pro-
ductivity enhancer, but we believe
that responsible irrigation use is the
next step in enhancing yields in agri-
culture. With the tremendous value
of land in some parts of the prov-
ince, it makes sense to maximize the
potential of each valuable acre.
CFFO IN ACTION
PRE-BUDGET CONSULTATIONS
The CFFO weighed in on the 2014
Ontario budget with three key asks.
Our first message was clear and sim-
ple – stay the course in working to-
wards balancing the budget. There
are few things that could hurt all
of agriculture more than increased
interest rates. Our second message
was that investing in the productiv-
ity of the sector would be prudent.
Finally, we believe that investing in
market intelligence gathering will
lead to new business opportuni-
ties for the agriculture as more and
more trade opportunities open up.
GREAT LAKES WATER QUALITY
AGREEMENT
Phosphorus loading into the Great
Lakes, particularly Lake Erie, has
been identified as one of most criti-
cal environmental concerns for On-
tario and the American States sur-
rounding the lakes. The reason for
this concern stems from the increase
in harmful algae blooms on the lakes
in recent years. Agriculture has been
identified as a significant contributor
to this concern (but hardly the only
concern) and the sector needs to
make adjustments to reduce its con-
tribution. Ontario, Ohio, and Michi-
gan, as well as the Canadian and
American federal governments, are
working together on this important
matter. CFFO has been asked to play
a role communicating between our
members and government on how
best to approach this issue.
UNDERSTANDING THE GREENBELT
The CFFO and a number of other
stakeholders are providing input into
a University of Guelph led study into
the impacts of ten years of Green-
belt Policy. This is tremendously im-
portant as the formal review of this
policy will take in the near future.
The CFFO is a strong supporter of
farmland preservation but we also
need to ensure that farm businesses
are able to thrive in protected areas.
Page 5
CFFO Newsletter
April 2014, Volume 12, No. 1
Seven, eight, nine, 10, 11, 12. I’m
looking at the membership list
for the district of Renfrew-Lanark of
the Christian Farmers Federation of
Ontario (CFFO). Of the 102 names,
there are only 12 who sound Dutch.
A bit surprising, because it was Dutch
immigrants who started CFFO.
Sixty years ago, in March of 1954, a
small group of Dutch immigrants met
in Strathroy, Ontario to begin work-
ing towards a type of agriculture that
supports family farms, contributes to
local communities and provides care
for the world and its creatures. They
created the Christian Farmers Feder-
ation of Ontario (CFFO) to give voice
to this vision.
But the story of the Christian Farm-
ers Federation of Ontario really be-
gan over 100 years ago in the Neth-
erlands. In 1891, at the Christian
Social Congress, Abraham Kuyper,
the future Prime minister of the
Netherlands, called for a Christian
program to tackle social problems.
He advocated the establishment of
distinctly Calvinist institutions in all
sectors of society.
By around 1918, in the Netherlands,
three specialized employers’ unions
had emerged. One of these was the
Christelijke Boren en Tuindershond
(CBTB), or, as we would call them,
the Christian Farmers and Garden-
ers Union.
The minutes of that initial farm
meeting in Strathroy record: “Every-
one feels the great need for this.”
There was no fanfare, no public an-
nouncement, only the fervency of a
great need: a need to establish their
work in agriculture as God’s work.
Today, the CFFO still strives to realize
the founding vision of the original
members.
Since 1994, membership has in-
creased six-fold, from just over 500 in
the early 1990s, thanks to the Ontario
NDP government of Bob Rae and Ag-
riculture Minister Elmer Buchanan. It
was Buchanan who introduced legis-
lation requiring farmers in Ontario to
support (pay a yearly fee) to one of
the province’s general farm organiza-
tions. CFFO’s modeling in the 1950s
on the organizational structure of the
CBTB meant that it had developed
in Ontario as a general farm organi-
zation with a set of geographically
based local associations. CFFO quali-
fied as a general farm organization
(the other being the Ontario Federa-
tion of Agriculture) and experienced
a sudden huge jump in member-
ship and a large jump in income. No
longer were CFFO members mainly
Dutch Calvinists in background.
Meindert van der Galien is an agricul-
ture writer and columnist.
WITH DUTCH CHRISTIAN ROOTS THE CFFO TURNS 60By Meindert van der Galien
Page 5
CFFO Newsletter
Page 6
April 2014, Volume 12, No. 1
HAITI FOUR YEARS LATER What Good Things Can Come From Disaster BY: Betsy Wall
I was an ambivalent teenager when
I followed my father to Haiti in the
late 1960’s; not sure that I wanted to
visit a country smothered in abject
poverty and even more unsure what
on earth I could do about it. Haiti
promised adventure. It was hot,
exotic, and different. It proved all
that and more; too much more
for me. I couldn’t see past the
sick and diseased, the distended
bellies and auburn hair of mal-
nourished children; the dust, the
flies, the noise, the crowds. Haiti
reeked of poverty and I didn’t
like it one bit. Haiti made me un-
comfortable. Even though I had
occasion to return from time to
time, I remained guarded. Haiti was
not my problem.
I have learned a lot since that fateful
weekend trip. I have learned much
about the complexities of Haiti and
its people, of poverty, and of why it
seems to never go away. “The poor
will always be among us,” says Je-
sus. “So why do anything?” I (once)
thought. However, I (eventually)
chose to act otherwise. ‘Eventually’
turned out to be some thirty years
later when I was presented with the
opportunity to work for the organi-
zation my father founded (FIDA). The
offer seemed either a blessing or a
curse. I banked on the former and
thus began my education in interna-
tional development.
I still have memory of a time when
Haiti was able to feed itself. Today,
this country, once a significant ex-
porter of sugar, coffee, and numer-
ous fruits is now nearly entirely
dependent on imports to feed its
people. Although the situation be-
came exacerbated by the impact of
the earthquake as well as rising costs
of world food commodities, with the
United Nations Food and Agriculture
Organization (FAO) predicting that
Haiti’s food import bills will be the
highest in the world (more than 80%
compared to 2007), it is really the
legacy of foreign interests that have
systemically undermined Haiti’s food
production over the last thirty years.
One may think that not much good
can come from a disaster such as
the earthquake that befell Haiti on
January 12, 2010. But many of us do
know that when bad things happen,
we tend to see things around us in a
CFFO Newsletter
January 2014, Volume 12, No. 1
different way. This was the case with
Haiti. Today, there is almost no one in
the world that does not know where
this tiny little country is and the sad-
ness that surrounded its people. I
recall the morning after the quake
as the first of the military troops
started to arrive. The previous night
had been dark with grief. It seemed
that we were so alone and forgotten,
that there was nothing left but our
faith and our hymns. It is a night I
will never, ever forget. And so, my
question to the troops was, “What
has happened? What are people
saying?” “Well,” they said, “Peo-
ple are saying, poor Haiti. What
more can happen to these poor,
poor people?” Indeed, what more
can happen? Moreover, is there any
good that can really come of this? I
believe so.
Firstly, we began seeing Haiti in a
different way. Rather than think-
ing of Haitians as poor and needy
and desperate, we are now seeing
Haitians as courageous, resilient,
working together to overcome an
unimaginable adversity in the most
unimaginable circumstances. They
are making something from nothing.
However, we also saw things that
were not so good. I was in Haiti for
four days following the earthquake,
arriving home on Sunday morning in
time to catch the 6:00 a.m. news. It
was my first glimpse of what the rest
of the world was seeing and how the
world was responding to the magni-
tude of need and helplessness. I was
sickened to see boxes of food being
thrown out of helicopters and backs
of trucks, sickened by the subse-
quent image of tanks and gun-toting
UN forces being driven in to quell the
chaos that had been created by the
ineptitude of the food aid distribu-
tors. I wept, wondering what our
humanitarianism has come to. Haiti
deserves better. We must change.
The second good thing that has come
from this disaster is that Haitians are
finally standing up and saying what
they really desire. Although there
appears to be much good intent to
listen to the people of Haiti and to
truly be responsive to their needs,
we often already have in mind what
we want to give and what we want to
get out of it. For the last four years,
the resounding refrain from peasant
to politician is that Haiti must invest
in the agricultural sector; that the
hope of the country is in its people
to produce. Indeed. In the last four
years, FIDA/pcH has received an un-
precedented number of requests
from communities to invest in their
desire to form their own agricultur-
al cooperatives. This is a vision we
share, and it is here that our resourc-
es must be invested.
On the Friday afternoon following
the earthquake and before leaving
Haiti, I asked to be driven down-
town. I wanted to chronicle these
images of Haiti. I wanted them to be
part of my being. I wanted never to
forget these days of my life. One im-
age significantly affecting was that
of the crucified Christ on the cross;
the sole remnant of what was once a
grand church. Throughout my forty-
plus years’ relationship with Haiti,
I have had many opportunities to
meet people who come to Haiti be-
lieving that they have been called
to this special mission: to save and
solve and fix and heal Haiti. “We
come,” they say, “to bring love,
hope, solutions. We come, be-
cause we are blessed. Haiti is poor.
Haiti is a mess. Haiti needs us.” How-
ever, time after time I have heard
testimony as to how Haiti has in turn,
loved, healed, and redeemed them.
Perhaps Haiti is not the mission? Per-
haps it is we that are the mission?
Perhaps it is here, in this poor, devas-
tated corner of the world that Christ
lives and calls us to be forgiven?
Perhaps that lonely, naked, and holy
icon of the thorn-crowned Christ
amidst the rubble is the prophetic
sign? Perhaps on that fateful day of
January 12th we became witness to
the supreme sacrifice of Haiti? I pray
that in the years to come, it may not
signify its last frontier of loss, that of
our humanity.
Betsy Wall
Betsy.wall@fida-pch.org
T: 519-886-9520
Page 7
CHRISTIAN FARMERS FEDERATION OF ONTARIO7660 MILL RD., RR 4GUELPH, ON N1H 6J1T: 519-837-1620Fax: 519-824-1835Email: cffomail@christianfarmers.orgWeb Site: www.christianfarmers.org
RETURN UNDELIVERABLE ITEMS TO
The CFFO Newsletter is published four times per year by the Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario for its members and friends. Editor: Jenny Denhartog; Production Manager: Franchesca Weeks
April 2014, Volume 12, No. 1CFFO Newsletter
C
el
ebrating
CHRISTIAN FARMERSFederation Of Ontario
Years
College Scholarship Program
The CFFO is offering post-secondary students who are studying in an agricultural related pro-gram scholarships valued at $500. To apply for the scholarship Please contact our field service manager, Paul Bootsma on 519-820-6856
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