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For immediate release New and Expanding Farmers In Need Are Speaking Out
QUEEN’S PARK – Today during a statement in the Ontario Legislature Ernie Hardeman, Oxford MPP and PC Critic for Agriculture and Food, commended new and expanding farmers for raising awareness of the need for support and once again called the government to fix the Ontario Cattle, Hog and Horticulture program. “I want to commend farmers in my area who are also working to raise awareness of the situation,” said Hardeman.” If the government won’t listen to us they should listen to the farmers. They are the ones who need help. They are the reason that the government needs to fix this program before anyone else is forced out of farming.” The Ontario Cattle, Hog and Horticulture program uses 2005 and 2006 as qualifying years which eliminates farmers who started in 2007 or were expanding during the qualifying years and did not yet earn the majority of their income from cattle, hog or horticulture. The program uses 2000 to 2004 as reference years to calculate the annual allowable net sales. For new farmers or ones that have undergone large expansions this time period is unlikely to be an accurate reflection of the current size of their operation or recent loss of income. Hardeman cited a couple of examples of farmers who have been working to raise awareness of the problems with the Ontario Cattle, Hog and Horticulture program, such as: · Tina Veyhof, a pig farmer who has spoken out about her struggle to hold on to her farm and feed her four children because she didn’t receive support under this program; and · Rene Boerkamp, a new pig farmer who only has one month of income which qualifies in the reference years, and is now gathering stories of farmers who are in similarly difficult situations. Hardeman pointed out that as the Progressive Conservative Agriculture and Food Critic he has repeatedly cited out flaws with the Ontario Cattle, Hog and Horticulture program but the government has not taken any action to fix these problems. “We told the government – before they sent the cheques and many times since – that this program was not delivering the support to some of the farmers that need it the most,” said Hardeman. “Farmers are telling them the same thing. How many more times do they have to hear it before they take some action?”
- 30 - For more information, contact: Ernie Hardeman, MPP Oxford (416) 325-1239
Members’ Statement Ontario farmers Mr. Ernie Hardeman: New and young and expanding cattle, hog and horticulture farmers need help. That shouldn’t be a surprise to the members of the Legislature, because our party has told them over and over that under the government’s cattle, hog and horticulture program, these farmers didn’t get the support they deserved. We told them about retired farmers getting cheques for $80,000. We told them about farmers who got cheques for livestock they didn’t have. Yet the government has done nothing to solve the problem. I want to commend the farmers in my area who are also working to raise awareness of the situation, farmers like Tina Veyhof, a pork farmer who has spoken out about her struggle to hold on to her farm and feed her four children because she didn’t receive support under this program, and farmers like Rene Boerkamp, who recently wrote to the Ontario Farmer about his situation and asked others to share their stories. He said, “An injustice has been done regarding the Ontario cattle, hog and horticulture payment program, in which the beginning and/or expanding producer has been left in the cold and as a result has to deal with not only bad market conditions, but also with colleagues who are a few steps ahead through a government payment they did receive; therefore creating an unlevel playing field between farmers.” If the government won’t listen to us, maybe they will listen to these farmers. They are the ones who need help. They are the reason the government needs to fix this program before anyone else is forced out of farming.
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