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It wouldn't work, Darryl. Without a lot of
subsidization and protection, the family farm is probably finished.
Americans and Europeans are able and willing to keep their farmers going, but I
don't think we can to the same extent. There are other
priorities.
Ed
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Tuesday, April 11, 2006 11:25
PM
Subject: Re: [Futurework] The farmers
still aren't jolly!
All mail scanned by NAV
Could it be the stock market action for these $companies$ mentioned? Too
bad the family farms are not on the stock market. Of course that would mean
there would have to a prices set at the farm gate to see good profits (as for
farm machinery, pesticide, genetics or fertilizer companies) and therefore
good returns for the investors.
Yes, the "free market" is wonderful. And all those farmers put out to
pasture? Soon to come to a street corner in your town, or is that
gutter?
Darryl
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Saturday, April 08, 2006 8:11
AM
Subject: Re: [Futurework] The farmers
still aren't jolly!
> Ed, can you say that the family farmers
are the ones suffering, while
> agro-business flourishes? This is what
we are seeing in the US. Whole
> farming villages are being abandoned,
buildings empty and crumbling,
> highways bypassing them.
>
> Cheers,
> Lawry
Don't really know, Lawry. My recent
interest in this whole business was arroused by going down to Parliament
Hill, talking to a few of the protesting farmers and taking a few
pictures. But here's how our National Farmers Union sees
it:
Family farmers across Canada are experiencing
the worst farm income crisis in decades. In 2005, average realized net
farm income from the markets (not counting government payments) was
approximately negative $12,000 per farm. In 2004, it was negative $10,000
per farm, and in 2003, it was negative $16,000 per farm. These figures
after inflation is taken into account - are well below those experienced
by farmers in the 1930s. During the worst years of the Great Depression,
the average Canadian farm averaged $3,897 per farm from the markets (after
average farm earned negative $323 per farm.
Yet at the same time as family farms are in
crisis, the profit picture for the other links in the chain could not be
better. For the large agribusiness corporations that dominate in Canada,
2004 was the best year in history. Overall, their profits hit record
highs. Of the 75 companies profiled in a recent NFU study (The Farm Crisis
and Corporate Profits see www.nfu.ca) 41 posted record profits, and
another 16 had near-record profits or their second-or third-best year
ever. Thus, 57 of 75 companies 76% - had their best year or nearly their
best.
A small number of very large companies dominate
the marketplace, and they are using their economic leverage to extract
large profits at the expense of family farmers. This fact was confirmed in
a recent report entitled "Empowering Canadian Farmers" (commonly referred
to as the Easter Report) released in July, 2005 by the federal government.
In a posting Mike Gurstein describes his
Saskatchewan hometown which he revisited some ten years ago as having
prospered while other towns withered away because it appeared to have won
"the geographic lottery". Some places gained as marketing and
distribution centres while others lost. I've put this message on my
blog (http://members.eisa.com/~ec086636/newblog.htm)
along with a picture of my grandfather's house near Theodore, northwest of
Yorkton, Saskatchewan. The picture was taken a couple of decades ago,
so the house may no longer exist. However, in the 1930s and early
1940s, the farm on which the house was situated supported my grandparents,
an aunt and an uncle, plus my parents for a time. It also helped
several other uncles and aunts acquire farms of their own. Times were
different for farmers then.
Ed
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