Red meat sector in crisis: farmers

The red meat sector on Prince Edward Island is in a major state of crisis and the premier must stop assuming agriculture will help the province through an economic downturn, say farm leaders from across the province.

Leaders from some of the Islands main agricultural sectors held a joint news conference Monday (Nov. 17) to express their displeasure at some statements made recently by Premier Robert Ghiz regarding the state of the Islands economy.

After attending a first ministers meeting in Toronto last week, Ghiz said he believes PEI is well positioned to weather the current global economic storm.

We dont build cars. We sell potatoes and seafood products. During a slowing economic time, people may not buy cars, but they will continue to buy food products, he said in an interview with The Guardian on Nov. 10.

John Colwill, a beef farmer and representative of the PEI Federation of Agriculture, said the livestock sector on PEI is on the verge of virtual collapse, with an almost decimated hog industry and the beef sector just barely staying alive.

With these kinds of comments, the premier gives an impression these suffering industries are PEIs saviour, when in reality theyre the ones that need saving, Colwill said.

Government should not assume that agriculture will pull PEI through an economic downturn without working with industry to fix the broken spokes of the wheel, he said.

Farm leaders are demanding a meeting with cabinet to discuss the current state of crisis being felt by the red- meat sector and the nonchalance they feel coming from government.

Many factors have led to the current downturns in the industry, including the high Canadian dollar, the BSE outbreaks and volatile pricing for shipping and feed stocks, said Cameron MacDonald, chair of the PEI Cattle Producers Association.

And with new obstacles now arising, including reduced demand for Canadian beef, immediate assistance is necessary, MacDonald said.

My purpose for coming here today is to stress the importance for government to act immediately to prevent a further decline in the industry before its too late.

They are asking the province for short-term funding for beef and hog farmers to help them through the current crisis. But its not the first time theyve done so.

Last May, Island producers presented a list of resolutions to government they wanted to see implemented, including short-term relief measures.

Those three requests to government have so far been ignored, Colwill said.

(Government) told us that if we supported the Commission (on Agriculture) that they would work with us as a province to provide some immediate and short-term help, and that part of the bargain never happened, he said.

Now, grain, dairy and potato producers are promising to work together with the beef and hog industries to secure the much-needed help.

What were talking about is the Island landscape being threatened, said David Mol, chair of the PEI Grains and Proteins council.

While driving along a rural highway in Alberta recently in an area he called cattle country, Mol said he was saddened to see so many broken-down corrals and rusty equipment piled up along the side of the road.

The look of prosperity was gone, but you could see what it used to look like and you could see the pride that had been put into the places, but you could see the neglect thats taken place, Mol said.

PEI doesnt need to turn into a place like that. We have to really need to look at how the livestock sector has kept the Island emerald green. The Guardian