We are all fa m iliar with the m essages: “If y ou ate toda y , thank a far m er” and “Far m ers Feed Cities.” But how do these senti m ents fare in the rest of the world? Prett y well, thanks. Most Canadian consu m ers have a high regard for the people who produce their food. But few can full y understand the issues that concern the industr y , even though surve y s show that shoppers want to learn m ore about the m ost vital link in the food chain. Red tape is a proble m ever y business owner faces and loathes. Far m ers are no different, sa y s Ernie Harde m an, Oxford M.P.P. and PC Critic for Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. During Ontario Agriculture Week, the week before Thanksgiving, Harde m an released re- sults fro m his recent agriculture surve y and tried to m ake so m e political ha y . “Ontario fa m ers sent a clear m essage – the y are struggling with red tape and under this govern m ent the proble m is getting worse,” said Harde m an “Ontario far m ers now spend the equivalent of four work weeks ever y y ear just dealing with govern m ent for m s and paperwork.” About 77.2 per cent of respondents said that red tape is increasing. Ontario far m ers spend 154.2 hours a y ear just filling out govern m ent for m s; 66.4 per cent said there were exa m ples of red tape and/or regulations that add to their workload and/or hinder their operation, but have no value. “Ontario Agriculture Week is a ti m e to celebrate our far m ers but it is also a good opportunit y to exa m ine whether we are doing ever y - thing that we can to help the m succeed,” said Harde m an. “It’s clear fro m the results of this surve y that m uch m ore needs to be done to strengthen the agriculture industr y and support local food. We need to ensure far m ers are able to focus on growing great Ontario food. This Thanksgiving I hope that people will support our far m ers b y choosing local food and b y telling our govern m ent that the y need to do better.” An y thing that helps far m ers would be backed b y m ost Canadians, according to a Far m and Food Care poll. Canadians continue to have an increasingl y positive i m pression of Canadian agricul- ture, with 88 per cent of those surve y ed ranking it positive or neutral, up fro m 81 per cent in 2009 and 75 per cent in 2006. The findings can be found in the 2012 Far m and Food Care “Canadian Attitudes Stud y towards Food and Far m ing” stud y . Health care and the econo my are at the top of the worr y list. “Our research shows that although food and far m ing isn’t a top-of- m ind issue for m ost Canadians, m ost have an overall positive i m - pression of our food, how it’s grown and the people who produce it,” sa y s Cr y stal Macka y , Executive Director, Far m & Food Care. “Canadians ranked far m ers as war m l y and favour- abl y as their own fa m il y and friends, just slightl y above doctors and other m edical profes- sionals.” This y ear’s research, which builds on previous studies dating back to 2001, was expand- ed to include gathering public opinion on the five pillars of sustainable food: food safet y , environ m ent, far m ani m al health and welfare, hu m an health and econo m ics/food afford- abilit y . Canadians feel the y are generall y better infor m ed about food and far m ing than the y were even three y ears ago, and m ore than half of the m are interested in learning m ore. About 70 per cent have visited a far m at least once. The y are concerned about rising costs; m an y tr y to bu y local b y purchasing Canadian food products when possible. “This tracking research goes a long wa y in helping far m ers and people in the agri-food business to understand what Canadians believe, both toda y and in m onitoring trends over ti m e, as the y relate to the i m portance of agriculture, inter- est and what people would like to know m ore about how their food is produced,” sa y s Macka y . Far m & Food Care is a non-profit association that represents far m ers and related businesses with a m andate to provide credible infor m ation on food and far m ing in On- tario. For m ore infor m ation on the stud y , visit www.far m foodcare.org. It is not surprising that people like far m ers. What is there not to like? Well, y ou m ight want to check out a Conference Board of Canada report on m ilk quotas, alwa y s a hot is- sue. Dair y suppl y m anage m ent, a sacred cow for producers, has m et its pri m ar y polic y objectives of reducing the industr y ’s chronic m ilk surpluses and providing increased and stable returns to far m ers, the stud y concludes. But addressing these long-standing prob- le m s has co m e at a cost — reducing the industr y ’s overall econo m ic co m petitiveness and perfor m ance and co m plicating Canada’s international trade relationships, according to the report. “Though m ost Canadians drink m ilk or eat y ogurt or cheese, few are aware of the long- standing, co m plex suppl y m anage m ent s y ste m that establishes m ilk prices and suppl y at the far m level and li m its dair y i m ports,” said Al Mussell, co-author of the report and Senior Research Associate at the George Morris Centre. Canada was a dair y product exporter in the earl y 20th centur y and was a significant supplier, particularl y of cheese, to the United Kingdo m during World War II. But in post-war Europe, as production bounced back, Cana- dian cheese exports dropped sharpl y . The Canadian dair y industr y responded b y shifting production to serve the do m estic m arket. But the transition led to surpluses and lower far m er inco m es. The federal and provincial govern m ents intervened to stabilize m arkets. Over the past two decades, the quota s y ste m has been targeted, but salvaged, during international trade talks. “As it has evolved to changes, Canada’s m ilk suppl y m anage- m ent regulation has created so m e unintended costs and burdens. The challenge for the Canadian dair y industr y and polic y - m akers is to foster changes in the suppl y m anage- m ent s y ste m that reflect toda y ’s m arket conditions and econo m ic polic y context without handicapping industr y stakeholders, including dair y far m ers, processors and consu m ers,” points out Mussell. Future publications based on this research will consider how Canada’s dair y suppl y s y ste m co m pares with other countries, and will discuss sources of tension within the Canadian dair y industr y . As y ou can see, when it co m es to understanding far m ing, there is m uch to digest. Farm issues, food chain
Lire les inscriptions d’un pneu... plus simple que de lire dans une tasse de thé!
Pour plusieurs automobilistes, lire et com- prendre les informations imprimées sur le flanc d’un pneu d’hiver peut paraître aussi compliqué et abstrait que de lire dans une tasse de thé! Cependant, il est important de bien comprendre cette information afin de s’assurer que le pneu est approprié au type de véhicule et au style de conduite. Prenons l’exemple d’un pneu de dimen- sion P205/55R16 91H. La lettre «P» veut dire «Passager ou Passenger» et cela signifie que le pneu s’adresse à un véhicule de tourisme ou de promenade comme une berline, un coupé ou un petit véhicule utilitaire. D’autres pneus commencent par l’appellation «LT» pour «Light Truck», ce qui signifie qu’ils servent à chausser un VUS grand format, une camionnette ou un fourgon. Le chiffre «205» mentionne la largeur du pneu en millimètres. Plus le chiffre est haut, plus le pneu est large. Le chif- fre «55» désigne la hauteur du flanc en proportion de la largeur du pneu. Dans ce cas-ci, le flanc a une hauteur représentant 55 % de la largeur soit (205 mm x 55 % = 112,75 mm). Plus la hauteur du pneu est basse, plus le pneu est sportif, ce qui amé-
liore la tenue de route. En contrepartie, plus la hauteur du flanc est haute, plus le pneu sera meilleur pour filtrer les imper- fections de la chaussée. Prenez note que vous devez, en principe, toujours respec- ter la dimension de pneu recommandée par le constructeur du véhicule. La lettre «R» indique que le pneu est de type radial. Le chiffre «16» est le diamètre de la roue en pouces. Le chiffre «91» représente l’indice de charge, soit la charge maximale que peut supporter le pneu à son gonflage maximum. La lettre «H» indique la cote de vitesse, soit la vitesse maximale constante à laquelle un pneu peut être soumis.
Il est important de bien comprendre l’inscription afin de s’assurer que le pneu est approprié au type de véhicule et au style de conduite.
Le pneu X-Ice MD Xi3 MC de MICHELIN MD réduit jusqu’à 10 % votre distance de freinage sur la glace et dure jusqu’à deux fois plus longtemps que des principaux concurrents. 1,2 SÉCURITAIRE , HIVER APRÈS HIVER
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1. Basée sur les résultats de tests indépendants de freinage sur glace, en comparaison avec des pneus Observe GSI-5 de Toyo MD , Ultra Grip MD Ice WRT de Goodyear MD , Blizzak MC WS70 MC de Bridgestone MD , Hakkapeliitta R de Nokian MD , de dimension 205/55R16. 2. Basée sur les résultats de tests indépendants d’usure de la bande de roulement, en comparaison avec des pneus Blizzak MC WS70 MC de Bridgestone MD , Hakkapeliitta R de Nokian MD , de dimension 205/55R16.
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