The Wellington County Cattlemen’s Association held its annual general meeting on Jan. 19 at the Alma Bible Church.
During a roast beef dinner, local politicians extended greetings and well wishes to the organization and its members.
Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott said, “Thank you for all you do in Wellington County and the province of Ontario. We appreciate the leadership shown by the association.”
Wellington-Halton Hills MP Michael Chong brought greetings from Perth-Wellington MP John Nater who was unable to attend. In a letter, Nater expressed his best wishes to the organization with the challenges and opportunities that the agricultural and agri-food industries will face in 2018. Nater expressed hope that the current NAFTA negotiations would benefit everyone involved.
Chong also expressed his appreciation for the organization.
“We are here to serve you and are only a phone call or an email away,” he said.
“Most people don’t know that I worked on a beef farm for five years so, I do have some experience with beef farming.”
Perth-Wellington MPP Randy Pettapiece said, “Our party has a platform for this election year. If elected the party will raise the cap on the risk management program to $50 million with carryover to the following year. An agricultural task force will be set up with direct access for the agricultural industry to the minister of agriculture at the premier’s office.”
Representatives from local agricultural industries, financial institutions and the Grand River Conservation Authority spoke briefly on issues facing the agricultural industry today. Donations from each of these groups were auctioned off with Wellington County 4-H being the recipient of the proceeds of the auction.
Before the presentation of the Ron Wooddisse Memorial Award to the most improved 4-H Beef Club member from Wellington County, Charlie Twiss spoke on Wooddisse’s contribution to the cattle industry.
“Ron did so much for the cattle industry. He dedicated his time to numerous associations and helped everyone in the industry,” Twiss said.
“While he was out helping cattlemen somebody was at home doing the chores. That would be Ron’s better half Mary Ellen. She has put in a lot of hours in the barn.”
An innovative marketer, Wooddisse taught many how to market cattle, do testing and work the show ring. Wooddisse was happiest when a buyer came back the next year and bought more cattle.
“Ron always said, ‘If you want to be in the cattle business, be part of it,’” Twiss said.
President Rob Unsworth commented, “The four candidates for the award are four of the strongest 4-H cattle club members I have ever seen. After joining 4-H, they worked to achieve the level necessary to complete the job.”
The recipient of the Ron Wooddisse Memorial Award for 2017 was Ethan Totty of Acton.
Other nominees included: Jamey Eby of Hillsburgh, Jordan Burns of Arthur and Cole Bessey of Fergus.
Guest speaker from the Beef Farmers of Ontario, Jack Chaffe, a beef feedlot operator from the Mitchell area, began his presentation stating the importance of educating consumers.
“There is a gap between urban and rural that is growing every year. As beef farmers, we have to take the initiative to educate consumers about our product,” Chaffe said.
“We are currently working on a new beef brand logo and its usage and are supporting local food promotions and increasing marketing campaigns.”
One tool being researched by the organization is the use of social media to drive an awareness to consumers about Ontario beef and beef farmers. Chaffe also encouraged members to engage in meaningful conversations with consumers about beef farming and beef products.
With the average age of the Ontario beef farmer being 55 years, attracting passionate and innovative young people into farming is necessary for the survival of the industry, Chaffe noted.
“As an organization, we must invest in opportunities to link new farmers and existing farmers together. Finding mentors across the province of Ontario to mentor new farmers is key. Mentoring can be done by the use of webinars, social media, web based tools, meetings, texts and telephone calls,” Chaffe said.
He added Beef Farmers of Ontario would like to see an increase in the Ontario cow herd numbers, the number of cattle in feedlots and the supply of Ontario-born animals.
Such increases would allow processors to have a sufficient supply of cattle and provide consumers with access to local Ontario beef.
The organization is also setting a precedent with the establishment of regional management, grazing and calf marketing clubs, the expansion of community pastures and collaboration with grain farmers utilizing land for grazing cover crops. For beef producers, the enhancement of market price reporting to provide more information to producers is an ongoing project.
“The focus on raising quality cattle will continue in the province of Ontario,” Chaffe said.
