Monte Sonnenberg SIMCOE REFORMER
FORESTVILLE - Agriculture in Norfolk suffered another setback this week with the destruction of thousands of peach trees.
Growers in Forestville and Waterford have been busy in recent days uprooting orchards which were planted several years ago and had yet to reach full production.
They have done so in response to the recent closure of the Del-Monte canning factory in St. David’s.
The facility, which is owned by Sun Capital Corporation of Florida, was the only canning factory for peaches in southern Ontario. With the plant gone, local growers have nowhere to ship their production.
Sun Capital will continue to sell canned peaches in North American supermarkets under the Del-Monte label. Instead of canning peaches close to home, the company will buy them from China.
Ken Porteous of Simcoe, vice-president of the Tender Fruit Marketing Board, is destroying 9,000 peach trees on 45 acres south of Waterford.
Porteous thought he would have a long and profitable relationship with Kraft Foods when he contracted to produce peaches for them five years ago.
However, Kraft sold its interest in the Del-Monte brand to Sun Capital last fall. Soon after, the private capital fund announced the closure of four of five canning plants in southern Ontario that were part of the purchase. Porteous estimates this turn of events will cost him $230,000.
"We are running out of food supply for Canadians because farmers are getting out of the business," Porteous said yesterday. "We can’t compete with slave labour. They are talking about food shortages around the world, and we’re pulling our trees out of the ground."
Debbie and Tony Haegens of Forestville are going through the same ordeal. They have been busy this week pulling up 7,000 peach trees on their farm, all of them in bloom. Disbelieving neighbours have been asking all week what is going on.
The Haegens, Porteous and others are angry because the federal and provincial government allow processors to label their cans "Product of Canada" even when the food inside is from overseas.
Processors can do so as long as more than 50 per cent of the product’s value is based in Canada. In the case of canned fruit and vegetables, the tin and label are of sufficient value in most cases to qualify the entire package as "Product of Canada."
Ernie Racz of Vittoria, a local director of the Ontario Processing Vegetable Growers, said the situation is unfair to farmers and misleading to consumers.
"This has to be brought out more," he said. "Where does our food come from? How can we compete with China? What is their spraying program? Do they pay Workers Compensation? Canadian Pension Plan? Employment Insurance? Health care? You have to have a safe work environment. You have to pay minimum wage. How do we compete with that? Face it - they don’t want farmers in this country. We are the last generation of farmers. No one else is taking up the profession."
Debbie Haegens also feels abandoned. She wonders why Ottawa gives foreign farmers an advantage in Canada with rules that promote misleading product information.
Haegens thinks it ironic that this is happening at a time when Canadians are increasingly concerned about food safety and the environmental impact of transporting basic products to markets half way around the world.
"We don’t understand the Canadian government," she said in a statement. "We are losing our fruit and vegetable markets left and right. Farmers can see in the near future that we won’t have our own local produce anymore. Are Canadians ready for that? Soon we will be saying - ‘Good things used to grow in Ontario.’"
Numerous farm groups have pressed Ottawa for truth-in-packaging requirements. Porteous said politicians and bureaucrats in Ottawa agree there is a problem. However, after several years of debate, no one can agree who should take the lead and draw up new legislation.
"It’s a case of bureaucratic stonewalling," Porteous said.
Monte Sonnenberg
519-426-3528 ext. 150
msonnenberg@bowesnet.com
