I thought, sitting at the middle of the table, I wouldn't be first.
Good morning.
I'd like to begin briefly by introducing myself. My name is Geneve Newcombe, and I'm part of a large family farm in Port Williams. If you look out from the windows, you can probably see us from here.
Our family has been farming here since 1761, and my children are the tenth generation living on the farm. Our farm is a mixed operation, with egg layers, chicken, and dairy. In addition, we have an on-farm feed mill and grow most of the crops required to feed our livestock.
My husband returned to the family farm when he was 22, after completing his degree in agriculture. Two years later we were married, and thus my farming life began. The primary reason we have been able to farm successfully and profitably is that the farm was handed down to my husband and his brother by their parents. If they had been required to purchase the farm at fair market value, we would not be enjoying the successes and growth that we've had over the past 20 years.
I mention this fact, and it has come up earlier today too, because a young person interested in farming today is at a serious financial disadvantage if they do not come from a family farm or have parents who are willing to pass the farm on to them.
One of the main challenges facing agriculture, as we've heard today, is profitability. In Canada we have minimum wages, labour standards, food safety programs, climate issues, etc. All of these contribute to our cost of production. We will never be a low-cost producing country, and thus it will always be a challenge to compete in a global marketplace.
I took the opportunity, after knowing I was coming here, to speak to my two sons. One has just finished his second year at agricultural college in engineering, and the second son will be attending university this fall. I asked them for their views on the challenges facing agriculture. They believe that one of the biggest issues is the lack of confidence in the future. They have witnessed local hog, beef, and fruit farms disappear. I also believe that if were not for our supply-managed system, our local agriculture infrastructure would not exist today. We understand that people always need food but do not always see the value of local food. Consumers, like the rest of us, are watching their dollars and looking for cheap food.
My sons have more confidence in our farm, as we are fortunate that our commodities all operate under the supply-managed system. Supply management gives us greater stability and confidence in investing for our future. The biggest threat facing our farm at this time is the WTO talks and what impact they may have on supply management. We need to ensure that our government continues to protect all three pillars of supply management: import controls, producer pricing, and production discipline. If we lose any one of these pillars, our entire system will collapse.
When I speak to my sons about their future and whether farming may be in it, they're unsure at this time as to what role it may play. Both are interested in exploring other career options and think of the farm more as a backup plan at this time. The areas of farming that they consider positive are: they enjoy the work; they like the variety; they enjoy the opportunity to work outside and the challenges of everyday problem-solving that arise. For them, the down sides of agriculture are that there are not a lot of young people in it, the long hours, and the commitment needed. They talk about the lack of vacation. When you're in the dairy or agriculture industry, it's a 365-day a year job. It's not that on our farm we don't have employees whom we trust, but my husband, like many farmers, has the feeling that the farm can't exist without him; that's an issue sometimes. In addition, financially farming does not pay as well as many other career options that are open to them.
One area we feel the government could help with in promoting the industry and sharing ideas is to help create networking opportunities for young farmers to get together, share ideas, and visit other operations to see how they operate.
In conclusion, the best way to keep young farmers in the industry is to make it profitable. Farming is a lifestyle, not just an occupation, but at the end of the day you still need to make money. We do not expect our health professionals to work for free, and we cannot expect the producers of our food to do so either.