Tobacco Farmers Rally in Tillsonburg

Source from:  By Jeff Helsdon STAFF WRITER Monday March 12, 2007 03/14/2007

The frustration facing flue farmers resulted in a rally that shut down a portion of Brock Street Friday morning. About 70 tractors rolled through town and were parked in front of Oxford MP Dave MacKenzie's office for a rally that drew more than 400 tobacco farmers, farmers of other commodities and businesspeople. The rally followed a similar event held outside Haldimand-Norfolk-Brant MP Diane Finley's office in Simcoe. Another will be held today (Monday) in St. Thomas. The message that resonated through the presentations is an exit package is needed now and the time for talk is past. Traditionally, tobacco farmers are preparing their greenhouses for the upcoming crop at this time of year. Tobacco Farmers in Crisis Brian Edwards asked the crowd what the next step to get answers should be. He asked if it would take1, 000 tractors in front of the Nanticoke oil refinery in order for farmers to be taken seriously. "How do you get tankers in and out when there's 1,000 tractors in the way," he said. Edwards also raised the possibility of meeting with all groups that don't seem to get government attention, citing in particular Native chiefs. Comments from TFIC vice-president Mark Bannister showed how bad things in the industry are. After pegging the number of tractors in the rally at 70, he pointed to a nearby 1970s-vintage Cockshutt tractor. Bannister said he knew the owner and that the tractor was paid for 20 years ago, but now the farmer is so far in debt the tractor has a line of credit against it again. "Mine is at home and broken," he said. "I can't afford to fix it." Some of the most compelling statements during the rally came from former tobacco farmers and the youth. Fifteen-year-old Justin Mels of Scotland told the crowd he and his siblings had dreams of following in the footsteps of their parents and grandparents by farming tobacco. That future now has one less option. He also called on the government to provide an exit package. "Tobacco farmers are people and all people have human rights," he said. Area farmer Arpad Pasztor gave the crowd his scenario of life after tobacco. After he left tobacco under the TAPP program, his wife had to find a full-time job. "She's the one that puts groceries on the table," he said. Pasztor said he's lucky he diversified, but growing corn and soybeans doesn't generate enough money. After he sold his quota at $1.72 per pound, Pasztor said he used the money to pay off his bank loan for kiln conversions and the rest went to the government for income tax. "I felt we got shafted," he said. Now, after tobacco, Pasztor said the banks no longer want to loan him money. Although he's 55 and should be starting to hand the farm over to his sons who want to farm, that's not the case. Delhi-area farmer John Scott, who also sold his quota under TAPP, agreed that $1.72 doesn't cut it. "You need to continue with your lives and you need to feed your families, but selling out for $1.72 won't do it," he said. Tillsonburg Mayor Stephan Molnar, who earlier called a meeting of tobacco-belt mayors that resulted in a call for government to provide an exit package by March 1, said he would like to see a summit involving all players. Molnar didn't see the municipal role as one to find answers, but to provide an opportunity for discussion between higher levels of government. A date hasn't been set for such a summit, and Molnar said he needs the support of council and other mayors before calling it. During his presentation, Bannister questioned why Revenue Canada has sent letters to farmers saying excise officers will be inspecting tobacco farms. He pointed out tobacco growers don't charge tax on cigarettes. "We're not a police state yet, but we're getting awful close," he said. Bannister addressed remarks by federal Agriculture Minister Chuck Strahl made last week when he called the tobacco exit plan too expensive. Bannister said all farmers are asking for is to fund the exit through a dedicated tax on cigarettes, which won't cost the agriculture ministry a dime. He pointed out the exit plan should also involve the health ministry as the country's health ministers declared war on tobacco. After recent media reports on the plight of the tobacco industry, Bannister said he received an e-mail from a high school anti-smoking group in Winnipeg saying tobacco farmers deserve a fair exit package. He received similar correspondence from a British Columbia anti-tobacco group. Bannister pointed to the framework on tobacco control under the World Health Organization which requires countries to assist tobacco farmers and those in the industry. "Our country has let us down," he said. "They call us leaders in tobacco control - we're not even close." Bannister termed funding an exit from taxes as the one-per-cent solution. He said the government is projected to collect $100 billion in taxes over the next 10 years. A $1 billion exit plan for tobacco farmers would only cost one per cent of that, or $1 billion. Although MacKenzie wasn't in his Tillsonburg office, he sent a letter to organizers to be read out at the rally. MacKenzie wrote that tobacco-belt MPs and MPPs support an exit plan, but they need farmers to write to their colleagues to raise awareness of the issue. Those attending the rally were not just tobacco farmers. Otterville-area resident Ed Stockmans has been out of tobacco for more than 10 years, but said tobacco money helped him raise his family. Now his son is in the industry. "It isn't that they are asking for a lot," Stockmans said. "They just want a start at something else." Local businesswoman and Councillor Chris Rosehart was in the crowd to support the farmers. "Without farmers how do we survive," she said. "The government can support the auto plants, but they can't support our farmers." Businessman and Deputy Mayor Mark Renaud said he was also there to lend support. "To put it in simple terms, taking tobacco out of this community would be equivalent on a regional scale to taking GM out of Oshawa," he said. Enditem