Exit Strategy Signifies Relief

Source from:  lfpress.ca By HANK DANISZEWSKI Sat, August 2, 2008  08/04/2008

The days of the Delnor dry suit are gone forever. The yellow outfit, resembling a raincoat, was made in Simcoe and worn in the fields by generations of tobacco harvesters. Paul Andratis, owner of the Home Hardware store in Delhi, said he used to sell 500 every year. This year he sold 15. That's the way it's been for retailers in Delhi, the Norfolk County community that prides itself as the buckle of the tobacco belt. Andrastis said sales of farm supplies, which used to make up 60 per cent of the business, have almost dried up. He said the $286-million tobacco buyout announced by the federal government yesterday could bring some relief in the short term, allowing farmers to pay off their debts. "When people are in debt, nothing happens." said Andratis, whose family founded the business in 1960. But Andratis said the longer-term future is uncertain. Farmers have tried a variety of other crops, but nothing comes close to the profits once made with tobacco. Across the street at The Bunkhouse restaurant, a group of seniors reflect on past summers when Delhi was teeming with immigrant labourers who came in for the harvest. At another table, tobacco farmers Rick Terdik and Larry Erdelac pondered their futures. Both want to stay in tobacco, but don't know how tobacco companies would treat them, especially if the marketing board is dismantled and growers go to a direct contract system. If growers take the buyout money to pay off their debts, they have to agree to get out of the industry forever. Either way, they think communities like Delhi won't recover. "It's pretty much a ghost town now," said Erdelac, who farms near Langton. Along with the buyout program, the federal government announced $15 million in funding to help tobacco belt communities find new business opportunities. Andratis said a similar program was launched in 2004. He bought a vacant property next door with plans to expand his hardware store. He applied to the program for funding, only to be turned down. "It turns out a lot of the money went to companies that went bankrupt," Andratis said. Nancy Evans, a 40-year resident of Delhi, said she was furious with the tobacco farmers, who have lived the "good life" for so long, and are getting so much cash now while keeping their land and equipment. "It's a crock," Evans said as she strolled on a tree-lined street of the town. "There's a lot of people who feel the same way." Enditem