A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
Rob Lipsett BFO PRESIDENT
I was elected President of the Beef Farmers of Ontario in February last year. As I reflect back on the year that was, I recognize that my role as president was not to steer the ship in a new direction from that of my predecessors, nor to park it in a safe harbour. I saw my role as one to ensure Ontario’s beef industry remained viable and sustainable, and that was a challenge I embraced and looked forward to. However, the global pandemic added a new dimension to my role: leading through uncertainty. The impact of the global pandemic was
raised the alarm regarding the economic
programming and a cattle “set-aside
far reaching in 2020 and presented many
crisis facing our industry and brought
program” to help spread out cattle sales,
disruptions and challenges for so many
an urgent request to Ottawa for federal
which would serve as temporary measures
sectors, from tourism and hospitality to
assistance. A perfect storm of market
to help restore some of the competitive
education and manufacturing. Canada’s
and trade disruptions caused average
balance in the marketplace until more
beef industry and the agri-food sector
weekly losses of $2 million over the past
permanent, long-term solutions can be
weren’t spared from impact. For Ontario’s
year in the Ontario beef industry, putting
implemented. In June, BFO welcomed an
beef farmers, trouble began in the fall of
Ontario’s beef farms at a tipping point.
announcement by federal and provincial
2019 with the closure of Ryding-Regency
Cattle processing capacity and bottlenecks
ministers of the creation of a cattle set-
and the resulting loss of federal processing
in the value chain have been a growing
aside program for Ontario to allocate $5
capacity in the province. The onset of the
problem, with processing plant utilization
million to the beef sector to help manage
COVID-19 pandemic in March compounded
up from 85 per cent in 2016 to 95 per cent
potential backlogs in processing due to the
that pressure for farmers. Fortunately,
in 2018 to over 100 per cent during peak
COVID-19 pandemic. In July, the province
processing facilities in Ontario were not
periods throughout 2019 and into 2020.
shared some good news by announcing
affected by any COVID-19 outbreaks in
As a result, access to processing space
they would contribute an additional $50
the spring, but we finished 2020 with the
was limited, and prices for finished cattle
million across the Risk Management
temporary closure of Cargill Meat Solutions
remained below breakeven prices for the
Program sectors for the 2020 program year,
in Guelph, eastern Canada’s largest federal
vast majority of the year.
fulfilling in part a campaign commitment by
processing facility, as a result of a number of positive cases among their workforce. Other plants were also victim to the spread of COVID-19, which affected production, compounding the problem.
Facing these losses without access to
the Conservative Party.
sufficient government-supported insurance
Coming out of the fall federal-provincial-
backstops typically provided to other
territorial ministers of agriculture meeting
sectors by well-funded business risk
in late November, Canada’s Minister of
management programs, Ontario’s beef
Agriculture and Agri-Food Marie-Claude
Addressing the lack of processing capacity
farmers needed relief. BFO’s request
Bibeau committed to improving AgriStability
in eastern Canada has been one of our
for federal assistance last winter/spring
by removing the reference margin limit
top priorities since the Wynne and Harper
included business risk management
and increasing compensation rates to 80
governments. In March last year, we
funding to address the shortfall in current
per cent from 70 per cent. While we were
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BFO ANNUAL REPORT 2021
