CELEBRATING 134 YEARS AS CANADA’S PREMIER HORTICULTURAL PUBLICATION
JANUARY 2014
VOLUME 64 NUMBER 01
LEADERSHIP
How to break bread with politicians? Become one KAREN DAVIDSON Where politics is involved, it would be easy to let Laz-Y-Boy cynicism take over. That’s not what three horticultural farmers have done in the face of increasing regulatory burdens and land use issues. Rather than accept crumbs, they ran for a slice at the political table. The first example is Mark Wales. The garlic and vegetable grower is best known as president of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA). But he also relishes his role as municipal councillor for Malahide Township near Alymer, Ontario. In that position, he comes face to face with taxpayers, and he’s quick to say there’s only one taxpayer to support all levels of government. This local perspective offers the real rub on urban-rural issues. Consider that Canada’s population topped 35 million last fall. According to the last census, 81 per cent of our population is now considered urban. Less than 300,00 citizens call themselves farmers. It’s becoming more difficult for agriculture’s voice to be heard by public policy makers. “One of the biggest challenges numerically is that farmers represent such a small slice of the population – about one per cent in Canada -- and in the horticultural sector, it’s even smaller,” says Wales. Speaking
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Of Canada’s 35 million people, less than one per cent or 300,000 are farmers. Few agricultural voices sit at political tables these days, whether it’s municipal, provincial or federal. Since becoming a municipal councillor three years ago, Avia Eek is making a difference in the conversation between agricultural, rural and urban citizens. Along with her husband Bill, she farms carrots and onions in Ontario’s Holland Marsh, a sensitive area governed by multiple layers of legislation. Photo by Glenn Lowson.
from his OFA perch, he says: “All of agriculture has to come to the table with one voice. When you fracture the voice, it offers government the opportunity to do nothing or to do something to us.” During his many years in farm politics, Wales says that the winds are more favourable for being heard right now, certainly at the provincial level. Consumers are more aware of locally produced food, and the recently passed Local Food Act will be important in strengthening that bond. With a premier who also wears the ag minister’s hat, there’s more receptivity to proposals such as natural gas infrastructure for rural areas. He’s also encouraged that all provincial parties are backing off a minimum wage increase. Avia Eek is discovering the same political trends in the Holland Marsh, where she has farmed carrots and onions with husband Bill for 25 years. Three years ago, she traded her boots
for heels as the elected representative of ward six in King Township. “I used to be one of those status quo people,” says Eek, who started her career as a legal secretary. “I was never vocal.” But the seeds of activism took root as she started writing letters to the editor. Through that exercise, she also found her public voice. Eek has never looked back, embracing social media in her new role as an elected politician. With almost 3,000 followers on Twitter, she keeps everyone grounded on whether it’s raining or shining on agricultural politics. “To keep the integrity of the Holland Marsh, we need proper planning tools,” she says. One accomplishment is that the first-ever economic development strategy has been developed for the township. It’s part of sensitizing administrators to simple needs such as keeping key roads open during harvest, rather than closing them entirely for
construction. Increasingly known as a passionate advocate for agriculture, Eek has found herself participating in groups beyond her municipal duties. She’s now vice-chair of the Greater Toronto Area Agricultural Action Committee (GTAAAC). This makes sense as her deepening understanding of land, water and transportation issues go far beyond her patch of muck soil. Food and Farming: An Action Plan 2021, developed by GTAAAC has been endorsed by the cities of Toronto and Hamilton and all five regional municipalities in the Golden Horseshoe: York, Halton, Durham, Peel and Niagara. This plan lays out action items that can be integrated by economic development officers, often pivotal in that urban-rural balance. As she eventually moves into the chair, she will continue to leverage the trust that the public has in farmers. Newly minted at the political
table is John Lohr. Along with his wife Heather, they run a herb business on their Canning-area farm. He was just elected to the Nova Scotia House of Assembly in last October’s provincial election and as a Progressive Conservative for the riding of Kings North, sits as the opposition agriculture critic. “The public is interested in food, but they tend to look at agriculture through rose-coloured glasses,” says Lohr. “I hope to inject some vision and inspiration to the debate.” His Annapolis Valley riding has a long history of electing farmers. This is a potent tool for keeping agriculture’s voice at the political table. He’s the only farmer sitting in the assembly. Part of his election platform cited the need to strengthen agriculture in the province. He’s concerned about the twin trends of a declining and aging population that now numbers 922,000 in Nova Scotia. CONTINUED ON PAGE 3