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In February 2004, Premier Dalton McGuinty
announced
the $10 million Ontario Cull Animal Strategy at the
OCA AGM. This announcement had two components:
a $7 million program for increasing abattoir capacity in
the province and a $3 million program administered by
OCA and managed by the Chairs/Presidents of OCA,
Ontario Federation of Agriculture and Dairy Farmers of
Ontario, for four general project areas:
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Ontario Cattle ID Tag Retirement. $200,000 to BIO
for providing national identification services to the
Ontario beef industry.
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Emergency Animal Welfare Fund. $500,000 is available
for supporting the OSPCA with some BSE-related welfare
costs. This fund also supported the development of
cattle care education resource materials, coordinated
by the Ontario Farm Animal Council.
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Deadstock Disposal. $1.3 million is available for
disbursement to deadstock collection/disposal/management
by the industry-based Livestock Mortality
Recycling Project Steering Committee. Funds also
directed to the initial start-up of a Specified Risk
Material rendering facility.
-
Commercial Cull Cow Meat Product and Market
Development. $1 million is available to expand and
diversify national and international markets for
commercial meat. Funds also directed to upgrade the
University of Guelph Meat Science Laboratory.
In addition to these programs, all the abattoirs which
received money under the Mature Animal Abattoir
Fund (MAAF), have to pay 25% of what they received,
over 5 years (5% per year), into an Industry Development
Fund (IDF). These funds, representing approximately
$1.6 million will be received by OCA, beginning in 2007.
The IDF strategy will involve all ruminant production and
processing in developing a 3-5 year vision for the industry. |
