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Beef Industry Thankful for Government
Support of Vital Livestock Service
For Immediate Release
(May 1, 2006) —
The Ontario Cattlemen’s Association (OCA) is pleased
with the McGuinty Government’s commitment to provide funding that will
assist the livestock industries with deadstock collection and disposal
projects.
In today’s announcement from Atwood Ontario, Minister of Agriculture,
Food and Rural Affairs, The Honourable Leona Dombrowsky, said that the
government will provide $4 million in "new" funding to provide
transitional support for deadstock collection.
OCA Vice- President, Gord Hardy, was there for the
announcement.
"With this announcement, the McGuinty government is
telling us that it recognizes the need for an affordable deadstock
collection system. The BSE crisis has only made that need more obvious
and we’re glad to see this financial support."
Funding of $1.7 million was also committed to support
Atwood Pet Food Limited, in its goal to find an affordable,
environmentally safe rendering and recycling system for mortalities.
"This plant was identified by the Livestock Mortality
Recycling Assistance Program as a vital facility to deal with the
challenges that have come since BSE," said program coordinator Graeme
Hedley. "Our partnership allows Atwood Pet Foods to meet those industry
requests."
"Ministry staff will continue to work with industry and
government partners to develop safe and innovative long-term solutions
to deadstock disposal issues," said Dombrowsky. "We are all interested
in building opportunities for our agricultural and rural communities now
and in the future."
"The Board of Directors of OCA is committed to an
economically stable future for our producers, and an environmentally
stable one for the province," says Hardy. "Today’s announcement
demonstrates that the McGuinty government knows that our industry’s
needs are changing as a result of the BSE crisis. More than the money,
that recognition of change is important. We are not the same beef
industry that we were 3 years ago and as our priorities shift, it is
important to be able to work with a government that can understand the
transformations we are seeing, and help us to address those changes.
"We look forward to working with Ministry staff in the
future to develop more long-term sustainability strategies that will
ultimately benefit our producers."
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For more information contact:
Gord Hardy, OCA Vice-President: (519) 227-1113
Lianne Appleby, Ontario Cattlemen’s Association: (519) 824-0334
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