Hugh and Sanet,
I've been working at getting started at a small direct marketing type of
venture recently also, and I would have to agree with your comments about
more or less knowing the correct answer before you ask. It kind of makes me
wonder why I even bothered to ask though! As an example, I was trying to
find out if I could ship pork products by courier if they were packed in
styrofoam coolers and ice.... the first 4 beaurocrat type people I asked all
said they were either fairly certain not or they were certain I could not.
If it had not been for me being a bit stubborn, and some help from Greg
Gunthorp, I might not have gotten the correct answer, which was that all
requirements are met as long as the meat is kept at 4 degrees or below.
I would have to agree with your comments on marketing boards. However,
before I criticize them, I think they are a great tool for farms simply
wishing to sell commodity hogs, or wheat or whatever. Without a marketing
board, most chicken farmers in Canada would likely be debt holding serf's
like thier US counterparts.
I tried to ask the Ontario Pork marketing board about an antibiotic free
premium of some sort. I suspect the reason this never went anywhere would
be partly politics..... as it may make the rest of the producers look
somewhat bad if a few could produce hogs without antibiotics... however I am
simply speculating here.
On the broilers I don't know for sure about BC, but I recently found out
that the limit here in Ontario is 300 per person. However, if two people in
the same family both want 300, then the birds have to be on two separate
farms! This is one marketing board issue that really needs to be addressed
as the minimum quota purchase on broilers is now in the hundreds of
thousands of dollars I think. There is a big gap between having 300 and the
minimum quota purchase, whatever # of birds it works out to at $40/bird.
Surely the big wigs could work out a solution that would allow seasonal
small flock production of a little larger size than 300, without adversely
affecting the commodity producers with 20,000 or more!!
There is no quota on Dairy goats. I think some processors offer a quota
type deal... but that would not concern you if you were planning on
processing your own milk.
Hope this helps,
Dave
Hugh wrote:
>I am planning a small diversified farm in British Columbia Canada. I am
>having a very difficult trying to sort out regulations between Federal and
>Provincial Governments and the various marketing boards. My plan is to
raise
>pasture based poultry, beef, meat lambs and goats. Wherever possible I want
>to farm process and direct market. I hope someone can direct me, or give me
>some clues. My experience with bureaucrats is that you better have a clue
as
>to the answers before you ask the questions if you want useful answers.
>
>
>1 Poultry-Can one raise and process meat birds on the farm. If so is there
a
>limit on numbers? If not, can I have them processed, and still directly
>market them.
>
>2 Goat and sheep cheese-I recognize that the milk boards have a
stranglehold
>on cow milk production. Are there production limits for goat and sheep
milk.
>What kind of regulations are involved in producing cheese and direct
>marketing it from a farm. Where do I find the regs
>
>
>3 Can beef, goat and lamb slaughter be done on a very limited basis on a
>farm or does it all have to be done at an accredited slaughter facility. If
>done off the farm, can it be still direct marketed.
>
>Everything that I have been able to find on the net is aimed away from
>direct marketing. The marketing board sites say nothing. Even if I could
>find what federal and provincial acts I can request, it would be a big
help.
>It seems like the last thing available is straight answers
>
>Hugh Jordan
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