untitled

Government of Saskatchewan's Hog Venture:
Relaxing pollution and labour standards in the name of agricultural diversification

Nipawin - July 20, 2000 - By: Mario deSantis

relentless policies
I don't have knowledge of the agricultural industry, but today, as I read Murray Mandryk's

article "Hog in the headlines⁽¹⁾" I wanted to write a few lines and warn our readers of the

relentless policies of this government to further kill the family farm, pollute the environment

and increase the wealth of the few and privileged.

Big Sky
Farms
Mandryk described quite well the regressive policies of this government in the hog industry.

Mandryk claims that the government is investing $15 million into Big Sky Farms Inc.

because our business climate is not conducive to attract private investment dollars, even though

this government is not imposing restrictive environmental controls on huge hog barn operations

and exempts hog operators from certain Labour Standards Act provisions such as overtime,

working conditions and vacation pay.

astronomic social costs
The direction to support giant hog barns doesn't sustain the rural economy and our government

doesn't want to learn how small hog farms are thriving in Manitoba without any governmental

support and it doesn't want to learn about the astronomic social costs caused by huge hog

operators in the United States⁽²⁾. Environmentalist Donella Meadows states that

tightly
regulated

"in any functional democracy massive animal-feeding operations, if permitted

at all, would be tightly regulated, fined for their infractions, taxed like everyone

else, and made to clean up their messes at their own expense⁽³⁾."

relaxing pollution and labour standards
And in Saskatchewan we have no hope that this situation will occur since our own government

is putting money into huge hog farms, and our own government is protecting this industry by

legislatively relaxing pollution and labour standards.

-------------Endnotes:

1.
Hog in the headlines, by Murray Mandryk, The Leader-Post, July 19, 2000, Regina, Saskatchewan

2.
-
You can refer to the following sites to know more about industrial hog farming: www.hogwatch.org www.factoryfarm.org www.cfra.org www.nrdc.org/nrdcpro/factor/aafinx.html

3.
How Campaign Reform Could Clean Up a log of Hog Manure, Donella Meadows' The Global Citizen, January 20, 2000 http://iisd1.iisd.ca/pcdf/meadows/hog_manure.html

Government of Saskatchewan's Hog Venture: Relaxing pollution and labour standards in the name of agricultural diversification

Nipawin - July 20, 2000 - By: Mario deSantis

relentless policies	I don't have knowledge of the agricultural industry, but today, as I read Murray Mandryk's
	article "Hog in the headlines⁽¹⁾" I wanted to write a few lines and warn our readers of the
	relentless policies of this government to further kill the family farm, pollute the environment
	and increase the wealth of the few and privileged.

Big Sky Farms	Mandryk described quite well the regressive policies of this government in the hog industry.
	Mandryk claims that the government is investing $15 million into Big Sky Farms Inc.
	because our business climate is not conducive to attract private investment dollars, even though
	this government is not imposing restrictive environmental controls on huge hog barn operations
	and exempts hog operators from certain Labour Standards Act provisions such as overtime,
	working conditions and vacation pay.

astronomic social costs	The direction to support giant hog barns doesn't sustain the rural economy and our government
	doesn't want to learn how small hog farms are thriving in Manitoba without any governmental
	support and it doesn't want to learn about the astronomic social costs caused by huge hog
	operators in the United States⁽²⁾. Environmentalist Donella Meadows states that
tightly regulated	"in any functional democracy massive animal-feeding operations, if permitted
	at all, would be tightly regulated, fined for their infractions, taxed like everyone
	else, and made to clean up their messes at their own expense⁽³⁾."
relaxing pollution and labour standards	And in Saskatchewan we have no hope that this situation will occur since our own government
	is putting money into huge hog farms, and our own government is protecting this industry by
	legislatively relaxing pollution and labour standards.

-------------Endnotes:

1.	Hog in the headlines, by Murray Mandryk, The Leader-Post, July 19, 2000, Regina, Saskatchewan

2. -	You can refer to the following sites to know more about industrial hog farming: www.hogwatch.org www.factoryfarm.org www.cfra.org www.nrdc.org/nrdcpro/factor/aafinx.html

3.	How Campaign Reform Could Clean Up a log of Hog Manure, Donella Meadows' The Global Citizen, January 20, 2000 http://iisd1.iisd.ca/pcdf/meadows/hog_manure.html