During everyday chit-chat, we seldom associate politics with food. When an election or just hot political topics arise, we are assured that jobs, health care, education, national defence and the state of the economy will be at the top of the list of debatable subjects.
We often look back before making serious decisions for the future. In the Bible there were several mentions of voyages to find grain in times of a drought. Some early invasions were made to gain access to grain to feed the country. Even inside the pyramids . . .
honey, grain and other foods were found because it was believed that kings and pharaohs would need food in the next world. There was even mention of salting the earth of another country so that growing crops would be prevented and hence that country would not be able to feed itself. Today, one of the common fertilizers contains potassium salt and the content in soil tests must be monitored to prevent over salting.
A thousand years ago, kings sent around their tax collectors to bring back money, grain, potatoes, beef and other foods even if the peasants might starve that winter. Our politicians today always seem to have lots to eat, even if the poorer citizens are destitute. When the white man first came to the new world he noticed that the natives were situated near good hunting grounds and good fishing.
In past years, the countries with the best armies, best navy, and biggest bombs were the nations to watch. Recently, countries with a secure food supply have enjoyed a more stable economy. Some countries close to Canada have tried to control food by artificially keeping the price of grain and meat lower than the cost to produce it. When that country recently tried to intimidate China by controlling grain and meat exports they quickly found out that there are many other countries that could replace what the US did not supply. Brazil, Argentina, India, N.Z., Russia and many European countries that were grain importers are now grain exporting countries. The Ukraine alone has the potential to produce more wheat than all of North America.
While the seed and pharmaceutical companies have greatly influenced the type of crops grown in North America, Europe, Asia, Japan, N.Z., and Russia have targeted the production of healthier foods that are more sought after. Canadian wheat was the most sought after wheat in the world but not now. Canada is one of a few major players in the world without a national food policy which would guarantee safe food self-sufficiency even in tough times. Clean air, water safe to drink, and a safe food supply are numbers one, two, and three in the necessities of life.
When in trade negotiations, Canada allows other countries which produce heavily subsidized foods to use Canada as a dumping ground for their surplus foods in exchange for auto and airplane parts which may or may not be manufactured here. That does nothing to improve our food security.
Most of the human’s health problems are food related. Would it not be better to make nutritious, safe food affordable and available to Canadians than watch our health care costs skyrocket year after year? Even a farmer knows that it costs less to balance an animal’s ration for good health than to call the vet, spend thousands on medication and maybe draw the dead animal out by the feet after.
Chris Judd is a farmer in Clarendon on land that has been in his family for generations.
gladcrest@gmail.com
