Dad died when I was quite young (19), but dad taught me many basic rules in life, like to never take advantage of someone who doesn’t understand, and when you fix anything, take a little time and to do it right the first time, or you will keep patching and patching forever. The two most expensive lessons that I learned when starting to farm were that the cropping program (seed, fertilizer, and tillage) and the feeding program (feed analysis, purchased feed additives, and “fo-fo” powder) should be learned by the farmer because they were a farmer’s two largest expenses every year. I also very quickly learned to search out the best soil labs and feed labs. Too often a feed or fertilizer salesman will recommend a lab, but it’s usually one that their company also depends on to recommend expensive feed, seed, and fertilizer.
I later became great friends with both feed salesmen and crop consultants who I had met at some of the best information days in North America, where independent crop and veterinary professors taught. I learned quickly that continuous education is one of a farmer’s greatest assets. Much of what we learn in school or college is too often out-dated, and far too soon. I’ll never forget that our crop specialist in college told the ag students that it was less expensive to push the manure over the hill and buy commercial chemical fertilizer than to pay to get that manure spread on the fields! I quickly learned that attending some organic information days was more informative than some universities who received rich research projects from chemical, pharmaceutical, or seed companies.
Some soil testing labs do an excellent job of explaining soil test results and interaction between soil elements, and even how certain elements can be chelated by some herbicide residue. Some labs provide base saturation ratios. Some labs give you very little. Some provincial or state extension departments provide excellent information about using your own soil analysis to reduce the cost of buying fertilizer, tell you where to spread dry or liquid manure, and tell you which kind of lime to apply! But many don’t.
A couple inexpensive little booklets (like a weed identification, and Weeds: Control Without Poisons) together with soil sample analysis and fertilizer ratios, can reduce the need for some expensive herbicides and insecticides. Many of the herbicides and insecticides used are derived from leftovers from the first and second world wars. The most used herbicide in the world (glyphosate) was invented by a chemical company to descale pipes and radiators in hot water heating systems without dismantling the system. Years later, it was noticed that where the water was dumped after the descaling, nothing grew. Then a pesticide company bought it and renamed it.
Since their invention, many of those early chemicals have been taken off the market including DDT and Agent Orange. Very heavy restrictions have limited the use of Atrazine because it has been found to cause a change in sex organs in animals, and use of 2,4-D and glyphosate are also restricted. Tens of thousands of lawsuits have been filed that blame Roundup for causing various cancers, though many health agencies still deny there is evidence to support this claim. Even though there are many politicians, doctors, and disease specialists who remain very concerned and skeptical about the safety of the continued use of some of these chemical sprays, the U.S. has declared them safe.
Canada has given an extension to the use of many chemicals for now. Just last week, a new herbicide to be used on corn and soybeans has been approved in the U.S. This is very troubling to me because it contains a “forever chemical”. That means that, according to chemical specialists, it will never decompose or disappear. Much of our food contains corn, corn sweetener, corn oil, soybean, soy oil, and ketchup sweetened with corn sweetener and made smoother with soy oil. Thirty-seven countries have taken those possibly contaminated foods off the shelves and once consumers find out which foods may be dangerous, they just stop buying them. Then the stores stop putting them on their shelves.
Many government scientists and university professors have lost their jobs and pensions because of threats, and it looks like even our most trusted politicians are also very scared of lawsuits or being thrown out of office because of a split in the opinion of constituents. When is too much, too much? The consumer-voter still has the last say at the check-out and the ballot box if we just had better labeling to tell us what is really in that food.
Chris Judd is a farmer in Clarendon on land that has been in his family for generations.
