Backyard Chicken Hearing for Minto Ontario

Connie is hoping to save her 3 chickens from the municipal bureaucratic steamroller.  The public input meet was held on Tuesday Sept. 15th 2015 in Clifford ON, and now we wait for Council's decision.

We previously described Connie's struggle to have a fresh, healthy supply of chicken eggs for her family, and SFPFC's attempt to help her efforts (see Backyard Eggs for Minto and Backyard Chickens for Canadian Municipalities ).

Connie reported that more than 40 people attended the public meeting.  People attended from as far away as Kincardine, Owen Sound, and Brantford.  Most people were there to observe the proceedings, and didn't reveal their leanings, neither pro nor con.

One lady did speak against the proposal for legal backyard chicken for Minto.  This contrarian lady lives in another community within the Minto municipality limits, but is not anywhere near Connie.  This lady explained that she objects to backyard chickens as she doesn't want to be sitting in her backyard and be overwhelmed by chickens in a neighbour's yard.  She fears she will be bombarded by chicken manure flying over the shared fence, landing into her yard, offensive odors, screaming rooster calls, the continuous cackle from a multitude of chickens, or the health risk and nuisance from chicken predators.

If those fears were realistic, I don't know many people who would welcome chickens in neighbour's yards; all problems, with no benefits.  However, what needs to be decided is whether these fears are realistic.  Assuming a 5 ft. high fence separates the neighbours, it is hard to imagine how chicken manure would come flying over the fence into a neighbour's yard.

Is she assuming that her neighbour will be using a chicken manure catapult to get rid of this valuable fertilizer?  Is this of any greater risk or hazard of a neighbour tossing all the rotting windfall fruit that fell from a neighbour's fruit tree? Why does one risk need a By-law but the other does not?

What about the noise from a flock of chickens?  Surely there is a different between a neighbour's fruit tree vs. a flock of chickens?

I have 100 layers in a coop located a dozen or so yards from my house. Assuming that the chickens aren't screaming for their life as they are chased by a fox or other predator, I find it difficult to imagine how the usual flock noise from would be offensive to a neighbour who would likely be 50 ft. away, or more.

Urban, at night sound levels are typically 12 to 52 dB.  Chickens are typically locked up inside their coop at night so as to protect them from from predators.  Add to this the chickens are typically sleeping at night.  These important factors would tend to significantly reduce any noise produced during the nightly quiet time.

Table 1:  Chicken Noise
Vs. Flock Size

If we assume that 1 chicken produced 30 dB of noise, what will the total noise level be for a flock of varying sizes?

Noise does not have a linear additive effect.  Sound power levels are logarithmic.

Engineering Toolbox provides a handy calculator for adding the noise from similar sound sources, from which we get Table 1 on the right.

Connie currently has 3 chickens.  The By-law may be considering a maximum of  5 backyard chickens.  According to this analysis, 5 chickens would be just 23% louder (37 dB vs. 30 dB) than a single chicken.

Even at a flock size of 100 birds, we would have a noise level of 50 dB, which is 67% louder than just 1 chicken.  A flock of chickens of 100 birds, the maximum non-quota flock permitted in Ontario, would be just 50 dB, which would be in the typical range of urban nighttime noise levels (12 to 52 dB).

Therefore any reasonable size flock should not overwhelm other urban noises that might disturb neighbours.

Hopefully Minto Council can see the difference from unreal fears and reality.

A second issue raised was the risk of Bird Flu (ie. HPAI:   Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza), supported by the local Public Health Unit.  It is unfortunate that the Health Unit raised the question, but failed to provide an answer to their question for Minto Council.

I have previously examined the risk of Bird Flu (see Blog Postings:

• Bad Bad Bird Flu,  
• Chicken Factory Infections With Bird Flu,
• Audit of Biosecurity Systems for Canada's Chicken Supply Management System
• Bird Flu Disaster

CAFO chicken factories tend to be associated with 85% of all outbreaks of Bird Flu, while small flocks have about 15% of all Bird Flu outbreaks.  This ratio is true in spite of small flocks being the vast majority of all flocks.  Based on a rough risk analysis I performed, CAFO chicken factories are 77 times riskier than a backyard flock for Bird Flu.  That risk cloud continues for 20 miles or more downwind of a CAFO chicken factory as the huge exhaust fans spew chicken dust, feathers, manure, and infectious bacteria & viruses downwind to unsuspecting victims.

If the Public Health Unit isn't banning CAFO chicken factories for this reason, then they shouldn't be raising Bird Flu as an objection for 3 backyard chickens.  That is clearly scare mongering and a red herring by the Public Health Unit.

Now, Connie has to wait a week to get Minto Council's answer on her flock of 3 chickens.

Worst Case Scenario for CFO's Artisanal Chicken

In the game of chess, each player gets 8 pawns to play with.  While they have limited powers individually, when worked in unison, they can be powerful.  Unfortunately for pawns, they are usually sacrificed at the convenience of the player.  Does CFO plan to use, abuse, then sacrifice Artisanal Chicken growers, similar to the lowly, yet loyal pawn?

In previous postings (see 3000 chickens for Ontario's Small Flockers, Caveat Emptor of Artisanal Chicken, and CFO's Artisanal Chicken: Conflict of Interest, Question the Artisanal Chicken Program of CFO) we'd discussed CFO's new Artisanal Chicken Program, and some of its potential risks or ambiguities.

It takes a lot of hard work, long hours, ingenuity, and resources to build a new business.  I know, I've done it.  In other words, it isn't easy.

Thieves and fraudsters hoodwink and scam people, lulling them into a false sense of security, getting others to do all of the dirty work for them, then suddenly confiscate (ie. steal) the proceeds of the victim's hard work.  Thieves and fraudsters allow their victims to work hard for decades, accumulate their personal property and wealth, then quickly steal it all away in just a few hours of the thieves' effort.

I used to have a cherry tree in my backyard that I pruned and sprayed to keep bountiful harvests of cherries.  The wild birds never seemed to touch the cherries, until the cherries were ready for eating. Once ripe, within 4 hours, the tree was stripped clean by the wild birds.  My only defenses were to pick unripe cherries, or put a bird net over top of the cherry tree.  I installed the net, and our family enjoyed our cherry harvest the next year.

While my cherries were a renewing resource each year, AC chicken under CFO's byzantine rules may not give second chances. 

If I choose to be an Artisanal Chicken Farmer, will I need some type of bird net to protect me from the predatory CFO taking all my ripe AC "cherries" before I can enjoy any of the fruits of my labour?  

Could Artisanal Chicken ("AC") be a diabolic plan of Chicken Farmers of Ontario ("CFO")?

When you're a multi-millionaire CAFO factory chicken farmer, you are guaranteed a "reasonable return" on you assets and investments in chicken.  Since you have no worry about the financial return you receive on your investments, your biggest worry is losing your investment (ie. chicken quota or Supply Management is weakened or destroyed), the chickens that lay the golden eggs forever.  The other major risk is to make a bad investment in a new opportunity, and that bad investments kills your chickens that lay golden eggs for you.

At this point in time, we have:

• Chronically weak and volatile world economy;
• A weak Canadian economy, rising food costs; collapsing dollar; quivering real estate bubble values; weak retail sector; falling commodity prices for crude oil, natural gas, minerals, softwood, and many more.
   
• Ontario following Greece's example of excessive debt, deficit, and piece-meal selling off of public assets;
• Animal welfare advocates questioning the CAFO chicken factory system
• Public and government forces pushing for the banning of wholesale use of antibiotics in animal's feed and water.

It's nice for CAFO chicken factory farmers can ignore all the above, because no matter what, they are guaranteed a handsome profit no matter how many times Canadians get flushed down the toilet.  CFO quota farmers want others to take all the risks.

It is unclear what will be the optimum choices for AC genetics, growing method, marketing, and processing.  What better way than to open up AC to 100 volunteers, allow them to try all the different permutations and combinations.  If 99% of the AC farmers fail due to their non-optimum choices or circumstances, that is one less risk for CFO and its members to face.

Once all of the rough edges have been knocked off, and many AC pioneers have proven it works first time, every time, that is when the AC farmers can expect CFO to pounce; similar to the wild birds patiently waiting for my cherries to ripen.

If the AC system becomes a success, all CFO has to do is change the rules, AC chicken farmers are out, and the CFO members can step right in to steal the proven AC system.

CFO's Policies Foreshadow CFO's Future Plans

CFO's Artisanal Chicken Policy 212-2015 says:

6.07   Artisanal Production Licences to Artisanal Chicken Farmers are subject to change and do not convey any property rights.

That means CFO can do as it pleases with any or all AC licenses, or the AC program overall.  They can suddenly cancel the program without warning the day after an AC farmer receives their 3,000 chicks, leaving the AC farmers stranded with birds they cannot own nor sell under CFO's whimsical and arbitrary rules.  Since there are no property rights, nothing was taken away by CFO by the sudden cancelation.

The Canadian Bill of Rights says we all have the human rights and fundamental freedoms, namely:

1. (a) the right of the individual to life, liberty, security of the person and enjoyment of property, and the right not to be deprived thereof except by due process of law;

As soon as CFO changes a policy, and its rubber stampers at  OFPMC, the government's powers delegated to CFO make it law.  If CFO suddenly decides to treat AC farmers unfairly or unjustly, who will stand up and stop CFO?  Will Geri Kamenz and his merry band of rubber stampers at OFPMC stand up against their CFO friends so as to protect the AC farmers from CFO's tyranny and despotism?

I doubt it.

Only the Canadian Constitution, Charter of Rights & Freedoms, and Canadian Bill of Rights limit the government's powers, and hence limit the delegated powers enjoyed by CFO.
 
Since CFO's Policy specifically grants an AC license which is not property, the Canadian Bill of Rights does not apply, and CFO is free to treat all AC farmers as their slavish property, pawn, or cannon fodder; as CFO pleases.

Not since the Divine Right of Kings has anybody or any group enjoyed such unrestricted, absolute power awarded to the small, privileged minority of Supply Management (just 8% of all farmers in Canada).

CFO's Artisanal Chicken Policy 212-2015 also says:

9.02   The Artisanal Production Licence is specific to the particular artisanal chicken farmer, in support of the business proposition advanced in application, to whom it is issued and is not tradable, transferable, rentable and may not be pledged as security for indebtedness, and has no monetary value attributed to it.

Note that this clause further restricts the use and value of the AC License issued by CFO as ill-liquid and non-fungible.  All of which is to CFO's eventual advantage, otherwise why would they be doing this?

CFO's Artisanal Chicken Policy 212-2015 also says:

11.02   The Artisanal Chicken Policy will be reviewed on an annual basis, and determined whether to vary or amend it. CFO may also review the status of any artisanal chicken farmer, their artisanal chicken business community partner(s), and applied for business proposition and issue such orders and directions as it may deem appropriate to give effect to this Policy.  

I am surprised to see that CFO didn't expressly grant themselves the power to cancel the AC program all together.  Of course, CFO could add the power to cancel AC to this policy the day before they exercise that power to terminate AC.  In the alternative, they could suddenly declare that AC licenses have become very valuable, and hence AC farmers will be charged $1 Million per year for their license.  While AC is still officially operational, nobody is stupid enough to pay that extortion money to CFO.  The AC game is effectively finished.

Worst Case Scenario

Here is what I fear most for any Small Flocker considering joining CFO's AC program.

About 100 or so Small Flockers get duped by CFO into joining AC, 99% of them subsequently die due to CFO's wacky rules, delays, or difficulties in startup.  More Small Flockers, those who were on the AC waiting list, and without any warning or disclosure by CFO that their AC predecessors crashed & burned, step up to replace the fallen AC pioneers.  Eventually in 5 to 10 years, the AC bugs are all worked out, and an AC farmer can start to make a reasonable income, or perhaps a fantastic income, perhaps even better than CAFO chicken factory income.  The bigger the AC advantage, the sooner CFO will strike.  The AC pioneers will be shot in the back by using the 3 clauses listed above, or by CFO changing its regulations for AC.  Preference will then be given to quota-bearing CFO members to confiscate the AC market, and these CFO members will be powerful blood sucking leaches who will step into the fertile ground prepared by the blood, sweat, & tears of the pioneering AC farmers.

CFO's Response to the Worst Case Scenario?

Perhaps all of the above shocks the conscience of CFO that someone would suspect that CFO might not have the best of intentions toward all AC farmers.  Perhaps CFO never intended to do any of the nasty and immoral acts listed above.

Perhaps CFO has nothing but rainbows, sunshine, & trotting unicorns in their hearts & minds.

In that case, CFO should have no problems with the revision of their policy now, so that AC farmers are adequately protected from the arbitrary, whimsical, despotic, and unlimited powers of CFO.

Divine Right of King CFO?

Not in my world.

Caveat Emptor of Artisanal Chicken

I have already thanked Chicken Farmers of Ontario ("CFO") for allowing this opportunity of Artisanal Chicken to come forward, but all Small Flockers need prudence, perform due diligence, and excercise caution for CFO's Artisanal Chicken Program.

How much of an opportunity it really is will eventually be learned down the road.  On that basis, I worked till 2:00 AM to read everything CFO disclosed on this program, then submitted my Artisanal Chicken application with trust and hope stretched to the limit.

I'm in the queue line, but I can always leave the lineup later on and remain a Small Flocker under the "Family Food" exemption as we slowly learn what is behind the door we have applied to enter.  I suggest all Small Flockers should consider this cautionary, tentative plan with a clear exit strategy.

When a fox invites a Small Flock rooster to come to the fox's den for dinner, it is prudent to ask what's on the menu before accepting the dinner invitation.

For example, CFO has dangled the carrot that the Artisanal Chicken program will be allocated 5% of the chicken market growth that CFO achieved the previous year.

What CFO doesn't say is that 95% of the growth automatically goes to the kits of Mama Fox.  CFO also doesn't disclose what happens if there is no growth in the previous year.

No quota growth could happen due to weather, economic recession, Bird Flu, rogue CAFO chicken farmers or processors who get caught by animal rights activists or CFIA food inspectors, a fight at the Chicken Farmers of Canada Board where 6 out of the 10 provinces vote to refuse Ontario any quota increase, or a hundred of other reasons.

With no quota growth, CFO's allocation to Artisanal Chicken goes to zero (ie. 5% of zero equals zero), and Small Flockers who made the investment into Artisanal Chicken are summarily executed.  The following year, the door to the fox's den is opened again, the welcome mat is put out, and the fox awaits the next group of Small Flockers to blindly trust & enter.

That may not be the intention of CFO, but it is a reasonable interpretation of what CFO has said so far, and requires some clarification by CFO for prudent Small Flockers before they enter the fox's den.

Unfortunately, this is just one of dozens of other risks that the Artisanal Chicken program currently contains.

Caveat Emptor ("let the buyer beware")

Glenn Black, President
Small Flock Poultry Farmers of Canada

Chicken Mafia Powers

The Chicken Mafia has all the illicit power, all the improper rights, and the devious support of all levels of government.  The Chicken Mafia uses those powers to oppress Small Flock Farmers, and hurt all Canadian consumers.  For some strange reason, there is a conspiracy of silence throughout Canada on these illicit powers and their improper use.

“Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.” 

Frederick Douglass (1818 - 1895), African-American social reformer, abolitionist orator, writer, and statesman, from his speech “West India Emancipation” at Canandaigua, New York, on August 3, 1857; the twenty-third anniversary of the event.

We will never solve this injustice by patiently awaiting the self-realization of the Chicken Mafia as to the error of their ways.  For example, small flock poultry farmers in Ontario are restricted to growing just 300 chickens per year for meat; enough to feed chicken to 7 people for a year.

A tip of the hat to Murray Stenton, a graphic designer/cartoonist  from Halifax Nova Scotia.  Well done cartoon.  Thanks! 

Last Post (or close thereto)

This will be one of our last postings to this Blog, or close thereto.




This video commemorates the last post (or close thereto) for the Blog of Small Flock Poultry Farmers of Canada ("SFPFC").

The yellow dots show the location of readers who came
to this Blog seeking truth, more than 147,000 visits from
more than 152 countries. Fortunately, Canada and Canadians
had 84% of the total pageviews.

This is our 402nd posting since starting this Blog of Feb. 28, 2013 more than 2 years ago.

The yellow dots in the world map to the right show the location of readers who came to this Blog seeking truth, more than 147,000 visits from more than 152 countries. Fortunately, Canada and Canadians had 84% of the total pageviews.

Our thanks to all those who came at least once, and especially to our loyal "Blog Dogs".

SFPFC advocates for the rights and freedoms of small flock farmers in Canada.  SFPFC helps small flock farmers to provide safe, nutritious, affordable, and locally grown food for all Canadians.

Currently, a select few millionaire farmers have over 99% market share for Supply Management food commodities in Canada (dairy, chicken, turkey, and eggs).

Those CAFO (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, or "Factory Farms") farms and farmers use their government created monopoly to price gouge all Canadians, charging 50% to 300% more than what the rest of the world pays for these essential foods.

SFPFC believes that if any monopoly is created or allowed to continue, it must be operated so that it's in the best interest of all Canadians, not just the 2,700 minority, but chosen few members of Canada's Chicken Mafia who dream of moving from millionaire to billionaire.

The Chicken Mafia use their monopoly to oppress and bully Small Flock farmers, strip them of their rights, and prevent them from growing the food needed by their families, neighbours and communities.

The Chicken Mafia use their monopoly to deliver poor quality, unsafe, or inferior chicken to their trapped customers.

I believe this Blog has informed and delighted most who came here.  Some, mainly the Chicken Mafia, government bureaucrats, and their henchmen, have been frustrated and very upset by this Blog.  They have suffered through one blow after the next as this Blog de-constructed and carefully examined and analyzed their corrupt and dysfunction system of Chicken Supply Management.  If they have mis-read or mis-interpreted this posting, they may incorrectly assume that they have won, their embarrassing exposure to the light of day is coming to an end.  Nothing can be further from the truth.

In our Feb. 28, 2013 Blog posting Campaign Strategy, I explained how we needed 23 doublings so that SFPFC's plight comes to the attention of 8.4 million people in Ontario.  Will 147,000 views so far, we have had more than 17 doublings.  Significant and worthwhile, as we are are 74% towards our goal, but we still need 6 more doublings.

To speed that doubling process even more, we need to shift tactics, and put our campaign vehicle in high gear.

Charles Boycott (1832 - 1897),
a Land Agent acting as the
henchman of an Absentee
Landlord, Lord Erne

First a little history so you can better understand what's coming.

Charles Boycott and Unfair Treatment of Irish Farmers

Irish tenant farmers were on starvation wages with no hope of escape for hundreds of years. When the Irish Potato Famine struck (1845 - 1852), approximately 1 million people died in Ireland, and a million more emigrated away from Ireland and the famine, causing the island's population to fall by between 20% and 25%.  Most countries in Europe suffered from potato crop failures in those years, but the policies of the English government and many decades of prior neglect turned Ireland's crop failure into a famine; far worse than any other country.

With a 25% drop in the Irish population, there was a shortage of peasant workers; first time since the Black Death.  Absentee landlords needed their tenant farmers more than ever before.  The relative power had shifted from the landlords to the tenants, giving the tenant farmers some additional negotiating power to improve their lot in life, and reduce their oppression and chronic abuse by the system.

Captain Charles Boycott was an English soldier posted in Ireland, who subsequently retired and was hired by an Absentee Landlord, Lord Erne. From previous hard times running his own farm, Boycott had become set in his mode of thought such that he had "strengthened his innate belief in the divine right of the masters, and the tendency to behave as he saw fit, without regard to other people's point of view or feelings".

In 1880, there was another poor crop in Ireland.  Boycott offered the tenant farmers a 10% reduction in their rents to assist their hardship.  The tenant farmers countered with a request for a 25% reduction.  Boycott refused, and the tenant farmers were evicted.  In solidarity for the evicted tenant farmers, everybody in the community banded together (or were coerced to do so) to shun Boycott, refusing to trade with Boycott, refused to talk to him, local businessmen stopped trading with him, and the local postman refused to deliver mail.  Boycott was never threatened, but mob discipline was in place to ensure the boycotting was maintained.

Boycott wrote a letter to The Times newspaper in Oct. 1880, to garner outside support for his difficulties.  Soon the new word "boycotting" was added to the English language all over the world.

The newspapers, landowners, and upper classes supported Boycott in his time of need.  Manpower to work Lord Erne's lands was eventually imported, with over 1,000 policemen to guard and protect the scab labor.  The harvesting of the crops cost at least £10,000 to harvest about £500 worth of crops.

In support of Boycott, as a test case of what could happen to other landowners, England subsequently passed many new draconian laws to prevent these similar types of tenant labor actions.  Backlash from those draconian laws subsequently lead to the formation of the Labor Party in England.

Boycott was severely damaged financially by the controversy, and finally left Ireland in Dec. 1880, but the controversy followed him for the rest of his life, everywhere he went.

What Comes Next

My condolences to the Chicken Mafia, but the public examination of SM's dyfunctional systems is not yet done.  Steel yourself, as everybody in Canada begins to more fully understand what you and your Supply Management system has been doing to innocent Canadians.

You may notice people looking at you in a funny way when you fill up with gas, or other encounters with members of your community; a slight but noticeable edge to the conversation.  If your position of respect in your community becomes somewhat tarnished, you'll know why.  While you and your family may be good people, people may judge you for the company you have been keeping; the dysfunctional and abusive Supply Management System.

Of course, you can circle the wagons and focus all of your efforts and social interactions with your family and other SM farmers; further isolating you, even more than today.  If your current friends and business associates are quick to judge you for your ties to the SM Mafia; the hell with them!

You, as a member of the Chicken Mafia, profit from the ill got gains coming from Supply Management.  While you didn't do it directly, you acquiesced and permitted it to occur and continue. Most Canadians will soon come to realize why you have a very comfortable lifestyle; perhaps similar to what Boycott felt 135 years ago.

Now that SFPFC's research on Canada's Chicken Supply Management ("SM") system has been completed more or less, we move to a different phase of our campaign to obtain freedom from this SM Tyranny.

Today, we announce the launch of our publicity, communication, education, and awareness building phase of our campaign.  This is where we make full use of all the research described in this Blog.

Today, we shift our primary focus from collecting fact, to communicating those facts.

Come learn, then choose if you will support our just cause.

OMAFRA Joins Internet Age with Google Mapping of Abattoir Data

As of Feb. 19th, 2015 we now have an OMAFRA Google Mapping of all Provincially Licensed Meat Plants in Ontario.

OMAFRA Database of Provincially Licensed Meat Plants

OMAFRA's Google Earth mapping of all Provincially
Licensed Meat Plants (Abattoirs, Slaughter Plants), just
10 months after SFPFC's suggestion.

I had done this same mapping through Google's Fusion Tables Mapping in April 25, 2014 and had sent a detailed implementation method to OMAFRA's Deputy Minister as a suggestion so they could quickly follow Small Flockers' leadership in this area.  While I implemented our map in just 2 hours for SFPFC's Blog, the wheels turn a little slower at OMAFRA.

However, we now have confirmation that OMAFRA's wheels do turn.  Miracle of miracles, 10 months later, OMAFRA has left the Stone Age behind, and joined the Internet World with the rest of us, at least in this small area of excellence.

OMAFRA decided to implement their mapping via Google Earth, rather than my suggestion of Google Fusion Tables, likely so that users can more easily sort and filter the data to just the data records desired (eg. chicken processors, not red meat processors, etc.). 

Of course, my suggest to OMAFRA may have had no effect on this miraculous occurrence.  OMAFRA may have already been working on this project ever since Google Maps was launched in Feb. 2005.  If that is true, then OMAFRA took 15 years to implement what I did in 2 hours work.  I prefer to give OMAFRA the benefit of the doubt, and say they only took 10 months to implement SFPFC's suggestion made in April 25, 2014.


Thank-you and congratulations to OMAFRA for making this significant improvement.

CFO: From Misleading + Blackout, to Partial Disclosure

Chicken Farmers of Ontario ("CFO") surveyed more than 600 in Ontario about chicken, then went into almost total, complete blackout on the survey results, except for a mis-leading Media Backgrounder and Media Release on Dec. 3, 2014.  I congratulate CFO on disclosing some of the damaging survey results at their Annual General Meeting on March 12, 2015; 99 days late.  I now encourage CFO to release the entire survey report so as to provide full, open, transparent, and accountable governance of Ontario's chicken industry for the people of Ontario.

It is good that CFO, like all other businesses who might care what their stakeholders think, conduct a comprehensive, independent survey, done by a third party.

In the past, it appears that CFO designed their surveys so complaints and problems were ignored or hidden.  To illustrate that point, let's design a biased question that has no downside (as only the chicken gods have seen the survey, I don't really know what CFO did, but we can speculate):

Q1:   How do you feel about the fresh chicken sold in Ontario grocery stores?

• Best chicken in the world
• Excellent
• Very Good
• I'm satisfied
• Not applicable or no comment

This improper question has 4 degrees of happiness, and a neutral catch-all, but nowhere can a dissatisfied consumer express their opinion.

With this biased question, I'd expect to hear, "93% of consumers are satisfied or better with the chicken sold in Ontario".  No matter how good or bad CFO really performs, they can spin the results to make CFO look fantastic.

If things get really ugly, and 90% of consumers are so pissed off at CFO and Ontario chicken, that they choose "Not applicable or no comment", then CFO could still say, "Of those who expressed an opinion, 93% are satisfied."  What that means is that 90% clicked next to the most negative choice available, and of the 10% that CFO hasn't pissed off yet, they were disbursed among the 4 remaining positive choices so that 93% of that 10% chose "Satisfied".  It sounds great until you do full disclosure.

It's all in how you word the question.  Mislead the public through creative wording of the question and misinterpretation of the survey results.

Is that what CFO has done?  Only full disclosure of the survey and its results will reveal the full truth.

Therefore, I call upon CFO to fully disclose the survey and all of the results.

After CFO received the survey results, they issued a Media Backgrounder on Dec. 3, 2014.  It was subsequently deleted from their website by CFO (too much information ?), but through the miracle of Google's web crawler and cache system, I was able to obtain a cached version of that document.  All 100% positive, smiles & chuckles, rainbows and butterflies.  Isn't that precious!  I have preserved a copy and stored it here.  CFO also issued a Media Release, which is archived here

On March 13, 2015 an explosive article about CFO's survey was published on Better Farming.  Due to the critical importance of this information, I have copied it for archival purposes, and stored it here

From this unprecedented partial release of survey data from CFO, we now learn that most people have no clue how Supply Management works, or if chicken is under Supply Management.  In spite of these facts CFO twists the survey data so as to claim that the vast majority of consumers support Supply Management.

Read the CFO press release, then the BF article.  It's hard to believe they're referring to the same survey.

There 'aughta be a law.

There is a law, truth in advertising, and no misleading of consumers.

Too bad CFO ignores it.

Does these embarrassing results justify CFO to bury the survey results, or twist their meaning?

I don't think so, but what do you think?

Smoke & Mirrors for Chicken Pricing & Provincial Allocations

Supply Management was ordered to develop a better formula for pricing of their essential food products (dairy, chicken, turkey, & eggs).  What we got was bureaucratic, impenetrable & confusing smoke and mirrors.

The old system for chicken was based on the farmer's price of buying chicks and chicken feed, plus a "reasonable" amount for the farmer's labor, overhead expenses, and capital costs.  Sounds reasonable, easy to understand, and possibly justifiable.

Unfortunately, the #ChickenMafia and their friends floated mirages and artificial prices for each of these pricing formula factors, putting in the fix to maximize the #ChickenMafia's profits.  This system of smoke and mirrors allowed the #ChickenMafia farmers to become the highest paid farmers in Canada, 21.1% higher than the median farmer's income (see Blog posting Tail Wagging The Dog ).

How did the #ChickenMafia distort a simple pricing formula to their weapon of choice for gouging the Canadian public?  Many family farms have been bought, merged and amalgamated into the fold of Big Ag. multi-national billionaire corporations.  Many other chicken farmers have become Big Ag's puppets.  Big Ag. and their feed mills own or influence the chick hatcheries, the chicken feed producers, the chicken farmers who grow the chicken to full size, the abattoirs who slaughter and process the chickens, and distribute them to the grocery stores.

That web of control and influence is called vertical integration.  That vertical integration creates a very powerful force, one that is hidden from public view, and beyond government control, supervision, or oversight.

Barrie McKenna at The Globe & Mail described the struggle over the ammeding this sneaky, stealth control of the chicken pricing formula by the #ChickenMafia.

On a related basis, Chicken Farmers of Canada are ammending their formula for which province gets to grow Canadian chicken.  Here is the guts of the new deal:

4.1 Subject to the other provisions in this MOU, if the national allocation for a period is set above base, the growth (over base portion) of the domestic allocation will be distributed using a differential growth formula that consists of the following eight components and component weighting:

A. Provincial share of the national base allocation – 45%
 B. Population growth – 7.5%
 C. Income - based Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth – 7.5%
 D. Consumer Price Index (CPI) – 7.5%
 E. Farm Input Price Index (FIPI) – 10%
 F. Quota Utilization – 7.5%
 G. Further Processing – 10%
 H. Supply Share – 5%

These 8 factors all add up to 100% of the weighting.  At least they got that right, we now have proof positive they know how to add and do percentages.  The rest is in doubt.

Under the 2001 Federal-Provincial Agreement for Chicken, allocation of quota amongst provinces is supposed to be based on lowest cost producer.  This help ensures consumers get less expensive chicken, rather than subsidizing inefficient producers.

Will the new MOU ensure this occurs?  I doubt it.

The advantages of CFC's system is this MOU defines how all the provinces will jockey and fight amongst themselves.  At least that is a battle somewhat among equals.  Fortunately, the innocent and helpless consumers are proected from these vicious Supply Management Monsters when the MOU is implemented each quoota period.

Agri007 describes the MOU and its 8 factors, and doubts it will achieve something in the consumer's best interest.

The deck of cards is stacked against the consumer.  All the aces are secretly tucked up the sleeveof the #ChickenMafia.  The #ChickenMafia then makes a big media blitz and promotion that they are re-shuffling the deck of cards, and dealing a fresh hand to all players.  Some people might be fooled to enter their anty, trust the new dealer, and try one more time with eternal hope for a better tomorrow for Canadian consumers.

Unfortunately, no matter how many times or how well the deck is shuffled and cut, you need to realize that the aces are up the sleeve of the #ChickenMafia.  Those aces will be re-introduced to the game with great stealth at just the right time.

It's a rigged game.

The consumer has no chance to win.

End of story.

The Plan

Here is my plan for myself and my community until we can get the abusive Supply Management regulations changed, declared illegal, or unconstitutional.

On my farm, I continue to raise my 99 laying chickens, and provide fresh, ungraded farm eggs to my community every day.  I still have my 1 (one) meat chicken as a token bird, so that I meet on an ongoing basis the definition of a chicken farmer.  This enable me to complain about the actions of Chicken Farmers of Ontario ("CFO") while my wife and I eat our way through our freezer full of our previous meat birds I produced but were unable to sell under current Small Flock Regulations.  I also have ducks, geese, turkeys, goats, and livestock guardian dogs.

I have filed a request for reconsideration of the OMAFRA Tribunal's decision on my appeal against Chicken Farmers of Ontario ("CFO").

Asking the fox to reconsider his decision to eat one of my chickens has little chance of success, but it is a mandatory step in the long, twisted bureaucratic process of Supply Management.

Under CFO's Small Flock Regulation No. 2484-2014, Section 1.(j) states a Small Flock Grower is a person, and each person can grow 300 birds per year.  Under Ontario law, corporations are persons, equal to flesh and blood persons.

I attended the recent seminar sponsored by Practical Farmers of Ontario , and heard Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms speak.  Using mobile facilities as recommended by him, I can move my entire free range meat bird operation in an afternoon from one lot to another if I need to.

Therefore I'm making plans to rent (via 2 separate companies) 2 small patches of agricultural land from other farmers/owners, and those companies will have exclusive first rights to raise chickens on those farm lots.  With my own farm, that will give me 3 separate lots.  With 3 farm lots at 300 birds per lot, is 900 meat birds in total; totally in compliance under the current Supply Management rules for Small Flocks.  These 900 meat birds will nicely serve the needs for safe, nutritious, affordable, and locally produced chicken in my local community.

Unfortunately, Section 21 of the Reg. says CFO can change the Small Flock Regulation any time they please.  I am confident that CFO will harass me and others who dare to try this plan, or CFO will invent crazy definitions and twist the interpretation of their Small Flock Regulation so as to make my plan be prohibited, or arbitrarily and unilaterally change the CFO Regulation so that my plan is expressly banned.

You might conclude that I do not have much faith or trust in CFO.

I don't.

CFO has a valuable monopoly to protect.  CFO's members are all multi-millionaires, but they wish to become billionaires.  Many of CFO members have slowly become trapped puppets who are controlled by Big Ag.

Therefore CFO will likely do anything necessary to protect their monopoly, and achieve the goals of their members and Big Ag.

I believe CFO intends to continue violating the civil rights of small flock farmers, and using CFO's monopoly as a weapon against consumers.


If there are other like minded persons who want to help implement this interim plan, or work co-operatively to prepare for CFO's retaliatory strike against all those who consider implementing this plan, please leave your comments, or contact me in private.

Mega Manure Measurement

Chesapeake Bay is badly polluted from the phosphorous and nitrogen from mega factory chicken farms.  Over 20% of those farms have failed to disclose what they did with their chicken manure, contrary to state law.

Now, Maryland is fining these arrogant and non-compliant CAFO (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations) for chicken in the North East United States.

The Baltimore Sun reports:

Since July 1, the Maryland Department of the Environment has issued notices of violation to 104 of the state's 574 "animal feeding operations." Those are farms that are regulated like factories because of the large volumes of manure generated by raising 37,500 or more birds at a time.

In a previous Blog posting, I explained how bad this pollution  has been (see Buried Alive In Chicken Manure).  CAFO chicken farms produce 94% of all nitrogen pollution in streams and lakes of SDelmar Penninsula, and Chesapeake Bay.

In Ontario, Section 15.(2) under O. Reg. 267-03 of the Nutrient Management Act requires a Nutrient Management Plan if your farm:

• produces 300 or more nutrient units;
• Is within 100 meters of a municipal potable water well;
• produces 5 or more NU`s and you apply for a building permit

Layer chickens are 150 birds per NU.  This means layer farms with more than 45,000 layers must have a Mutrient Management Plan. 

Broilers are from 100 to 351 birds per NU (12-week to 8-week grow cycle).  Therefore the smallest broiler farm that must prepare a Nutrient Management Plan is as low as 300,000 broilers.  Quota-bearing chicken farms produced about 192.7 Million birds per year in 2013. The average quota chicken farm raises 187,813 birds per year.  The smallest available quota farm CFO permits without special permission has 14,000 quota units, so with 6.5 grow cycles per year, the minimum factory farmed foul is 91,000 chickens per year.

Based on the previous estimates I made on the Gorillas in the Ontario chicken coops, there is about 71 chicken farmers in Ontario who must have a Nutrient Management Plan (ie. just 7% of the 1,013 quota-based mega chicken farms in Ontario).  This is half of the number of farms in the largest production class, as the median quota units is about the threshold value for the NMP (Nutrient Management Plan).

So if US mega farms are the leading culprit in nitrogen pollution, and 93% of Ontario chicken farms get an exemption on nutrient management, guess how bad the chicken nitrogen pollution is in Ontario?

With 93% of chicken farms with a nutrient management exemption, we are flying blind.  We will know we have a problem when it is too late; the damage will have already occurred when we realize the problem for the first time.  These nutrient management exemptions are obviously in the short term best interest of the mega chicken farmers.

Is this truly in the public's best interest? 

Pregnant Pause

It has been a week since CFO submitted their response to my final attempt to rescue our chicken appeal.

The Tribunal still has not responded to the arguments submitted by the opposing sides.  What could that pregnant pause mean?

The Tribunal could have had a response within the hour after the closing of the time for submitting responses.  After all, how long does it take to type "Case dismissed!".

However, that summary dismissal has not occurred.  Obviously, the Tribunal needs a little bit more time than an hour to consider what has been submitted.

The CFO's 5 page submission takes about an hour to read a few times.  Not very deep, nor complex.  It wouldn't take more than a day to agree or disagree with CFO's submission, and adopt what they submitted.  At a week delay and counting, it likely isn't CFO's response that is delaying the issuing of the Tribunal's answer.

The Tribunal allowed us a maximum of 10 pages to convince them that the Tribunal has sufficient jurisdiction and powers to hear this appeal. Our 10 pages of legal arguments are designed to try and keep the appeal alive.  Those 10 pages are complex, filled with legal references and footnotes.  It is comprehensive, and has maximum possible density so as to fit everything into those 10 pages, the maximum allowed .  It is a significant task just to read those 10 pages.

In addition, our Submission Brief of 1,085 pages contains the full text of all the Court transcripts referenced and relied upon in our 10 page submission, plus our signed Petitions in support of our appeal.  That would take at least a week just to read.

Could it be the Appellant's arguments that are slowing down the Tribunal's response?

That doesn't necessarily mean that we are going to win this skirmish.  I think there is a 90% chance that our appeal gets dismissed no matter how strong our legal arguments may be.  However, our legal arguments are sufficiently strong and persuasive that it takes a significant effort to cast them aside and make it plausible.  That is why it's taking the Tribunal so long.  The Tribunal wants to appear to be fair and legally correct.

Whatever the true reasons for the pregnant pause, it appears that the Tribunal is reading and considering our arguments.  That's an important first step.  There is a slim chance that the Tribunal will be sufficiently persuaded so as to overcome 50 years of #ChickenMafia dogma, precedence, well-embedded habits, and political favoritism.

That won't be easy for the Tribunal to achieve, but it may be possible. Let us hope and pray together the Tribunal's Panel Members have the personal strength to do what is right.

The Empire Strikes Back

The revised Notice of Appeal was published on the 17th of July, 2014 (see Blog posting Appeal #2 Submitted).  The Empire struck back on the 21st, just 4 days later.

Mr. D. Vader, consulting attorney for Chicken Farmers of Ontario

The last time Chicken Farmers of Ontario ("CFO") complained about my appeal, they were successful in limiting my appeal to just CFO's Small Flock Regulation.

The Empire (a.k.a  #ChickenMafia) didn't want to discuss the rights and freedoms of small flockers, the affordability of chicken, the superbugs and other noxious substances on the chicken produced by the #ChickenMafia, nor anything else.

In CFO's letter to the Tribunal, Darth Vader Geoffrey Spur complained about the revised appeal, and about the evidence presented in support of raising the small flock exemption from 300 to 2,000 birds.

It isn't clear to me what CFO thinks would be a reasonable and acceptable appeal.  CFO seems to want the appeal to be limited to "Please raise the limit from 300 to 2,000", with no reasons in support of this request  to be offered.

While CFO took 4 days to respond, I burned the midnight oil and got a Small Flocker response to CFO's complaint out the next day.

It will be interesting to see the Tribunal's response to these renewed complaints by CFO.

I have two burning questions:

1. When, if ever, do we get to the hearing of the appeal?
    
2. Luke Skywalker was shocked when he found out the truth about Darth Vader, so should I start to worry too about "Who's your Daddy?"

Unaffordable Chicken in Ontario

Is chicken unaffordable in Ontario for the "Working Poor"?  Is the situation getting better, or worse, over time?  Unfortunately, I have bad news again.  Here is more evidence of the crimes or misdemeanors of the #ChickenMafia in Ontario, and the rest of Canada.

Yesterday in this Blog, we examined LICO-chicken (see LICO-Chicken = "Let Them Eat Cake" ) to see how retail chicken has become 16% affordable over the last 14 years for those living at the poverty level, as defined by LICO (Low Income Cut-Off).

Today, we will look at the working poor, defined as those earning at or about the Minimum Wage.

To make my case more obvious and easy to understand, I have chosen to explore the situation in the time period of 1995 to 2005, a 10 years period when the Ontario public was abused worse than usual.

This is the sad tale of Ontario citizens during the rein of the hereditary aristocracy of millionaires running the Ontario #ChickenMafia.

Between 1995 and 2003, the minimum wage was fixed at $6.85 per hour.

Seeing an opportunity to make even more millions of profit for themselves, the #ChickenMafia started issuing self-serving price increases for chicken.

The #ChickenMafia also allowed a laissez-faire abdication of their government-delegated powers and duties to manage the marketing of chicken (ie. processors, further processors, distributors, and importers of chicken in Ontario, all of whom are "friends" or accomplices of the #ChickenMafia members).

The rule of thumb for the #ChickenMafia is:

"Scratch my back, and I'll scratch yours."

After all, there is honour among thieves; and likewise, millionaires.

The #ChickenMafia caused or permitted retail chicken prices to rise at  3.44% per year, which is a doubling and re-doubling of chicken prices every 20.4 years.  In total over this 10 year period, retail chicken prices went up by a whopping 43.3%.

As the retail price of chicken climbed higher and higher, the affordability of chicken dropped at 2.7% per year; halfing and re-halfing chicken affordability every 25.9 years.  This data is described as the number of kg of chicken that you can buy per hour worked at minimum wage.  In total over this 10 year period, the affordability of chicken dropped by 31.7%

Eventually, the Provincial government was forced to act.  In 2004, the Ontario minimum wage was raised.  In 2005, it was raised again.

While these minimum wage increases were designed to help the working poor, the #ChickenMafia rubbed their hands together in glee that their lobbyists had successfully created a perpetual wealth machine.  The #ChickenMafia keeps raising chicken prices, and the Ontario government keeps raising the Minimum Wage so the more expensive chicken stays somewhat affordable for the Working Poor.

Around and around we go, extracting wealth from all citizens and giving it to the Chicken Mafia.  As far as the #ChickenMafia is concerned, this "game" must continue forever.

Unfortunately, Ontario sets the pace for the rest of Canada.  If the #ChickenMafia can get away with it in Ontario, then the #ChickenMafia in the rest of Canada are encouraged to try the same scheme too.

Unfortunately for the #ChickenMafia, there is a growing number of citizens who are becoming wise to the plans and sordid history of the #ChickenMafia, and are no longer willing to sit back and be continuously screwed by them.