Defend Farmers not the Irving Industries

At this time of year one can enjoy the beauty if the island. The grass is a vibrant green the trees and hedge rows are lush and everywhere the birds are singing. The sky is cloudless and blue and all seems right with the world. But wait, what is that emerging from the dust, egads!!   another potato harvesting monster coming to rape our precious soil again. How long can we allow this to continue? how long before the island soil is completely destroyed? Many Government MLA’s are quick to claim those of us who complain are against farming and farmers.  Not true, we are against the greed of major corporation. Please read the article attached from Chris Ortenburger

Let’s think for a moment about Island Agriculture.

First and foremost:
1) potato tampering (any kind of food tampering) is reprehensible;
2) agriculture is a huge component of P.E.I.’s economy;
3) Island farmers need our support, and have our support.

However, instead of rational discussion on this in our Legislature, we are getting chest-thumping ‘potatriotism’, which as I see it is the loyalty some Islanders feel, akin to patriotism, for the potato industry.

I don’t mean to be Flip (that’s someone else), but this sitting of the Legislature, after two working days, is already more about hours of waving the flag of the current agri-industry model than anything else. (One MLA clocked over 25 minutes Friday morning speaking to one motion, referring to just about everything under the sun.) The polarizing message communicated was that any criticism of the current model of agriculture is criticism of all decent, hard-working Islanders.

We don’t need that kind of polarization.  We are all in this together, farmers and eaters.  We need leadership, and openness to a variety of opinions, not opportunities for elected representatives to perform loyalty tests while ignoring the very real issues facing farmers, and farmland, today.

Chris Ortenburger

Adapted from the Citizens’ Alliance News

God Bless and keep reading