A valuable tool for telling agriculture’s economic story.
In 1991, Hon. Ralph Ferguson (M.P.) had his staff prepare a document to illustrate the share of the consumer’s dollar that farmers received. The resulting document was donated to the Centre for Rural Studies and Enrichment at St. Peter’s College in Muenster, Saskatchewan.
As demand dictated, it was updated in 1999, and again in 2004 with financial support from the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA).
The latest document provides graphic illustrations of how the gap between the price consumers pay and the price farmers receive for the food they produce has widened. It also shows how prices have increased for the goods and services farmers have to buy as inputs for their farming operations.
Periodically requests are received for information that would be useful in preparing displays for events with a focus on agriculture and food.
Copies of the 2004 edition of Compare the Share are available from OFA, either by mail, or online. The complete document can be viewed online HERE or by making a request to Gary Struthers, OFA Communications, at 416-485-3333, ext. 223.
The document also provides a graph (Page 4) that illustrates the percentage of disposable income spent on food in a number of nations. On Page 16, users of the document can find a graph that shows how off-farm income has increased over the year, and on Pate 17, another graph illustrates the growth of farm debt.
OFA’s Member Relations and Communications Committee invites all County Federations of Agriculture to make certain they have a copy of the 2004 Compare the Share document – something they can use as an educational tool when working with the public.