Citizens meet with Cabinet Ministers to demand hog barn moratorium
April 23, 2004
REGINA - The Saskatchewan Beyond Factory Farming Coalition wants the provincial government to start living up to its “Green and Prosperous” slogan.
Today, the group will meet with Agriculture Minister Mark Wartman, Environment Minister David Forbes and Minister responsible for SaskWater Corporation, Peter Prebble.
It is demanding that the province stop developing industrial hog factories and start supporting the environmentally-friendly family farm alternatives.
Ken Sigurdson, who farms in eastern Saskatchewan, will discuss the economic failure of intensive hog operations in Saskatchewan, citing the recent economic failure of the Saskatchewan Wheat Pool’s hog division, Heartland Livestock.
Cathy Holtslander, the National Beyond Factory Coordinator, will call upon Saskatchewan Environment to live up to its mandate to protect Saskatchewan’s air, water and soils from pollution.
Currently Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food has sole responsibility for environmental regulation of hog barns. This conflicts with its role in promoting the industry and with the Saskatchewan government’s heavy investment in Big Sky Farms Inc.
Marilyn Gillis, a certified organic farmer from Wynyard, will point out the many economically and environmentally successful options there are for hog production, and the benefits that rural Saskatchewan could reap if the government truly backed its “Green and Prosperous” slogan.
Jack Maluga, a resident of the Quill Lakes area, will outline the Coalition’s demands, including a precautionary moratorium on further intensive hog operation development, until such time as proper regulations and policies can be implemented.
Members of the Coalition will be available to meet with journalists following their meeting with the Ministers.
Location: the Rotunda of the Legislature, Regina Time: 3:00 PM Date: April 23, 2004
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For more information contact: Cathy Holtslander, National Beyond Factory Farming Coordinator - (306) 955-6454 or (306) 229-4075 (cell)