Prepared by Gord Schroeder (Executive Director) Contact information: Direct line ,

Transcription

1 2013 Annual Report Saskatchewan Sheep Development Board 2213C Hanselman Court Saskatoon Saskatchewan S7L 6A8 Phone: Fax: Web Site: Prepared by Gord Schroeder (Executive Director) Contact information: Direct line , Directors Name Position Residence Owen Gentes NW Battleford Richard Zubot NE Chair Humboldt Kevin Rast SW Kindersley Trent Larson SE Southey Arlette Seib CE Watrous Staff Name Gordon Schroeder Grace Erza Linda Stevens Position Executive Director Office Manager/ Accounting Administrative Assistant Mission Statement To enable the growth of the Saskatchewan sheep industry through supportive programs and services. Vision Statement Leaders of a prosperous sheep industry. Values Statement We value excellence, integrity and leadership. Mandate Our Vision and Mission is achieved by:

2 Representing and responding to the needs of all sheep and lamb producers of Saskatchewan. Providing effective communications channels. Providing marketing options and market information for lamb producers. Providing resource stability to the Saskatchewan Sheep Development Board. Providing education, extension and information transfer to assist producers in maximizing returns for lamb, sheep and sheep products. Ensuring access to sheep supplies. Promoting the lamb industry, the consumption of lamb and the use of sheep products. Implementing the strategic plan developed by the sheep industry for the sheep industry. Working in cooperation with other industry groups, marketing associations, commissions committees which have objectives consistent with those of the Saskatchewan Sheep Development Board. Working in partnership with the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture. Introduction Saskatchewan is the 4 th largest sheep-producing province in Canada. Statistics Canada s semi-annual survey estimates breeding ewes on Saskatchewan farms on July 1, 2013 were 59,500 ewes, this does not include replacements. The Saskatchewan Sheep Development Board has a current provincial registered flock of approximately 68,350 breeding ewes (includes replacements). Region Registered Producers Ewes Central North East North West

3 South East South West Total The Saskatchewan Sheep Development Board is well respected and very involved in the Canadian lamb industry. We are seen as leaders; a provincial organization that is very active and works hard on behalf of the provinces lamb producers. Lamb prices had been strong for several years, 2011 being one of the best years ever for lamb prices. In 2012 the pendulum swung the other way and prices were very disappointing. In 2013 we saw a bit of an improvement in prices but still not to levels needed to provide reasonable margins for producers. Current Market Influences: Fragmented marketing structure Lack of guaranteed supply of quality product Lack of value added products As of August 31, 2013 imports of mutton and lamb up 21.5% over 2012 Price volatility creating caution from buyers Less buyer competition (retirement of some buyers) Feed supply and prices I believe there is one more reason; I call it marketing dependency. The lamb industry has a history of getting rid of our lambs not marketing them. This will most often mean producers don t see full value for the lambs they produce. We have all heard the term value chain. A value chain is not a supply chain. In a value chain, each member of the chain adds value. In most cases producers are involved in supply chains; we are dependent on others to do the marketing. Producers need to become part of the value chain. This is one of the reasons for the Canadian Lamb Producers Cooperative Initiative. Canadian lamb is the product of choice. Canada currently only produces approximately 41% of our current domestic consumption. If the current production and marketing trend continues we will see our market share drop to 32% in the next 10 years. For the good of the industry we need to adjust how we market our animals and see our production increase. Saskatchewan has several advantages when considering lamb production. Relatively reasonable land prices, an abundance of feed, space and a well organized producer organization that provides value to producers. We have a good working relationship with Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, the Canadian Sheep Federation and other

4 provincial agriculture committees and organizations. Together we are working to provide a favorable environment for lamb production. Financial Information An audited financial statement is attached to this report. The SSDB continues to be very efficient with compensation to our directors. In the last year a total of $6, was paid to our five directors. These funds include per-diems and expenses. Our directors put in a lot of volunteer hours for the industry. The Saskatchewan Sheep Development Board has several streams of revenue sources. We do not want to become totally dependent on producers check off funding. Revenue Total 2013 Check-off $94, Program funding $87, Marketing related activities $26, Administration/consultation $6, Seminars $10, Ewe Shoppe sales $434, Sponsorship and advertising $17, Other $7, Total $684,288.00

5 Check Off Revenue History Year Amount Collected 2013 $94, $79, $108, $99, $94, $56, SSDB Challenges and Goals Not necessarily in the order of importance. Adequate funding for the Saskatchewan Sheep Development Board to meet producer expectations. Financial stability of the SSDB is crucial to the Saskatchewan sheep industry. The expectations for the SSDB are much higher in today s environment. We want to remain an effective and productive organization working for our membership. We need to prioritize activities. To listen to our membership and to develop our activities with producers involvement. We want to follow the direction provided but we also need to consider the needs of the industry for the future. What producers want and what the industry needs is not always the same thing. Food Safety and Traceability programs would be a prime example of this. Producers initially saw this as a cost to them; they are beginning to see it now as something that must be in place to protect our industry. Expectations from our membership vary greatly; we have producers with 10 ewes and producers with 2500 ewes. Meeting the expectations of both is a challenge. To make the best possible use of the resources we have, this includes producer check-off dollars. Effective communications with our membership. To create a positive environment for lamb production.

6 The strength of the Canadian Sheep Federation was a concern for us, with the number of national programs being initiated, there needs to be a strong national voice for the industry. The CSF is funded by provinces; several provinces can t afford their dues. This causes budget issue and limitations for the CSF. During the last year the CSF has gone through a re-focusing exercise and hired a new Executive Director. We are encouraged by the direction CSF is now going. Producer Challenges Market returns/ market options Business support (financing, price insurance). Hard to find financing for expansion and a price insurance program would assist the industry address this and other profit margin issues. Lamb mortality, too many lambs are lost during the first week of life Predation; predation will always be a part of our industry and will need to be managed. Cost vs. production benefits of RFID systems. Our industry has a mandatory RFID tagging program, all animals leaving the flock of origin must be tagged with a CSIP approved RFID tag. When RFID systems are used as management tools on the farms it has good value for producers. Producers need to recognize the value to them on their farms. Expectation (animal welfare, food safety, traceability, etc) Medication access, very few medications are registered for sheep in Canada. Labour and facilities shortfall Activity Focus Areas The SSDB with the help of producers have developed a strategic plan for the Saskatchewan sheep industry. The plan is revisited regularly and is given an extensive overhaul every five years. We have just completed our new plan for The plan sets priorities as determined by sheep producers with input from various parties involved in the industry. A copy of the new plan is attached to this report. Activity focus: Industry representation and liaison provincially and nationally Industry Marketing and market development of live and value-added lamb and sheep products Extension and referral services Producer communications (Sheep Shape, Web-site Ewe-line, phone and producer meetings)

7 Sustainable funding for the Saskatchewan Sheep Development Board Industry issues (eg. predation, disease, lamb mortality, abortion and lamb prices) Industry promotion and awareness Program implementation and administration Producer production support (nutrition, flock health, guidance, etc) Canadian Sheep Federation participation Growing Forward Program opportunities Agri-education participation Providing access to production supplies (Ewe Shoppe) Development and research projects Project management( Elbow Sheep Pasture) Animal welfare activities On Farm Food Safety Program Traceability Program RFID Management Systems / Traceability Value for dollars spent Just a few activity highlights in 2013 The development and completion of our Strategic Plan The establishment of the Canadian Lamb Producers Cooperative Funding approval for $1,400, from Western Diversification for the development of an electronic lamb grading system Pilot project agreement with the Saskatchewan Wildlife Damage Compensation Program to investigate the opportunity of using RFID technology to verify predation losses Growing Forward Two Programming opportunities Special Programs and Projects We continue to work on several projects: National On Farm Food Safety Program National Sheep Identification/ Traceability Program Saskatchewan Predation Programs National Scrapie Surveillance and Eradication Program Maedi-visna/BVD/Johnes Surveillance Program Canadian Lamb Producers Cooperative Initiative

8 Saskatchewan Sheep Flock Health Program Flock Management using RFID (radio frequency identification devise) Voluntary Bio-Security Program Animal Welfare Education Web-site Development New for 2014 will be: RFID Systems Predation Pilot Project MCF Best Production Practices Manual and Education development Enhancing our electronic member communication (Ewe-Line) Service Fee Refund on Dead Stock Program (just approved) Abortion Surveillance Program (just approved) Production Price Insurance development Industry Trends Support for the Saskatchewan Sheep Development Board; recognition of the work being done on behalf of producers and the need for one voice for the industry. Realization that lamb producers are food producers. A move towards business focus and larger flocks Producers are seeing the value of RFID Management Systems Growing frustration with current marketing structure in Canada Realization for the need to be more than just primary producers (need to add value) Animal welfare will become increasingly important Bio-security will become increasingly important Animal traceability and Food Safety programs will be increasingly important. There are producers leaving the industry due to lamb prices and it is suspected that we will see a decrease in lamb supply. However there have been individuals who see this as an opportunity to expand their operations. Still too early to get a true picture of flock numbers, we will get this information early in the new-year. SSDB Operational trends Industry groups can t be dependent on government funds to pay any general expenses, they must pay their own way Strategic planning and a move towards research clusters is essential to be able to access new research and development funding A move to more electronic communication

9 The Opportunity Canadian lamb is the product of choice Total kilograms of lamb being consumed still increasing Added value infrastructure basically non- existent Real demand, if we had more product what would the demand really look like. Saskatchewan advantage Low cost of entry Family enterprise Potential to influence margins. By working at production management, producers have the ability to increase lambing percentages and lambs marketed per ewe. This is unlike the cattle industry where one calf per cow is the norm and that is really all that can be expected. Outlook for 2014 The goal of the SSDB is to create a positive environment for lamb production; we will continue to work together with producers and government to accomplish this goal. The increasing costs of operating the SSDB has and will continue to be examined; budgets are tight, expectations high. Our industry as in many others will have challenges and will need to continue to change. Challenges and change are a constant in life, the question we need to ask ourselves is do we want to drive change or will we let change drive us? Food Safety, Bio-security, Traceability and Animal Welfare will need to become part of regular conversation. These are all expectations that our membership is reluctant to accept due to the perceived costs of implementation. Part of our job is to make membership aware of the costs to them if they don t address these issues. Our industry along with many others will need to become increasingly aware of consumer expectations. As far as lamb prices in 2014; provided the market place responds normally to market influences, lamb prices should rise. Consumption is up, Canadian flock size has decreased, and imports from the US are down due to value of the dollar. Canadian lamb is still the product of choice. All normal market influences point to a better year in Our wish list to accomplish in 2014 would be: To see the Canadian Lamb Producers Cooperative operational To see more uptake of the On Farm Food Safety and Livestock Traceability Programs To remain financially stable, allowing us to be an efficient productive organization

10 Being able to maintain current staffing levels To see additional improvements made to predation programs The lamb abortion issue being addressed more affectively Increased communication with members through Ewe-line and web-site