The Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association (SSGA) held its 107th Annual General Meeting online on October 14th.
The membership elected two new Directors-at-Large to the board, and passed three policy resolutions.
The board named the new SSGA executive after the AGM. The incoming President is Kelcy Elford of Caron. Elford had been 1st Vice President prior to the AGM.
Garner Deobald will be the new 1st Vice President, Jeff Yorga 2nd Vice President, and Kimberly Simpson will be the Finance Chair.
Outgoing president Bill Huber will sit on the board as Past President.
“This organization has a proud history, and I’m honoured to be elected as its President,” Elford said. “It’s a humbling experience to be elected into this position with this many qualified and influential producers.”
He thanked the previous executive and the outgoing directors for their work to advance the ranching and livestock industry.
“It’s a big job. All of our members are grateful for the time and effort these volunteers put in to support Saskatchewan ranchers,” Elford said.
The members passed a resolution calling on the federal government to reconsider banning strychnine for controlling Richardson’s ground squirrel populations. At present, there is no adequate alternative for controlling the overpopulation of the rodents on agricultural lands.
The membership also adopted a resolution to oppose the use of the term “meat” to describe plant-based food products. The SSGA will work with other livestock organizations to forward this position to appropriate authorities.
A third resolution concerned the use of traps and snares near farms and ranches. Currently, trappers may place their traps 500 metres from a home, stockade or corral without the owner’s permission. This has resulted in producers’ guardian dogs being accidentally killed.
The resolution calls on the Ministry of Environment to require trappers to receive written permission from the landowner or livestock owner for traps or snares placed within 1,500m of a dwelling or livestock herd.
Elford says building up the new Saskatchewan Stock Growers Foundation, the charitable arm of the organization, will be a priority for the coming year. “It’s an exciting time for us, with the foundation having been announced last January. We’d like to get that off the ground,” he said.
He said continuing to expand environmental initiatives and maintaining a good relationship with policy makers are also important for the new board.
“I look forward to serving the membership and working with all levels of government,” Elford said.
The SSGA tentatively plans to hold its 108th AGM in Assiniboia in 2021.