MOUNTAIN VIEW COUNTY - The county's agricultural service board (ASB) has made motion recommending that county council appoint a non-voting youth member to the board.
“It won’t be official until it is passed by council, but the request came from council so it shouldn’t be an issue,” said county councillor and ASB member Gord Krebs.
The move came during the board’s recent regularly scheduled meeting, held in person and on Zoom. The ASB is made up of county councillors and appointed members of the public.
During the county organizational meeting following the recent municipal election, council provided direction to consider a member-at-large spot dedicated for a young farmer within the county.
“Council and previous ASBs have held that youth and young farmers are the future of Mountain View County’s agricultural sector,” administration said in a briefing note to the board. “As such the matter has been referred to the ASB for consideration prior to returning the items for final council approval.”
During the recent ASB meeting, members considered a number of questions related to the matter of youth participation, including:
What does the agricultural service board consider a youth? “When many think youth is either a minor under 18 years of age or it is a person that is in their mid-teens to mid-20s,” the note stated. “The ASB sponsors ‘young farmers’ attendance to FarmTech and originally established the criteria as a farmer of 30 years of age and under but has increased to 35 years of age due to lack of participation. The limits of the age of the ‘youth’ participation should be identified.”
In the end the board decided a youth member will be defined as a person 35 years of age or younger.
A youth member position on the ASB could cost approximately $322 a month for meetings, as well as between $2,500 and $3,000 a year for ASB conference costs, members heard.
The county currently supports youth in agriculture in a number of ways, including support of local 4-H clubs, rural community grants, and providing funding for the Farm Safety Centre that administers farm safety instruction.
The ASB is responsible for the promotion and enhancement of agricultural production within the county in accordance with provincial legislation and county policy and strategic objectives, according to its terms of reference.
It also acts as an advisory body to assist council and the minister of Agriculture in matters of mutual concern.
