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The Nutcracker ON TA R I O BA L L E T TH E AT R ESTheNutcracker is coming... Thursday, December 13 at 7:00 pm JOHN ELLIOT THEATRE 9 Church Street, Georgetown Tickets: Regular $25, Children (under 12) $12 Box Office: (905) 877-3700 235 Guelph Street 905-873-1999 Georgetown Cinemas 3 Please email comments to: iranisorab@yahoo.ca or fax for group bookings at 905-873-3053 Playing the week of Nov. 16 - Nov. 22 ADMISSION PRICES: Sun to Thurs and Mats Sat & Sun all seats $4.20 (except Tues.) Friday & Saturday Adults $6.50 evenings, Children / Seniors $4.20, TUESDAY IS TWOONIE TUESDAY Now Open for FRI. MATS. BEE MOVIE (G - General) Nightly at 7:15 & 9:15 pm Fri., Sat. & Sun. Mats at 1:00, 3:00 & 5:00 pm MR. MAGORIUMS WONDER EMPORIUM (G - General) Nightly at 7:20 & 9:30 pm Fri., Sat. & Sun. Mats at 1:10, 3:15 & 5:15 pm FRED CLAUS (PG - Parental Guidance, Language May Offend) Nightly at 7:00 & 9:20 pm Fri., Sat. & Sun. Mats at 1:30 & 4:00 pm Please join us to celebrate the 50th Wedding Anniversary of Leslie & Edit Otto. A mass with renewal of vows will be held on Saturday, November 24th at 12 noon. Holy Cross Church, 224 Maple Ave., Georgetown. To be followed by a light lunch/tea in the church hall. Friends and parish members welcome. No RSVP / No gifts please. SPECIAL OFFER RUST PROOF Non-Drip, Underspray Protection! $7995Most cars For appt call 905-877-1100 RJs MUFFLER Happy 90th Birthday Bertha Scott Please come and help us celebrate Sat. Nov. 24th from 1 - 4 pm at her home 76 Marilyn Cres., Georgetown, ON l7G 1K4 Best wishes only please. NEED WHEELS? WE CAN HELP. Bankrupt (Discharged or Un-discharged?) In credit counselling or proposal? New Immigrant/Refugee? Too Young/Too Old? No established credit? APPROVED QUICKLY - CONFIDENTIALLY IF YOU ARE EMPLOYED WE CAN HELP! Specialists in Automotive Financing. Your circumstances. Your rate. Rates from 8.9% to 29.9% O.A.C. Some down payment may be required. RE-ESTABLISH YOUR CREDIT TODAY! carloansapproved.ca or call Dave Watson 1-866-385-9250 CREDIT PROBLEMS? 8 Acton/Georgetown, Friday, November 16, 2007 ZACHARY HESS Congratulations ZAC on your graduation from University of Western Ontario with your 4 year Honours Degree in Business Administration. Good luck in South Korea. There are both challenges and opportunities for farmers living next door to urban areas, said Elbert van Donkersgoed, Executive Director of the Greater Toronto Area Agricultural Committee, at last Thursdays agricul- tural community meeting. Van Donkersgoed, was the guest speaker at the meeting, held at Pineview Public School, that drew about 45 rural residents. He said the challenges facing farm- ers in our area include complaints from non-farm residents about farm practices, the lack of affordable land to buy, shortages of rental land, loss of local farm services, loss of the farm community, problems with moving equipment on congested roads and trespassers. But on the flip side, the pluses for farmers living near suburbia include the fact value of production per acre is higher, average farm sizes are smaller and more diverse, there is more opportunity for direct sales, farm shops and pick-your-own opera- tions, close proximity to a growing number of farmers markets, there is a large population with a growing interest in local food, and more opportunities for agri-tourism and culinary tourism. Van Donkersgoed said according to a poll taken last year in Ontario 45 per cent of people surveyed said they always or usually buy locally grown food when its available, and 38 per cent said they sometimes do. He stressed the key there is the phrase, when its available. He said today, big box stores dom- inate the food system, but initiatives supporting local agriculture such as farm markets and pick-your-own farms are popping up around the GTA. van Dokersgoed said there is a pent-up demand for more farmers markets. If there were more farmers will- ing, we would increase farmers mar- kets, he said. He said for farmers to get their products into big box stores they have to have their products shelf- ready. Farming isnt primary production anymore, farming is a huge range of activities in order to have a product ready for the consumer, said van Donkersgoed. Today, many farm families are finding that farming doesnt provide a full family income, he said. We need to explore new opportu- nities to create a countryside econo- my that really works so farm families and others dont have to commute into the city for that second income, he said. He suggested cluster developments and encouraging a greater mix of uses on existing farms, for example, allow- ing cottages on farms. He said the Internet is an area of opportunity for farmers that is now only being used to a small extent. It should be possible in the future for a chef in downtown Toronto to log onto a website to do his order for local food electronically, he said. A different kind of wholesale and logistics options for locally grown food is definitely needed, he said. Thats the case already in the United Kingdom, he explained, as the big box stores there are creating regional procurement centres to access locally grown food. Were not anywhere near that phase yet, he said. So, he said, farmers are going to have to build alternatives to get into the local food market and suggested establishing specialty shops for local- ly grown food. He said many farmers arent inter- ested in selling their products at farmers markets or running pick- your-own farms, but are interested in producing locally grown food but they need someone else to move it to the consumer. He said the Ontario Food Terminal, was designed for being in the middle of the food system, but over 90 per cent of the product that goes through there is imported and it only works so-so for locally grown food. As a result, he said, there is not the right kind of services to really build a strong local food sector in the GTA. Also at the meeting, Halton Hills Wards 3/4 Regional Councillor Jane Fogal suggested that thought be given to the idea of setting up a year-round farmers market in Georgetown and an audience member heartily agreed with her. The audience heard from several Town staff members about issues per- taining to agriculture and the rural area including Public Works Manager Ted Drewlo who said progress is being made in paving rural roads and next year there will be less than 50 miles of gravel roads within Halton Hills. (Lisa Tallyn can be reached at ltallyn@independentfreepress.com) Challenges, opportunities await farmers living next to suburbia, audience told Farming isnt primary production anymore, farming is a huge range of activities in order to have a prod- uct ready for the consumer. Elbert van Donkersgoed executive director GTAAC LISA TALLYN Staff Writer