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meats. municipal officials or industryâ€"to form con. crete ideas and let our voice be heard. “Sitting back and doing nothing is the worst possible thing the Women's Institute members can do.” We are a non political body but that doesn‘t mean we should not present our Views. I Referring to Adelaide Hoodless. she asked, “where would we be today if she had merely stayed home and raised her family?" Mrs. Bielish hadjust come from a meeting at the Adelaide Hoodless Homestead (a yearly event for the F.W.I.C. President), She con- Lluded by saying. “a president should not come to give .t rousing speech. but instead should become part of the group. and learn more about provincial units." .ireetings from government Ron McNeil, M.P.P.. Parliamentary Assistant to Hon. Bill Newman, Ontario Minister of Agriculture ind Food brought greetings on behalf ofthe Ministry wing“ “The Women‘s Institutes have had a long and mnorable record in Ontario. and you all have much to is proud of in the history of the movement." Rural intario would have been a very diflerent place with- till the dedicated women of the local W.l.‘s. Mr. McNeil spoke about two of the Ministry‘s pro- trams which are vital to the viability of Agriculture in lnlario that of Marketing Programs and Foodland tittario promotion. He appealed to the W.l. for support of Foodland. or only to pr0ve good things grow in Ontario but and things sell in Ontario. You would be surprised at he number of consumers that are unaware that Onr no is Canada's number one agricultural province. -nd yet know about New Zealand lamb. Florida orâ€" vngcjuice. B,C. apples, He pointed out the reason they now is because of the excellent promotion. Foodland‘s objectives are three fold. To increase onsttmer awareness. the importance of Agriculture .nd increase sales. Promotional assistance has been .ncn to eight marketing boards and four producers !~\0Clilll0n5. Foodland has advertised more than 50 vmducts in five months, which resulted in increased ales. Turkey sales. because of the Christmas dinner .intpuign. provided a 3 million pound increase over He previous December. A successful 4-week winter egctable campaign increased sales from 401200 per» cm. One canner reported a ten fold increase. proving it pays to advertise. TU prOVe this. the government commissioned a consumer research survey of urban people's attitudes toward the farming industry and its products. lnter- ‘ICWS were carried out among female heads of house holds of urbanites in communities of over [0.000 perâ€" “3115. The survey revealed Ontario food quality ranked high. consideration was given to Ontario products when purchasing: no one blamed the farmer for price increase. Marketing Boards 7 Mr. McNeil said Marketing Boards have been de: "fined l0 give the producers a stronger voice tn the marketplace. Many producers through thc Board‘s efâ€"' fort are able to make a decent living. Exports also increase the sale of our products. Five trade missions were sent to the US. resulting in $12 million worth of business in Ontario commodities. A mission to the Caribbean brought home something like $15 million. Of course. the other side of exports is imports. When it comes to imports. Ontario Agriculture is hurtâ€" ing. We import too much of the kind of product we can grow here. Because of negotiations with the Federal Govern~ ment. we hope some of our recommendations will be accepted. In today‘s world, trade is a complicated busi- ness requiring give and take among nations. Just one example tif we are successful around the negotiating table), would be an increase acreage of 500040.000 acres of tomatoes and a market could be found right here at home. The important thing to remember is this just doesn’t benefit farmers. There is a multiplier effect right through the economyâ€"jobsâ€"processingâ€"pack- aging#sales. etc. Director Miss Molly Mcthc. Home Economics Branch. thanked the delegates for their great support as lead- em or finding leaders for 4â€"H and senior programs. Women's Institutes provided 785. last year. [t is important that you continue to support the programs and encourage community ladies to attend. With reference to the Conference which includes secretaryâ€"treasurers. Miss McGhee felt so much reâ€" sponsibility rests on their shoulders. in fact it is often because of the secretary~treasurer that the organizaâ€" tion runs so smoothly. These are the groups of people who are charged With the responsibility of keeping ‘th- curate minutes, and can provide the opportunity for the meeting to move smoothly so there will be time for the program portion of the meeting. Members at large are really the backbone of the organization. this is the group that add strength and numbers and allow the W.[. to expand After attent'L ing the Conference. perhaps you Will not be hesitant to take office and change your status from memberâ€"ah large to an officer. Mrs. John Brown. Provincial PRO, spends the last hour at conference balancing the sales receipts.