"We had no other choice," said John Newman, a member of the current eight-member executive. Over the years, the OCA has had to fend off the dissident voices of feedlot operators, dealers and packers. And while packers and dealers would be excluded from the board, feedlot operators would have a bigger say.

Instead of the eight-member executive, the OCA is recommending a 12-member board, which would include three membersfrom the feedlot sector, three from the cow-calf sector and one from backgrounders. The rest of the board would be made up of regional representatives and members at large.

The three-year transitional period would begin with the various sectors appointing their directors. The rest will be elected by the existing 49-person advisory council elected by the counties. At the end of the transitional period all would be elected at the annual general meeting.

If the proposal goes forward, the process will become very politicized, says Newman. "It won’t be boring. It’ll be a slap on the back and kiss the baby." Maybe hospitality suites. He supports many of the recommendations, but by February 23, Ontario’s 49 counties have to realize they are not losing their voices. Or the resolution won’t pass.

The current executive acts like a board, he told Farmers Forum, but doesn’t have the authority of a board. Smaller fiscal decisions that have to be made day by day sometimes have to wait four months before they are ratified.

The registration process will be a little more complex this year. Producers at the annual meeting will register by locale and according to the segment of the industry which represents their interests – cow-calf, feedlot or backgrounder. Both the southern and eastern regions will elect a member, while the northern region will have one representative.

Newman said the general consensus is that dealers and packers be excluded from board. Instead, an arm’s length council would be formed in which those groups would have influence with the cattlemen’s organization. If these groups had a voice on the new directors’ board, they would have a right, says Newman. That right could conflict with those of beef producers. "This is an organization for beef producers only," he said.

Even so, the ability to harmonize won’t be easy. The feedlot association has been trying to bludgeon the OCA into submission these past few years, asking for more money and more authority. At the same time, cow-calf operators in the east have been satisfied with the way the OCA has been run. While concessions have been made, neither group will get its way.