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| Geri Kamenz |
Lawyer Donald Good has written a blistering letter to Geri
Kamenz, chairman of the Ontario Farm Products Marketing Commission, accusing
the commission staff of helping the Egg Farmers of Ontario EFO) marketing board
prepare a defence against the petition he filed on behalf of Svante Lind of Verified Eggs.
“To have allowed the General Manager (Harry Pelissero) and
Counsel (Geoffrey Spurr) for EFO to work together with senior staff of the
Commission to build the EFO defence creates a very significant conflict of
interest.
“There are other emails which make it appear that Commission
staff are working very closely with EFO to protect EFO's position against the
allegations in the Petition, including one where Mr. Pelissero is pleased with
your response,” Good has written to Kamenz.
The petition is one that Good filed in January, 2011, asking
the commission to launch a public inquiry into the egg industry.
Lind has sued the egg board, L.H. Gray and Son Ltd. and
Burnbrae Farms, accusing them of conspiracy to drive him out of the egg-grading
business. He has, in fact, subsequently sold Best Choice Eggs.
Good notes in his letter that Kamenz led him to believe as
recently as this August that the commission has yet to make a decision about
launching the inquiry and/or investigations requested in his petition of
January, 2011.
He notes that the recent release of documents through the
Freedom of Information system reveals that the commission in fact decided in
April of 2011 that it will not hold either a public inquiry or an investigation
into allegations Norman Bourdeau filed with the commission.
Good also wrote that “EFO has an extreme bias in presenting
and building its best defence to the allegations of wrongdoing and the
Commission has not even asked the Petitioner (Lind) for its evidence to support
the allegations.”
Kamenz has declined repeated requests from Good to meet with
the commission to discuss the allegations and evidence.
Good wrapped up his letter to Kamenz, writing “the Farm
Products Marketing Act is farmer protection legislation.
“I trust that as a former president of Ontario's premier
farm organization (the Ontario Federation of Agriculture) representing the well
being of farmers, farmer protection is still your major concern.”
Frankly, I can't see how the provincial government can allow Kamenz to continue.
