Surveys in 1970 Quantity Samples 



Non-Resident Angling 16,512 



Resident Angling 17,113 



Non-Resident Deer 3,445 



Non-Resident Moose 7,242 



Resident Deer 9,541 



Farmer's Deer 523 



Resident Moose 13,226 



Small Came Survey 13,394 



Even though computers are utilized in the surveys, several 

 clerks are required to edit and code licences and question- 

 naires. Some 4,000 man-hours were spent in the operation 

 of these surveys. 



SEIZURES AND CONVICTIONS 



The Seizures and Convictions Unit recorded 5,275 offences 

 with 4,402 convictions registered. The remainder were with- 

 drawn, unknown, dismissed or are incomplete to date. This 

 is again the highest number of offences on record for any 

 single year. The annual increases experienced since 1962 are 

 probably the result of increasing numbers of hunters and 

 anglers and are following parallel courses even though law 

 enforcement staffs have not been increased substantially. 



FUR FARMING 



For the second consecutive year, the December sales of the 

 Canadian ranch mink pelt market opened with price de- 

 clines for all types of mink. These declines ranged from 10 

 to 30 per cent with an over-all average of 15 per cent as 

 compared with the December, 1969, sales. 



About 70 per cent of the V4-million pelts offered in the 

 initial sales were sold despite the fact that the prices received 

 in many cases were lower than production costs. 



The January sales showed a general improvement with 

 price increases of 10 per cent over the December sales, and 

 good clearances were recorded. While the sales were well 

 attended by domestic and foreign buyers and competition 

 was good, a general price resistance was evident. By the 

 end of February, however, 90 per cent of the Canadian 

 ranch mink crop was sold. While further improvement in 

 price was noted during the remainder of the season, these 

 increases had little affect on the poor price average realized 

 for the bulk of the 1970 mink crop. 



The low prices paid resulted in a wide variety of mink 

 garments being offered at the lowest prices in many years. 

 Many retail customers, not previously interested in mink, 

 were attracted by the low prices, and large quantities of 

 pelts were consumed but at prices which would not permit 

 the mink producer an adequate profit. 



As a result of the low prices received during the past few 

 years and particularly in the 1969-70 and 1970-1 seasons, 

 the number of mink ranchers discontinuing business has 

 increased. In Ontario, some 69 ranches, or 19.6 per cent of 

 those operating in 1970, will not be operating in 1971. 

 However, the contraction the industry has suffered in other 

 provinces and in the United States runs as high as 30 per 

 cent. It is estimated that this will result in a decrease in 

 world production of four and a half to five million mink 

 pelts. 



With this sizeable decrease in world production and the 

 anticipated upward swing in the economy of the United 

 States and Canada, the prospects of a more buoyant mink 

 market in the next selling season look bright. 



A notable casualty of the poor mink prices of the last few 

 years was the New York Auction Company of New York and 

 it's Canadian subsidary, Canadian Fur Auction Sales Com- 

 pany, located in Montreal. Both discontinued business in 

 1970. This reduction of the fur auction segment of the in- 

 dustry may have hidden benefits to the Canadian fur trade 

 in that the fur crop will of necessity be offered in fewer 

 outlets and therefore in larger quantities — a feature which 

 interests fur buyers. 



U.S. rancher organizations were again unsuccessful in 

 their bid to obtain quotas on the importation of mink pelts 

 into the United States market. Some 44 bills, which would 

 establish quotas and restrictions in varying degrees, were 

 lost with the termination of the sitting of the Congress. They 

 could, however, be re-introduced to the next Congress. 



With a view to stemming the number of pelt-outs and 

 make it possible for mink ranchers to continue in business, 

 the Government of the Province of Alberta launched a pro- 

 gram of guaranteeing loans for the fur farmers of that 

 Province to provide the necessary operating capital. Similar 

 programs are under consideration in some of the other 

 provinces. 



In the present economic squeeze where large ranches 

 are pelting out, there is the real possibility of having top- 

 quality breeding stock, that took years to develop, pelted 

 and its potential lost to the industry. Precautions in this area 

 should be taken by the industry to ensure that Canada's 

 prestigious position for producing the finest quality mink 

 will not be weakened or indeed lost. 



The production of mink on Ontario ranches in 1970 was 

 inconsistent. Some ranchers reported good to better than 

 average production, whilst others reported less than average 

 to poor production with no apparent cause for either varia- 

 tion. From information obtained from the Fur Farmer's 

 Reports covering 1970, the Ontario production per female 



19 



