To raise public awareness of the potential negative impact of the Manitoba government's plan to ban hog industry development in three regions of the province, Manitoba Pork Council has launched a multimedia campaign including billboards, newspaper ads and radio spots, which encourage people to visit "unfriendlymanitoba.ca" to access detailed information about Bill 17 and the hog industry in Manitoba.

Manitoba Pork Council chair Karl Kynoch says everyone has a vested interest in this issue.

Clip-Karl Kynoch-Manitoba Pork Council

This is a huge concern to both urban and rural due to the fact that there's about 17 thousand jobs associated with spin-off jobs and everything in the hog industry.

Once we start pushing producers out of business due to this moratorium that's going to result in a lot less jobs available to all Manitobans, whether it's inside the cities or whether it's out in the country.

Just for example, tire shops, feed mills, all these type of places will end up employing less people due to the reduction in the hogs.

We want the public to come out and speak in opposition to this bill.

There will be an opportunity to go and speak against Bill 17 at the legislative review and people need to get registered for that.

You need to register now and go in there and voice your opinion on this.

We're expecting that this bill is going to go to second reading here sometime in late May or early June so the opportunity to have the government withdraw this bill is going to happen over the next few weeks.

So it's very important that you get registered now and you be prepared to go in and speak.

We need the government to withdraw the bill and do the right thing.

Then we can move forward positively together like we have in the past and do what's best for the environment.

Kynoch notes support among other organizations, including the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce, Keystone Agricultural Producers and individual commodity groups for withdrawal of Bill 17 has been overwhelming.