Anita Mark, a former dairy farm owner, wrote a self-serving perspective on the regulated dairy industry in the Saanich News, June 13 edition. She maintains that both farmers and consumers have benefitted from Canada’s supply management system (which includes dairy, poultry and egg production).
The only ones benefitting from this state-mandated cartel are the 11,000 farmers who are making out like bandits within their monopoly. The most recernt figures I can find (2013) show that the average dairy farmer has a net worth of $2.7 million. Their prices are set by the Canadian Crown corporation, the Dairy Commission. The federal government slaps foreign imports with tariffs of up to 300 per cent. Consumers pay about $450 dollars extra per year, which is dispropottionately paid by the poorest familes.
Several countries around the world have deregulated their supply management systems, e.g. Australis, New Zealand, France, Germany, Belgium, Ireland and Iceland.
Canada should stop wrapping itself in the free trade, holier than thou flag. We don’t even have free trade inter-provincially. Let’s stop trumpetting how much we dislike America-first trade demands and look at the protectionist policies right here in our backyard.
John Billett
Saanich