Alberta dairy farmers fire back at Trump

Alberta’s dairy farmers are defending Canada’s supply management system in the face of criticism from U.S. president Donald Trump.

In a statement issued Friday, Alberta Milk — the organization representing the province’s 521 dairy farmers — said its members will not “shy away or be bullied” from promoting Canadian milk, cheese, butter, yogurt, and the agricultural marketing system used to produce those products.

“Our marketing system works in our country and it’s not for other countries to determine what the best fit is for Canadians,” said chair Tom Kootstra, who owns and operates Stradow Farms near Ponoka. “Supply management has served our country very well.”

Earlier this week, before signing a “Buy American, Hire American” executive order, Trump specifically rebuked Canada for “unfair” dairy rules that affect people in Wisconsin, where he was giving his speech. The president’s comments have led many observers to speculate that dairy — and Canada’s system of supply management — could be a target as the U.S. considers a renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Under supply management, strict controls are set on the amount of dairy products produced domestically in Canada, and imports are limited with high tariffs. While critics have argued this system is unnecessarily protection-

It’s not for other countries to determine what the best fit is for Canadians.

ist and leads to inefficiencies and lack of choice in the market, Alberta Milk says the system helps keep prices stable and protects farmers by ensuring they only produce as much dairy as consumers need.

“American and world markets are oversaturated with milk,” Kootstra said. “There is no market for all the milk ... This leads to depressed prices and no market for the excess production — the loss of income, and markets will force some farmers out of business.”

A recent paper by the Montreal Economic Institute said that supply management in Canada’s dairy sector has led to inflated consumer prices for milk products that cost each Canadian an extra $258 a year.

But dairy farmers reject that claim. On its website, Alberta Milk says retail prices for dairy products in New Zealand — the most open and competitive dairy market in the world — are comparable to Canada’s, while deregulation of dairy in the U.K. and Australia actually caused retail prices to go up.