Disheartening news for the Canadian dairy industry today…
You may recall our repetitive posts about the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement negotiations 2.5 – 3 years ago. At the conclusion of those negotiations, our government gave up a rather hefty chunk of our dairy market. It was sobering news then, even with the promised renumeration package. When President Trump refused to ratify the trade agreement and pulled the USA out of the agreement altogether, we breathed a collective sigh of relief. The US accounted for 60% of the collective Gross Domestic Product of the countries involved in the trade agreement; it seemed unlikely that the deal would go any further. Still, Canada resumed negotiations with the remaining countries. These negotiations flew slightly under our radar what with the much louder rhetoric surrounding the NAFTA re-negotiations capturing most of our attention and worried speculation.
However, today I was shocked to read a press release from Dairy Farmers of Canada revealing that our government has agreed to give up the same amount of market access concessions as it had previously – when the USA was still a part of the trade deal! In other words, more foreign milk will flow into Canada tarriff free. Our Canadian supply managed system balances supply and demand, and so increased supply from foreign sources will result in our Canadian farmers being forced to decrease production and therefore farm revenue will also fall. Not a pretty picture!
Honestly, I’m upset. With the loss of the largest negotiator calling for increased access to our dairy market, our government should have worked harder to scale back the access granted in the first TPP agreement. Does our government not value the 221 000 jobs that depend on our dairy sector? Our government has reiterated their support for a strong and vibrant dairy industry. This doesn’t look like support to me. It looks more like they’re throwing our country’s hardworking farmers to the wolves.
What will this mean for our country’s dairy industry? Will the compensation package promised with the original TPP concessions still be on the table? Or will our farmers be forced to bear the brunt of yet another blow to one of the pillars integral to the stability of our industry? What will the future look like for our industry, our farm, our family? Will our aspiring little farmers ever realize their dream? If this market concession is any indication of the value our government places on our industry, I shudder to think what the NAFTA negotiations may hold for us. Sobering times, my friends.
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