by JIM ALGIE
The Conference Board of Canada expects to stay active in food policy even after completing publication today of its final Food Strategy document.
The completed strategy follows more than three years of research about the future of Canadian agriculture and food processing industries, and includes a controversial recommendation to end almost 50 years of milk supply-management.
An Ottawa-based, non-profit, think tank specializing in economic and social policy, the board unveiled its 62-page, Food Strategy, final report today at Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Publication coincides with the third of three annual, summit meetings held as part of the Conference Board’s food research process.
The strategy seeks “to stimulate change in food and the food system,” Board vice-president Michael Bloom says in an introduction, outlining what he describes in the report as “one of the mega issues facing our country.”
Financed partly by the federal government and major food processors, including Loblaw Companies Limited and Maple Leaf Foods, the strategy document outlines a path for dramatic expansion of Canadian food exports.
Now among the world’s top 20 food exporters, Canada could break the top five, Conference Board researchers argue, with adjustments in policy. The strategy includes plans for improved food safety and nutrition for Canadian food products with an emphasis on traceability systems and environmental protection. As well, there are provisions for better food distribution to rural and remote, northern communities and among low income Canadians.
Nothing about the final strategy document promises to raise as much fuss, however, as its recommendation that Canada should scrap supply management in milk. It already has.
A separate report published in early March by researchers in the board’s Centre for Food In Canada (CFIC) recommends phasing out supply management and reorienting Canada’s dairy sector toward expanding world markets for dehydrated skim milk powder, butter and cheese. The CFIC advertises major financial support from three, major, dairy processing firms, Nestle Canada Inc., Parmalat Canada Ltd. and Saputo.
Dairy Farmers of Canada Executive Director Richard Doyle in a recent Huffington Post article roundly criticized the Conference Board’s supply management report. He cited the report’s “fallacies” and “misleading assertions.”
Doyle describes the report as part of “a disturbing trend of think tanks offering what amounts to bad business advice.” He disputes Conference Board assertions that dropping supply management would lower dairy costs for consumers or allow Canadian farmers to compete fairly in world markets with major dairy exporting nations: New Zealand, Australia and the U.S. Board analysis “ignores the reality that farm and retail prices are not so directly linked,” and that “the world price is not what farmers elsewhere are paid all the time,” Doyle said.
This week’s food summit features speakers on a variety of topics covered in the Conference Board’s strategy document. Organizers expect 300 participants at advertised registration fees of $1,225.
Tuesday sessions include presentations on food safety, household food security and modernizing Canada’s food regulations. Wednesday sessions include one on the future of supply management. It features presentations by New Zealand High Commission trade head Sarah Ireland and by Sylvain Charlebois, associate dean research and graduate studies for the University of Guelph’s department of marketing and consumer studies. As well, there is a session on protecting agricultural land for food production.
Ontario Federation of Agriculture President Mark Wales and Global Fruit CEO Johannes Soer, whose company manages more than 2,800 acres of apple orchard land in Ontario, are to discuss managing the modern farm to achieve greater business success.
The summit wraps up, Wednesday, with discussion about implementation and tracking of the Canadian Food Strategy. In the strategy document, board officials announced the agency will seek to maintain food research projects through “The Canada Food Observatory.” The agency will seek to “monitor progress in the food sector,” “promote strategic actions,” and “raise awareness” through media contacts, future on-line initiatives and conferences, the statement says. BF
Comments
It is embarassing to be a farmer, and continually endure high-paid spinmeisters from DFO try to make anyone, especially those great many Canadian consumers who regularly go to the US to buy dairy products, believe there is no connection between 200% tariff barriers and prices paid by Canadian consumers of milk and dairy products.
Come on, Mr. Doyle, the Canadian wine and grape industry sang the same sad lament before NFTA, yet has done spectaculary well in the very environment you claim will ruin the dairy industry.
Given basic economic and business truths, and the post-NAFTA experience of our grape and wine industry, it's not too hard to conclude that the "fallacies", "mis-leading assertions", and "bad business advice" is all coming from the dairy industry.
Stephen Thompson, Clinton ON
Of course our Beef and Pork Industries have been such great free-trade ambassadors over the years.
Why do we want our Dairy and Chicken sectors to suffer the same fate as those other two?
Should be noted that Canada could also break the top 5 in World importers of food as well.
If your having a National Food Conference shouldn't that be brought up as well ?
Do the Canadian dairy have weak knees that theory have to be protected for a little bit of competition?
I believe there need to be more farmers to feed the world. Now it isn't possible to start up a dairy operation in Canada without a big inheritance?
Most younger farmers like myself (35) would be ready to start milking cows tomorrow if the market opened up. if beef farmers have been able to keep our heads above water in the beef business since 2002(BSE) then i am more then confident that i could milk cows and sell milk at the world price and make a living the honest way with out the government subsidies the same way I've been able to in the beef business. I would milk Simmental cows and market my bulls into the beef sector and i am positive i could milk 50 cows and make a good living just like i can in the beef business, I grow 100% of all my feed and my over head is very low and it makes for a viable farm operation, I dont need to get rich, i am happy making a fair living.
Sean McGivern
Its interesting to read the reasons for and against SM. We read about saving the family farms in Ontario, and then read about the debate between the 2 dairy farmers re maintaining present quota policy or changing it to allow the ' LARGER'' operations to expand by buying up smaller ones with higher and higher quota dollars. Does this not prove that having larger operations with no quotas at all would lead to lower consumer prices? If truth be known we only need half the present number of dairy farms to supply our market.
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