Supply Management

[15444]

I don't know how many are following this, but it's been my favorite news story for a number of months now. This is just one article I read tonight. Definitely will be a game changer. I know when I go take my garbage to the local dump, 3/4 of the jugs kicking around are $3.00 American gallon milk jugs, as opposed to $5-$6 gallon milk on this side.

http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/2012/06/21/john-ivison-trans-pacific-partnership-and-low-political-costs-mean-supply-managements-days-are-numbered/

Honestly, if the dairy farm #'s are correct in the article, I welcome the end of supply management. It obviously hasn't kept farms small and profitable.

[kato]

If we had the power to set beef prices according to our costs, everyone would complain that beef cost too much.

Thing is, we don't have that power.

Therefore we take whatever bits and odds and ends those above us decide it will take to keep us from walking. And trust me on this, it's not one cent more than what it takes to make us quit.

The fact that the supply managed commodities have some control over what they receive for their products is like a burr under the saddle of those who wish they could control them like they control us, and keep the profits for themselves.

If those farmers have found a way to get together and have some control over what they get for their products, I say "Good for them". They're way ahead of us. We prefer to fool ourselves into thinking we are living in a world where anybody gives a rat's a^& whether we make enough to survive and get ahead.

We should be supporting them, not spending our energy trying to bring down other Canadian farmers in the misguided notion that their loss will be our gain. Because there loss will not be our gain. That's a myth that's being fed to us, just like the myth of Free Trade.

For every cheap gallon of milk in the U.S. there's a broke dairy farmer.

[ASRG]

What will we gain?
Will suddenly everything drop in price? TPP isn't for little guys like you and me......it is for big multinational corporations.
You won't get anymore for your bushel of wheat or your steer calf. You won't pay any less for your new shiny cell phone.You will be drinking milk with BST or lead or who the hell knows what else......and it will probably still cost about the same!
It always amazes me when we all seem to buy into the idea that we'll all be happy with a race to the bottom?
People who like the idea of these so called free trade deals should be lobbying hard to get that beef in from South America? After all why shouldn't our consumers have cheap beef products, as well as cheap milk?

[burnt]

ASRG hit the nail on the nail. Well one of the many nails . . .

The ever-whining consumers think that the end of supply management will mean cheap9er) milk. They are wrong.

Look at what happened to the retail price of beef when the value of a butcher steer dropped by half or more after the discovery of BSE.

It may be unkind and un-Christian, but there are times when I would like to see consumers go without food for a while to reestablish this country's badly screwed up sense of values once again.

They have no idea how good they have it.

Andrew Coyne has a substantial fluff piece on the topic in the Post as well. They are all just out to score cheap brownie points with the consuming public.

[grassfarmer]

Check out the "Pacific Trade Alliance" post over on
the commodity forum, we already had this discussion
and I can't be bothered retyping my opinions on it
over again.

[kato]

I read the thread. I don't often look in there, but boy, that's nasty.

As beef producers, we've seen the divide and conquer strategy used enough times to understand what's going on. It ticks me off to see how we're being pressured to turn on each other yet again.

Somebody wants to make some money, and they'll use whatever it takes to get at it, including having one Canadian farmer turn on another.

And some people just fall for the line. Over and over again. Getting rid of SM isn't going to make any of us any more money. It's just going to allow some people to take what the dairy guys have, and knock them down to our level.

[perfecho]

I don’t believe, generally, it’s the consumer demanding the dropping of supply management, it is multi nationals lobbying.
Just a while ago, Ritz announced that it is acceptable to transport a dead animal and have it processed under veterinary care. This was a great thing for farmers....BS....the people it would be of most value to are Cargill and Nillssons. Our political system is no longer what’s best for the people….it is what is best for a few people of power!

[ASRG]

Supply management makes the consumer pay. In the USA the taxpayer gets to pick up the tab!
In New Zealand the retail price for milk is higher than in Canada (google it) while the price paid to the NZ farmer is less than the price the SM dairy farmer in Canda gets!
You think you're going to get cheaper milk, butter, eggs under this deal?
You might......until the American taxpayer gets sick of paying the subsidy for you!
Before we all jump on the "free trade" band wagon......let's pause and consider "just who is going to benifit here"? .....a hint....it sure as hell won't be you! The fact is you'll probably be paying considerably more for everything you buy.....and getting considerably less for everything you sell!
Does anyone realize China can produce a solar panel that is four times as efficient as anything in North America...at 30% of the price? We could all get off the grid AND have a check coming in for several $ hundred, every month! So why isn't that happening.......because our wonderful government has a 276% import duty on them......to protect our coal fired power plant industry (so much for saving the planet!)!
Do you honestly think anything will change with a phony "free trade deal"?

[kato]

Agree Agree Agree!!!!!

[ag-boy]

Reading latest news from Harper while he was in Mexico about free trade .
yes there is no fair free trade with Amerika we move most of our beef there and some hogs .
Canada will not take milk, cheese, butter, or chicken from there usa
S-M has controle of price ,inport,and export. quota price got to high and controle there fore we the consumer pay near six dollar for milk
Great falls Montana las week 3.80 all over
Same with chicken mutch less across the border.
Fair trade and no quota is the way to go yes our P-C going towards of that
We saw what happend with the WHEAT-board , monopoly
no body can start milken or go in chicken to bye that piece of paper called qouta !!!! we can not compete with them S-M cost plus and use it as a expence write off .
think about this ,it may take a few years

[Horse]

Do you realy feel it is right to have the price of quota built into the price of milk. Who sets the price of quota the milk producer does and why , to get the price as high as possible . The quota was handed out for free originaly I know because I was a tit puller for a good many yrs. There was app 15 producers in our area mnilking 25 to 40 cows and all making a good living then came the greedys and away it all went for shit. Now thete isnt a milk barn for at least 25 mi and 150 is probaply small in no of cows milked.

[ASRG]

Personally I'm old enough to remember "pre-Supply Management" and what that meant? My Dad always kept some dairy cows (anywhere from 6-12) and sold cream. I think the best thing that ever happened was the day those "magpies" went down the road! I think my sisters would agree (we never owned a milking machine)!
The point here is: the government, in their infinite wisdom, decided this was the way to go, and allowed the industry to put a value on quota? Today quota is "real property", worth real money?
If the government, in their infinite wisdom, wants to eliminate or decrease the value of that "real property", they need to make that dairy farmer "whole"? Definition of "whole"- the farmer should not be out any money because his "real property" is rendered valueless by government decree or whim.
Pretty simple?

[ASRG]

Before we all get on the TPP bandwagon, we should do some research on just what it is? Who are the winners and who are the losers?

Do we realize that this so called "Trade deal" has been negotiated in secret and only in the last few days any details have been leaked? Do we realize this isn't so much about "free trade" and more about a secret deal for corporate rights and priveledges? Do we realize by signing this deal our government will be giving up it's financial and regulatory sovereignty to corporate interests?

The TPP is a blueprint for corporate governance of every aspect of your life. Don't take my word for it....do your own research.

[Happytrails]

Having a little trouble following ASRG. First he defends a system which limits the supply of food products by force of arms and then pans the TPP because it might increase government control. Confusing.

Myself I cannot support SM on principle so that is easy. As for the TPP the issues are more complex so I will have to pick a political party to trust. HT

[grassfarmer]

...and it's an awfully poor party to trust. A virtual
dictatorship that overrides democracy at every
opportunity in pursuit of furthering the agenda of
corporate dominance. People are starting to wake up
to the "Harper Government" though, maybe common
sense will prevail.

Saw this interesting comment the other day "SM is a
system that works, and is a model that the UN Special
Rapporteur on the Right to Food has recommended to
other countries as a way to ensure fairness and food
security within and between countries."