Perdue Address Canada’s Dairy Issue

The topic of Canada's Class 7 milk pricing program came up during a news conference with Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue during last week’s NAFB Convention last week in Kansas City, MO.  Perdue said the new program is using supply management with a quota.

“It’s using a supply management system with quota and very high prices for their consumers to let them over produce and then push the solids off on the global market and that’s just not right and we will challenge them on that.”

Perdue added he doesn’t expect Canada to end its supply management program, but changes need to take place.

"I told the Minister MacAully there, I said I don’t necessarily need for you to remove your supply management system but, if you’re going to have one, manage the supply, so it doesn’t depress world supply, solids not only impacting us but many other countries.”

Perdue says the U.S. will continue to press Canada to end the Class 7 pricing system as part of the NAFTA re-negotiations.

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