This photo I took the other day, and the new “NAFTA” agreement made me think about the Canadian Dairy system. It is different than what happens in the so called “free enterprise” US. In the US, dairy farmers can produce as much milk as they want, as the result of this system, US dairy farms always over-produce, ending up with more dairy products than they can sell--there is a world wide glut.
Then the US government comes to the aid of these farmers who can’t sell their products and “buys” it to subsidize the farmers. One hundred millions gallons of milk were dumped on the fields, and the US government bought 20 million dollars worth of cheddar cheese so the farmers could make a living.
Canada limits the number of dairy farmers and how much they can produce. This does mean that Canadians do have to pay more for dairy products, but there isn’t all the waste or government subsidizes, like is found in the US system. In Canada, dairy farmers can make a decent living without bailouts from the government, or could in the past.
Well the state of Wisconsin had all that dairy they couldn’t sell because of overproduction, and Canada, while taking some without tariffs, did have a tariff on amounts that went above the set quotas. Wisconsin (who produces more dairy than all of Canada combined) cried and cried, and so Trump, who needs the state for Republicans, started ranting about “unfair Canada” and yesterday Canada caved in to the trumped up economic blackmail.
Under the new USMCA (note America has to be first) the US can now send in more of its glut of dairy, and the Canadian government will now “compensate” the dairy farmers who go under. Bullying wins again.
You can view my paintings at: davidmarchant.ca
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