Farmscape for March 4, 2026

A just released Independent Agri-Food Policy Note looks at supply management and the renegotiation of the Canada United States Mexico Agreement.
Milk, eggs, chicken, turkey and, in most provinces, hatching eggs are produced and marketed in Canada through supply management.
An Agri-Food Economic Systems Independent Agri-Food Policy Note examines the expected discussions on supply management as we approach the CUSMA renegotiation.
Research Lead Dr. Al Mussell observes, in terms of Canada U.S. trade, dairy has been one of the longest standing irritants between the two countries.

Quote-Dr. Al Mussell-Agri-Food Economic Systems:
It's just as simple as, the U.S. has an export oriented dairy industry.
Canada's is supply managed which means it's oriented toward supplying the domestic market and the limitations placed on imports in that regard have been a trade irritant with the U.S.
I think it's beholding on us to try to avoid situations like this.
We seem to have resolved this matter now but, the position we had between canola and electric vehicles, how did that ever come about?
What on earth does canola have to do with electric vehicles.
We know what it does and our relationship with China set that up.
Do we want to allow the U.S. to set different products against one another?
No, we don't but I think the best antidote to that is to understand ag marketing systems and what we're trying to accomplish through them.
We have a different system for marketing hogs and pork than we do for milk and dairy products and I think the best thing we can do is to understand the economics  the rationale and the outcomes of different systems and work with it from that perspective.

The Agri-Food Economic Systems Independent Agri-Food Policy Note can be accessed at agrifoodecon.ca.
For more visit Farmscape.Ca.
Bruce Cochrane.

       *Farmscape is produced on behalf of North America’s pork producers