Dairy Farmers of Ontario have withdrawn promotional funding from the national organization.
Citing a lack of accountability from Dairy Farmers of Canada, the Ontario organization served notice earlier this year that it would send no further funds for marketing and promotion as of Jan. 1, 2018.
That could leave a $44 million gap in the national organization’s budget of about $80 million.
“We have lost confidence in DFC’s ability to maintain its accountability and transparency to us,” said Graham Lloyd, manager of the Ontario organization.
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Ontario producers have asked for more information on how their check-off money is used to target sustainable measured growth, as well as spending accountability for nutrition programs, advertising or additional promotions, he said.
The two groups have been attempting to create a memorandum of understanding on promotions and marketing since 2014.
Ontario has three members on the national board of directors and expects the organization to remain a strong lobbyist and voice for policy making, said Lloyd. The levy is $1.50 per hectolitre of milk. Ontario has 3,800 dairy farmers who produced almost three billion litres of milk last year.
Ontario has set up a committee to identify how the provincial money could be spent.
barbara.duckworth@producer.com
