If Parliament agrees, Ontario dairy producer and former Dairy Farmers of Canada president John Core will be reappointed for a three-year term as chair of the Canadian Dairy Commission.
MPs likely will embrace the appointment when it goes before the House of Commons agriculture committee this autumn or winter for review.
Core has been chair of the CDC since 2002. It oversees the dairy supply management system in Canada, including the setting of annual dairy support prices for butter and skim milk powder.
Agriculture minister Andy Mitchell praised Core when he announced his reappointment.
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“His knowledge and leadership skills built up through many years of experience in the dairy sector have served him very well over the last three years,” the minister said.
The dairy farmers’ lobby will welcome the reappointment. Core has overseen hefty support price increases in the past three years as he pursues his commitment to ensure at least half of the country’s dairy farmers cover their costs of production through sales.
Processors, wholesalers and the restaurant sectors will not be as happy.
They complain that with former dairy farmer lobby presidents occupying two of the last three CDC chairs, the federal agency is too weighted to farmer interests at the expense of other players in the industry, including consumers.
Critics also have been calling for reform of the dairy commission, including activation of an advisory committee and a requirement that pricing decisions are more balanced between the needs of farmers and others.
Mitchell’s announcement gave no indication that it will be anything but business-as-usual at the CDC during the next three years.
