The Conservative government’s obsession with ending the Canadian Wheat Board’s single desk selling monopoly is not a precedent for dismantling supply management’s single desk monopolies, federal agriculture minister Chuck Strahl insisted last week.
During an Oct. 31 appearance before the House of Commons agriculture committee, Strahl promoted the government’s determination to dismantle the CWB monopoly but asserted it has nothing to do with dairy and poultry marketing boards.
Nova Scotia Liberal Robert Thibault said farmers in his area are uneasy despite the assurances.
Prime minister Stephen Harper has a record of opposition to marketing boards that set prices based on production costs, the Liberal MP said. As head of the right wing National Citizens’ Coalition before he became Conservative leader, Harper was contemptuous of price-setting marketing boards.
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Strahl insisted Harper has changed his stripes. Support for supply management was one of the Conservative party’s three main agricultural commitments during the last election campaign.
“We believe that the system has worked for Canada,” he said.
“We have supported it. The prime minister has supported it both on the stump during the campaign and ever since. I can tell you he does it publicly, privately, and I did it in Geneva. I’ve done it at every possible occasion. We believe that the supply managed system is here to stay and we want to make sure it’s a healthy and viable system moving forward.”
Thibault said he was satisfied.
“I’m very pleased to hear that.”
Later, Ontario Conservative MP Larry Miller suggested the difference between the wheat board and supply management is measured in farmer support.
“The wheat selling mechanism through the wheat board is very split; it’s divisive across the country, whether it’s 55-45 or 50-50, whatever, very divisive, where it’s 100 percent united in the supply managed sectors.”
Convincing supply management producers that an end to the wheat board monopoly is not a precursor to an end to other farmer monopoly marketing boards remains a political problem for the Conservatives.
In the House of Commons, all opposition parties are warning farmers in Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada that an end to the CWB monopoly is a way station to the end of all farmer marketing monopolies.
Conservatives insist there is no comparison because they see supply management as a voluntary system, although for farmers who are part of the dairy, poultry or egg business, it is compulsory.
