Canada's Conservative Support Marketing Boards

OTTAWA - Nov 25/05 - SNS -- Canada's Conservative party offered surprising support to the country's marketing boards by joining in a vote which unanimously supported efforts to maintain those institutions in world trade talks.

The motion reads, "That, in the opinion of the House, the government should give its negotiators a mandate during the negotiations at the World Trade Organization so that, at the end of the current round of negotiations, Canada obtains results that ensure that the supply management sectors are subject to no reduction in over-quota tariffs and no increase in tariff quotas, and also ensure an agreement that strengthens the market access position of Canada's agricultural exporters so that all sectors can continue to provide producers with a fair and equitable income."

Passage of the motion was applauded by Canada's marketing boards. Laurent Souligny, Chairman of the Canadian Egg Marketing Agency (CEMA), said, "The unanimous passage of this motion is a clear demonstration of Canada's commitment to maintaining strong and effective supply management. It also gives clear direction to the Canadian negotiating team at the 6th WTO ministerial in Hong Kong next month."

David Fuller, Chairman of Chicken Farmers of Canada (CFC), added, "Canada already provides more access to imports than many other countries. We must maintain our tariffs on imports of dairy, poultry and egg products at their current levels in order to continue to predict the level of imports. This will ensure we can produce the right amount of milk, turkey, chicken and eggs in Canada to meet the needs of Canadian consumers across our country."

Jacques Laforge, President of Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC), agreed, adding that the majority of Canadians prefer to eat Canadian-produced food over food grown in other countries. "It is simply unfair to expect Canadian farmers to give up more of their domestic market to imports when other countries refuse to provide real access to their markets and dump their government-subsidized surpluses on the world," he stated.

"The unanimous support expressed by our Members of Parliament for supply management cannot be ignored by the WTO," said Brent Montgomery, Chair of the Canadian Turkey Marketing Agency (CTMA). "Our farmers will continue to meet with their MPs and their provincial governments over the next three to four months as the negotiations intensify."