WTO Draft Could End Supply-Management

TOKYO - Feb 17/03 - SNS -- Dairy Farmers of Canada today rejected Chairman Harbinson's draft paper on agriculture negotiations at the World Trade Organization (WTO). The group suggests while they are consistent with the U.S. policy of freeing farmers in Canada from the tyranny of marketing boards, they constitute unwelcome interference in national debates.

"If these proposals were implemented in the final WTO agreement on agriculture, they would spell the end of supply management," said Leo Bertoia, President of Dairy Farmers of Canada.

"Canada's supply management is based on three pillars: effective border measures, reasonable producer returns and producer production discipline," said Bertoia. "The drastic proposals outlined in this WTO text would fatally undermine all of those pillars."

"Canada's balanced position on agricultural trade takes the interests of all Canadian farmers into account and allows for the continuation of supply management; but that balance is not reflected in the draft WTO proposals," continued Bertoia. "These proposals are totally unacceptable to Canada's milk producers."

The subscriber version of the article is available by Clicking here