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Milk producers welcome governement announcement
Ascot Corner, November 14, 2022 – “We welcome the Government of Canada’s announcement of a compensation program for milk producers for CUSMA. With this announcement, the government is honoring its commitment. The announced program will compensate producers for a significant portion of their market losses while helping to stimulate investments to ensure milk processing capacity,” declared Daniel Gobeil, president of Producteurs de lait du Québec.
Remember that CUSMA provides additional access to the Canadian market for 100,000 tonnes of dairy products, the equivalent of approximately 3.9% of the market, each year, in perpetuity. In addition to the market shares ceded in perpetuity, the modifications made to dairy policy to comply with the elements of the Agreement as well as the capping of exports of skimmed milk powder and protein concentrates also generate significant additional costs. “We produce milk to meet the needs of Canadian consumers, but our sector has suffered concessions that have been made to allow an agreement to be reached that benefits other sectors of the economy. It was therefore necessary to compensate producers in a fair and equitable manner,” declared Daniel Gobeil, president of the Producers of Milk of Quebec.
« The compensation will be spent and reinvested here, for the benefit of our economy, our autonomy and our food security. Faced with the difficult economic situation that awaits the Canadian economy in the coming months, dairy farms can play a crucial role in all regions. This announcement will help the dairy sector maintain its major contribution to the Canadian economy, despite the losses that will result from the three agreements. Our dairy farms are not relocating. The aid granted by the government will therefore be spent and reinvested in the Canadian economy, », concluded Mr. Gobeil.
About Les Producteurs de lait du Québec
About Les Producteurs de lait du Québec
Les Producteurs de lait du Québec, affiliated with the UPA, represents Quebec’s 4,087 dairy farms, which deliver roughly 3.60 billion litres of milk, for a total of over $3.61 billion in farm revenues. Milk production and processing create around 66,000 direct, indirect and induced jobs in Quebec and contribute as much as $6.1 billion to the gross domestic product. Ultimately, they generate over $1 billion in tax revenues. The dairy sector’s impacts are critical because they play a role in land occupancy and maintenance of the social fabric across the province. Through its sponsorship and milk donation program, Les Producteurs de lait du Québec not only supports key events in Quebec society, but also helps eliminate hunger and ensure food security. Because they care about sustainable development in their sector, dairy producers invested $649 million in 2025 in machinery, equipment and buildings, specifically to improve their practices and the comfort of their animals.
For more information, visit our website at www.lait.org or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.
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François Dumontier
Director – Communications, Public Affairs and Union
Les Producteurs de lait du Québec
Office : (438) 315-9129
Cell : (514) 713-0530
[email protected]