On the one hand, we often hear that consumers are becoming more food aware and want to know where their table originates. From that basic premise, the 100-mile Diet came into existence with the basic premise of accessing food from producers close to home.
By extrapolation, it would stand to reason food from producers in your own province /country would be a wiser choice than product imported from another country where the consumer has no connection. Of course, there is an economic factor to it too. Take beef as an example. A calf sold in the fall to an American feedlot, where it is grown on American-sourced grain, butchered, processed stateside, then shipped back to Canadian consumers, has a less economic impact in Canada than if it were grown and processed in Canada. There are taxes on facilities, wages to be earned and dollars flowing through the Canadian economy.
The economic aspect is a big element in promoting buying Canadian, looking for a Maple Leaf on the label to ensure Canadian jobs were part of the production. It’s not a unique idea. The idea of Country of origin labelling (COOL) has been a trade issue with the United States over the last decade or two. Supply management addresses a lot of the concepts of supporting Canadian. The idea is a system that balances consumer demands with production levels on the farm to avoid gluts and surpluses. You can argue if the dairy and poultry systems in Canada have done that effectively, but the premise is sound enough.
At the same time, supply management is supposed to ensure producers have a reasonable return based on their cost-of-production. Some will suggest it falls short on that side of things for producers. Others will point out consumers pay more than they would in a completely unregulated system, which is likely true. But, there is the rub of the situation. It can be easy to suggest buying locally and on a broader scale supporting Canadian, but at what cost to consumers? How does a consumer balance knowing their food sources and supporting Canadian jobs against the realities of their financial budgets?
That is a question that seems at the very heart of any debate regarding supply management’s merits.
- Calvin Daniels
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Disclaimer: opinions expressed are those of the writer.