Is it winter? Or is it the political and/or economic climate? I don’t know, but I’ve got the blues! With all due respect to people who choose to serve their fellow citizens, Canadian and Quebec politics are getting me down! As Gil Courtemanche wrote in Le Devoir, politics should be a dialogue between a citizen and his or her representative. Lévesque exemplified the type of politician who did not regard citizens as imbeciles, but rather as people to whom you owed an explanation so as to gain their following. In fact, this seems to be Obama’s approach.
Inversely, Canada and Quebec basically depend on professional politicians who believe that their loyalties lie in parliament. The citizens’ role is simply to elect them. With electoral campaigns that focus on images and impressions, rather than ideas. Experts analyze the political “game”, and the prevailing strategy is to avoid real issues, make convoluted statements and stay away from any major mishaps, which leaves citizens deeply disappointed and with a bitter aftertaste.
However, when the political class deigns to listen, we are occasionally treated to confusion as illustrated by the “Made in Canada” rule in which pickles produced thousands of kilometres away from Canada can be stamped with Made in Canada while jam made from strawberries picked right here on Île d’Orléans cannot gain approval for the Made in Canada stamp because more than 2% of the product is imported (sugar).
You’ve got to admit that combined with the daily dose of bad economic news, the Financière’s deficit and under-funded universities, there’s good reason for the blues!
It is with this in mind that I recently travelled to California, upon receiving an invitation from the Western United Dairymen, to discuss dairy policy. California’s dairy producers are struggling; one of the reasons being that the price of milk has dropped by more than 50% over the period of a few months. The previously high prices created an incentive to increase production, exceeding California’s processing capacity. Processors (private or cooperative) then set up a system penalizing farmers who delivere dairy volume over and above a historic basis (a quota of sorts). Now, prices are terrible, but volume is just as high. So it’s within this context that the Coop Working Together program is getting ready to slaughter some 51,000 dairy cows in the United States. One farmer summarized the situation quite well: “we’re learning how to coordinate, right now when prices are good we all increase our production, which collectively is suicidal. So we need to turn to drastic solutions, such as destroying our cows.” Congressman Cardoza had this to say “I am familiar with the uncertainty of your situation, but you must speak in a single voice so that I can help you in Washington.” The message could not be clearer, let’s not forget that California dairy producers are grouped into different organizations.
This trip left me wondering, Quebec is far from California’s farming heaven, forget all about those 8 to 11 alfalfa harvests per year and the incredible diversity of agriculture. Nonetheless, every producer I met talked about 1) their organizational problem (lack of a unified message) and 2) access to water. Needless to say that here in Quebec, we are well supplied with water and agricultural organizations, and furthermore, in terms of economics, we are better off than our American neighbours. Although the winter blues will eventually pass, and although I don’t know what the future will bring, we need to recognize that until we find politicians who can inspire us, we have farming advantages to help us develop and grow, all this in spite of our agriculture’s ‘nordicity.’
Professor Doyon
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Maurice Doyon is an associate professor and the Director for the Master’s Program in the department of Agricultural Economics and Consumer Sciences at the Université Laval. He is also a member of the Centre de recherche en économie agroalimentaire (CRÉA) with the same department, and an auxiliary professor with the University of Maine, has a Fellowship with CIRANO (interuniversity centre of research, liaison, and transfer of knowledge on the analysis of organizations) in Montreal and is an associate researcher with the Institute of Neutraceuticals and Functional Foods. Furthermore, he holds a Doctorate in Applied Economics from Cornell University as well as a Master’s degree from this same institution, Mr. Doyon has received more than fifteen grants and distinctions throughout his academic career.
* Cooperatives Working Together is a designed by dairy farmers and is a completely voluntary, producer-funded program aimed at balancing supply with demand and stabilizing milk prices.
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