Liberals pledge dairy-quota support, farm subsidies in tariff plan for agriculture

Liberal Leader Mark Carney speaks to a campaign rally in Winnipeg on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

OTTAWA — The federal Liberals are pledging to strengthen Canada’s agri-food sector and maintain the production quotas that have caused friction in trade talks with the U.S.

Liberal Leader Mark Carney said in a media statement that supply management won’t be part of any trade negotiations with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, who has long opposed Canada’s system of production quotas for dairy, poultry and eggs.

“Supply management is part of our economic sovereignty,” Carney said in a social media post. “When it comes to negotiations with President Trump, it’s off the table.”

The party says it has a plan “to protect farmers, ranchers, and agri-food workers” which involves cutting regulations and earmarking $200 million for domestic food processing and $20 million for marketing.

The Liberals say they also would make permanent the recent doubling of the payment cap to $6 million for AgriStability -- a program that works like crop insurance -- and would also boost cleantech subsidies.

They say they also would have the Canadian Food Inspection Agency implement “mutual recognition of food-safety standards with reliable trading partners,” with the aim of speeding up the adoption of new technology.

Carney was in Ottawa Wednesday with no scheduled campaign events, and focused instead on his duties as prime minister as Trump prepared to announce tariffs on multiple countries.

On Wednesday afternoon, Trump presented a lengthy list of tariffs various countries will face under his new measures but did not specify how Canada will be affected.

Farm groups have criticized federal supports in recent years, arguing the programs don’t always cover their needs or respond quickly enough to challenges faced by the agriculture sector.

The Trudeau government endorsed Bloc Quebecois legislation that would have instructed Canadian trade negotiators not to negotiate trade access to parts of the dairy sector -- legislation which drew widespread criticism from other agricultural sectors and trade experts. The legislation died in the Senate when Parliament was prorogued.

Nearly half of Canada’s dairy farms are located in Quebec.

Canada’s dairy quotas have emerged as flashpoints in trade talks with the U.S., the European Union and New Zealand. Proponents of the quotas argue the system provides stability for consumers and workers.

The Fruit and Vegetable Growers of Canada is calling for an emergency fund to compensate greenhouse operators hit by tariffs and “domestic price supports to prevent market collapse during harvest periods.” The group argues its sector has unique challenges due to “the perishability of products” and the format of supply chains.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 2, 2025.