ADL gets federal funds for upgrades on same day U.S. president slams dairy supply management

Stephen Brun · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 07, 2025 1:59 PM EST | Last Updated: 8 minutes ago

The national authorities is backing upgrades astatine P.E.I.'s largest dairy processor astatine a clip erstwhile the Canadian industry's proviso absorption strategy is nether unit from the Trump medication successful the U.S.

Ottawa is kicking successful wealth for fractional of a $24-million task to adhd much automation and ratio instrumentality astatine Summerside-based Amalgamated Dairies Limited.  

President Donald Trump's commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, has said helium wants to spot much U.S. dairy exported to Canada, saying this state treats American dairy farmers "horribly" by restricting specified cross-border sales. Trump himself doubled down connected that rhetoric Friday afternoon, threatening reciprocal tariffs and saying: "We whitethorn bash it arsenic aboriginal arsenic today." 

Chad Mann, ADL's CEO, said the company's upgrade has been successful the works for implicit 2 years, and has thing to bash with what's being said southbound of the border. Even so, helium said ADL is acceptable for an uncertain future.  

"No substance what happens successful this precise uncertain environment… we person to expect alteration is coming," Mann said. 

"We person to beryllium much competitive, we person to beryllium much productive, and this task is allowing america to bash that." 

For decades, the Canadian dairy manufacture has been regulated by a proviso absorption system, a nationalist model that controls the proviso of dairy, poultry and eggs done production, import and pricing measures meant to make stability.

The strategy ensures determination isn't an oversupply of products, which keeps prices to consumers stable. 

Over the years, the U.S. has taken contented with the proviso absorption system, truthful the latest musings from the Trump medication are thing new. 

But with a president who's launched a commercialized warfare successful the past 2 months and has expressed a tendency to annex Canada, it's hard to spot the threats against the dairy manufacture arsenic idle ones. 

WATCH | How Canada's dairy proviso absorption strategy works — and wherefore Trump hates it:

Mann sees it differently, saying helium doesn't "put a batch of banal successful that rhetoric...

"If idiosyncratic tells maine astatine immoderate constituent successful clip that our dairy producers present successful P.E.I. oregon successful Canada each of a abrupt don't person entree to our ain home marketplace… that would beryllium problematic," helium said. 

"Let's look it, the rhetoric coming retired of the U.S. has got thing to bash with dairy. It's a distraction, it's a talking point, it's a dependable bite." 

'Supply absorption is sacred'

Bobby Morrissey, the Liberal MP for P.E.I.'s Egmont riding, agreed that the timing of the national backing announcement for ADL was coincidental with the speech coming from the Trump administration. 

He said, however, that it does amusement the request to enactment Canada's dairy industry. 

"The satellite is changing, truthful that makes it adjacent much important to enactment with a institution similar ADL to guarantee it has a competitory footprint," Morrissey said. 

"Supply absorption successful Canada has served this state and it has served the superior producers precise well. Our authorities is precise committed to protecting proviso management."

Michael MacDonald, a dairy husbandman successful Souris and the president of ADL's board, said the manufacture has been dealing with unit from U.S. governments for 30 years due to the fact that Canada's proviso absorption strategy is the "envy" of the world.

He said the strategy ensures a accordant merchandise connected store shelves and keeps beverage and food prices from chaotic fluctuations — and a disruption to that would wounded producers and customers alike. 

"You'd spot a immense simplification successful the occurrence of our operations, and the viability. Do we truly privation to spot beverage coming from 10,000-cow dairies successful California oregon from Michigan? We privation to cognize that our merchandise is harmless and steadfast and produced locally," MacDonald said. 

"[It's] bully to cognize that proviso absorption is ineffable to our authorities that we person astatine the existent time, and that they're consenting to put successful the occurrence of the Canadian dairy industry."