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Restaurant Industry Wants to "Free Your Milk" Lobbying Aggressively Against Supply Management.

Free Your Milk: Restaurant Industry Leaders Appeal to Dairy Commission for Action on Inflated Prices

Outdated supply management policies restrict growth of Canadian dairy market

OTTAWA, Nov. 22, 2011 /CNW/ - The Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association (CRFA) will appear before the Canadian Dairy Commission (CDC) today calling for relief from artificially inflated dairy prices.  More reasonable prices will allow restaurants to put more milk, cheese and other dairy products on their menus and help to reverse a trend of declining consumer demand for dairy products.

The CRFA will present to the CDC's three-person board of directors, which holds closed meetings to set the price of industrial milk, used to make cheese and other dairy products.

"Canadian restaurants buy over $2.7 billion worth of dairy products each year and we are concerned by the artificially high, government-fixed prices as set by the CDC," says CRFA President and CEO Garth Whyte. "Over the past decade, the price of industrial milk has been rising faster than inflation and faster than the cost of dairy production. Canadian consumers deserve a break."

Data from the CDC and Statistics Canada indicate that the price of industrial milk has increased almost 10 times faster than the cost of production since 1994.  Even during years where cost of production fell, the CDC did not pass on savings to Canadian dairy consumers.

"We need reasonable pricing if we are going to grow the dairy industry in Canada," says Whyte. "Our members tell us that dairy products are being priced right off the menu."

The CDC's closed-door pricing sessions follow the launch of CRFA's Free Your Milk campaign (www.freeyourmilk.ca), designed to draw attention to the 40-year-old supply management policies responsible for inflating the cost of dairy in Canada to double the international market average. The Free Your Milk campaign grew from consumer research commissioned by CRFA that found 70% of Canadians feel that keeping the cost of milk and dairy products down is very or somewhat important.

"We are encouraged that the government is finally starting to consider the real costs and the opportunity costs of our current dairy system when it comes to international trade and access to growing world markets," says Whyte. "While we look forward to a fair and transparent system in the future, today we are focused on a fair price for Canadian consumers and restaurant operators."

About the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association

The Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association (CRFA) is one of Canada's largest business associations, representing more than 30,000 members across the country in every sector of the vibrant foodservice industry, including restaurants, bars, cafeterias, coffee shops and contract and social caterers. Canada's $63-billion foodservice industry employs more than one million people in communities across the country. Through advocacy, research, member savings and industry events, we help our members grow and prosper.

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Permalink Reply by Joann on December 9, 2011 at 11:01am

Interesting article today.

http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/12/09/butter-shortage-in-norway-a...

Norway is experiencing a butter shortage.  The lowest price for butter is $13 (usd) for 250 grams.

That translates to $24.01 (Can.) for one pound of butter.

Permalink Reply by Joann on December 13, 2011 at 3:55am

There is a huge article today about the Restaurant and Foodservices Assoc. pitching the idea of dismantling the marketing system as it inflates consumer costs.

While the story details some of the factors of dairy costs, I have yet to read other dimensions of food costs related to this topic such as dairy "food waste".

Does the Restaurant and Foodservices Assoc. have a viable plan to reduce dairy "food waste" related to their industry to reduce the cost of their service to the public?  Does mismanagement of food at restaurants artificially inflate the cost of their business which is ultimately passed down to the consumer?  Can restaurants do a better job of managing food to reduce the amount going to waste?  Can restaurants save more from dairy waste reduction than if the price of dairy products were lowered?

If one reads the attached study, one will notice (1995) that nearly half the food waste at the retail level are dairy and fresh fruit products. 

The study goes on to state that 30% of dairy products is wasted at the foodservice and consumer level.   30%!!!!!!

How much money will be saved if dairy prices dropped 30% at the farm level?  pennies?

Now ask... how much money will be saved if 30% of the dairy products was NOT wasted... thrown out in the garbage bin or down the drain?  Waste that needs to be picked up, transported to landfill, disposed or if going down the drain.... the cost of treatment.

I can well imagine dairy food waste cost our society far more.

Will the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association please address those costs first?

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Permalink Reply by Greg Edwards on January 11, 2012 at 3:10pm

I had a look at thier website and videos.  They certainly have a lot of interesting facts, or at least things they are calling facts.   I wonder if we should instead be arguing the facts as they have put them forward?

 

 

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