La Via Campesina: American Family Farmers Voice Support for Canada’s Supply Management System
Howdy,
From a dairy producer perspective, the Canadian system works far better than the U.S. system. The U.S. system works far better for the milk processors.
All the best,
John K. Hansen, President
Nebraska Farmers Union
john
(402) 476-8815 Office (402) 580-8815 Cell
1305 Plum Street, Lincoln, NE 68502
American Family Farmers Voice Support for Canada’s Supply Management System
Posted on8 August 2025
As the U.S. and Canada navigate uncertainty, unilateral tariff provocations, and the official review of the USMCA trade agreement—American family farmers are standing in solidarity with their Canadian counterparts.
The National Family Farm Coalition (NFFC) has issued a statement supporting Canada’s supply management system, calling it a model worth defending and emulating in the face of ongoing crises in the U.S. dairy sector.
Representing over 100,000 independent family farmers, ranchers, and fisherfolk through a nationwide alliance of 30 grassroots groups, the NFFC is urging the U.S. government to address its own systemic failures by implementing meaningful dairy policy reforms, including domestic production management and price stabilization.
“We are calling on our own government to address the U.S. dairy crisis through systemic policy reform and production management that respects and supports dairy farmers and working families on both sides of the border.”, the coalition demanded.
A Broken U.S. Dairy System
U.S. agricultural policy once embraced supply management strategies, dating back to the New Deal era, to ensure adequate food supplies and fair prices for small-scale producers. But over the past five decades, those protections have largely been dismantled—leaving family farmers vulnerable to market volatility and corporate consolidation.
The U.S. dairy industry has been particularly devastated. According to NFFC, in the 1970s, more than 648,000 family-scale dairies operated in the United States. Today, fewer than 25,000 remain—a staggering 95% decline. Since 2017 alone, the country has lost 40% of its dairy farms.
The family-farm coalition calls it the result of a deliberate shift toward export-oriented trade policies, falsely promoted as beneficial to U.S. dairy farmers. The coalition condemns this approach and warns against any efforts to dismantle Canada’s supply management system under the guise of “free trade.”
Learning from Canada
Instead of pushing U.S. dairy surplus into Canada’s smaller, well-regulated market, the NFFC argues that U.S. policymakers should look to Canada’s model of supply management—which balances production with demand, ensures fair prices for farmers, and stabilizes markets.
“We should revisit our own policy history and learn from Canada,” the coalition stated. “We must return to managing agricultural markets to ensure fair compensation for producers, affordable prices for consumers, and a sustainable food system for all.”
In this regard, the NFFC has crafted the Milk from Family Dairies Act (MDFA)—a legislative proposal aimed at restoring supply management and fair price floors in U.S. dairy policy. The organization also reaffirms its commitment to food sovereignty, where communities have the right to determine how their food is produced and distributed.