OTTAWA--Canadian farmers are struggling with near-record low prices and many face bankruptcy unless the current crisis is adequately addressed by the federal and provincial governments. But governments are mistakenly blaming Canadian farmers' plight on the domestic agricultural subsidies supplied to farmers in other countries, primarily in Europe. They are ignoring the real cause of the crisis...
Issue(s): Agriculture, Corporations and corporate power
April 25, 2001
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1292 KB PDF | 41 pages
1292 KB PDF | 41 pages
About this Publication
Canadian farmers are struggling with near-record low prices and many face bankruptcy unless the current crisis is adequately addressed by the federal and provincial governments. The real cause of this crisis is the enormous imbalance in market power and income between the big agribusiness corporations and the family-owned farms, not the domestic agricultural subsidies supplied to farmers in other countries. This study finds that the market is failing to return a fair and adequate share of the consumer dollar to farmers. And it is failing to allocate to farmers a reasonable return on labour, management and equity from our agri-food system's huge revenue stream. This study is not just of interest to farmers and economists or to anyone hoping to learn more about what is happening in agriculture, but also to the rest of us who buy, eat, and enjoy food.
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