Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Egg quota exchange frozen

Egg farmers in Ontario are facing the same situation as dairy farmers after the egg board took over quota transfers.

There's not enough quota for sale to meet demand.

In fact, there's so little on offer that newcomers who otherwise qualify for the new entrant program can't buy the required amount of quota to get started.

They can borrow quota from the board, provided they can buy enough to qualify.

The board has waived the purchase requirement for two newcomers who otherwise qualified for the most recent annual allotment.

The new entrant program is under suspension for this year because it's up for the scheduled five-year review.

The situation of not enough quota on offer through a board-run exchange program is similar for dairy farmers, but there it's further hindered by a price cap.

It's a major challenge for supply-management marketing boards: too many rules, regulations and restrictions leaving little room for innovation and initiative.