Canadian think tank MEI looked at supply management and identified how much the system costs Canadians each year.
“Overall, supply management results in an additional cost to the average Canadian of $224 per year,” the organization said in a June 18 report.
MEI came to this figure by putting together a Canadian and American basket of groceries of milk, eggs, and chicken, and comparing the price difference between the two.
Canada established its dairy supply management system in 1972.
Through production quotas, pricing measures and import controls, the system is designed to balance domestic milk production with consumer demand.
But MEI says supply management “artificially raises” the prices of goods that fall under the system, which in turn creates challenges for families.
For this reason, MEI supports doing away with supply management.