Dairy Farmers Say Industry Will Suffer From CUSMA Implementation

Jul 09, 2020

Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC) is reminding Canadians about the negative impacts of CUSMA (Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement), which came into effect July 1, 2020.

"The Canadian government gave 3.9 per cent domestic market access to the U.S., so that will be filled by American dairy products," said DFC Vice President David Wiens. "That's a significant loss for the industry and according to our calculations, that will be a loss of revenue of about $330 million."

Wiens says this creates concern about the quality of the dairy products coming into Canada, adding consumers should look for the Canadian dairy brand on their products if they want to ensure it meets the highest standards.

He says the deal also gave the U.S. oversight, noting a clause in the agreement gives the U.S. the ability to intervene in any kind of administrative changes that Canada would make to our domestic system.

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Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.