Canada chooses to dump milk rather than lower prices |
Milk dumping is a policy choice, not an accident
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In November 2025, Canada’s supply management system deliberately destroyed millions of litres of perfectly good milk in Ontario, even as grocery prices remained high and food banks reported record demand.
That destruction was not an accident or a processing failure. It was the predictable outcome of policy.
The figure comes from Milk Producer magazine, an industry publication read largely by dairy farmers themselves. Most Ontarians will never see it, and that lack of visibility matters.
The 4.9 per cent disposed of that month represents roughly 10.2 million litres of milk poured away. At retail prices, that is about $18 million in lost value. The butterfat alone was worth roughly $10 million. All of it was destroyed without public scrutiny at a time when food banks across the province were reporting record demand and dairy products remained among the most expensive staples in the grocery cart.
Milk dumping in November 2025 was the predictable result of supply management rules.
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KEEP AN EYE ON ONTARIO
Even this figure likely understates the scale of the issue. Ontario is one of the very few........