2 million litres of milk dumped after Quebec dairy plant labour dispute
A labour dispute at a Quebec dairy plant has led to the dumping of 2 million litres of milk since Wednesday.
The 250 workers at the Agropur plant in Granby, Que. began an indefinite strike on June 29.
With the plant now closed, many Quebec dairy farmers are scrambling to get their milk processed before it goes bad.
"The shelf life is very short for milk. And when there's a disruption in the processing, we need to be able to react quickly," dairy farmer Jason Erskine told CTV News.
For Erskine, this means sending the milk out of province, as his farm in Hinchinbrook, Que. is close to the Ontario border.
But for many other farmers, it means throwing the milk away.
The plant processes 800,000 litres of milk a day, which accounts for about 10 per cent of milk production in Quebec.
"It's no small feat, trying to place that much milk," Erskine said.
According to the union representing the workers (CSD), the strike was sparked by Agropur's plan to extend the workday from eight to 12 hours.
"The schedule change will add 48 hours of work to a five-week period and will also eliminate 30 jobs," said union representative Bernard Cournoyer.
He said that while it's unfortunate the dispute is resulting in wasted dairy, the union has no plans to accept what the company is trying to do.
Agropur did not respond to a request for comment from CTV News, but told The Canadian Press it's making every effort to avoid wasting milk and to reach a settlement with the union.
UP TO 300M LITRES WASTED EVERY YEAR IN CANADA
Sylvain Charlebois, a food industry analyst at Dalhousie University, says the Agropur saga reflects a Canada-wide issue, as between 100 and 300 million litres of milk are dumped every year.
"We're not supposed to be wasting milk at all," he said. "We are the only country in the world with supply management, which allows us to produce what we need."
Established in the 1970s, supply management is a system that controls Canada's dairy production.
The idea is to regulate the amount of milk produced according to demand, mitigating dramatic fluctuations in price and supply as a result.
But Charlebois said there are nevertheless situations that lead to milk dumping -- such as strikes.
He believes farmers should be incentivized to find alternative approaches, he said.
"The point is that food waste or milk-dumping occurs every single year no matter what, so we need to see a dairy sector focused on finding solutions [instead] of just dumping milk," he said.
If milk dumping were made illegal, Charlebois said, the dairy industry would be motivated to get rid of excess product in more sustainable ways, like freezing and powdering the milk.
But Erskine said he believes these approaches just aren't "feasible" in the near future.
"It's a long-term investment. So you have to be looking at doing it over a longer period of time," he said.
Charlebois proposed the dairy industry reallocate funds to make these processes more accessible.
"They're spending $150 million in marketing to Canadians to drink more milk," he said. "They could use that money to support a strategic reserve or build a plant to store milk."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
B.C. tenants evicted for landlord's use after refusing large rent increase to take over neighbouring suite
Ashley Dickey and her mother rented part of the same Coquitlam duplex in three different decades under three different landlords.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
Expert warns of food consumption habits amid rising prices
A new survey by Dalhousie University's Agri-Food Analytics Lab asked Canadians about their food consumption habits amid rising prices.
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Charlie Woods, son of Tiger, shoots 81 in U.S. Open qualifier
Charlie Woods failed to advance in a U.S. Open local qualifying event Thursday, shooting a 9-over 81 at Legacy Golf & Tennis Club.
Ex-tabloid publisher testifies he scooped up possibly damaging tales to shield his old friend Trump
As Donald Trump was running for president in 2016, his old friend at the National Enquirer was scooping up potentially damaging stories about the candidate and paying out tens of thousands of dollars to keep them from the public eye.
Here's why provinces aren't following Saskatchewan's lead on the carbon tax home heating fight
After Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the federal government would still send Canada Carbon Rebate cheques to Saskatchewan residents, despite Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe's decision to stop collecting the carbon tax on natural gas or home heating, questions were raised about whether other provinces would follow suit. CTV News reached out across the country and here's what we found out.
Montreal actress calls Weinstein ruling 'discouraging' but not surprising
A Montreal actress, who has previously detailed incidents she had with disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, says a New York Court of Appeals decision overturning his 2020 rape conviction is 'discouraging' but not surprising.
Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye make it four NFL drafts with quarterbacks going 1-3
Caleb Williams is heading to the Windy City, aiming to become the franchise quarterback Chicago has sought for decades.