Letters to the editor, June 26: ‘Supply management doesn't just limit competition – it enables cartel-like control over how animals are raised'

Globe and Mail

9 hours ago

Re 'Not that that kind of tax reform' (Letters, June 25): A letter-writer states that if Canada's wealth was equitably distributed, we would still have one of the highest living standards ever. History and experience would beg to differ.
Nations that flatten wealth distribution by taxation or other means have produced lower overall standards of living. Think about the Soviet Union versus the United States.
Wealth-flattening nations tend to hold or attract those who seek to contribute less and receive more, while driving away those who strive to contribute more and receive more. There is a great expression for this: The effort to make us all equal will have us all equally poor.
John Budreski Whistler, B.C.
Re 'Say less' (Letters, June 24): A letter-writer urges Ontario readers to ask Doug Ford to resign, based on the Premier's recent comments that were deemed offensive to Indigenous people.
Perhaps the Premier's comments were a reflection of the changing tide of public opinion. As a taxpaying citizen and descendant of immigrants who came to Canada expecting and receiving nothing from the government, I have little tolerance for those who would block resource development while at the same time receiving increased funding from the government.
The recent passing of Bill C-5 by the federal government suggests that the winds of sympathy for Indigenous reconciliation are beginning to ebb.
Jeremy Klein Ottawa
Re 'The slow crawl of cities on housing reform' (Editorial, June 23): Oh, the irony!
Michael Janz has been the leading proponent of increased density on Edmonton city council. And when he proposes some modest concessions to help preserve the character of older neighbourhoods, you ambush him as if he were a NIMBY stalwart.
You owe Mr. Janz, and Edmontonians seeking a better balance, an apology.
Michael Cohen Edmonton
Re 'We can help friendly democracies ditch their dependence on Russian energy' (Opinion, June 23): This article demonstrates that revenues from Russian energy exports to democratic nations exceed the total aid sent to Ukraine. Russians are benefitting more from oil and gas sales than Ukrainians are benefitting from financial support and the shipment of arms from countries such as Canada.
Our European allies have long pleaded for help reducing their dependence on Russian gas. The largest importers of Russian oil are China and India, as well as the European Union. The largest importers of Russian LNG are the EU, China and Japan. It is time for Canada to sell oil and LNG to all of these countries.
For those who oppose resource development and pipelines, just know you are among Vladimir Putin's best friends.
James McAllister Ajax, Ont.
Re 'How to crack open Canada's egg market' (Editorial, June 21): The Globe explains how Canada's supply management system locks out new entrants, but it overlooks how the same system keeps hens locked in cages by stalling progress on animal welfare. While nearly half the U.S. egg market is now cage-free, Canada is lagging far behind for the tenth year in a row.
Canadian grocery retailers once pledged to sell only cage-free eggs by 2025, but our supply management system hinders this progress, keeping hens in outdated cages with no more space than a single sheet of paper each. By removing market incentives for improvements, the quota system insulates dominant producers and prevents small-scale farmers from entry. Even when companies such as Costco go cage-free in the United St, Britain and Mexico, Canadian consumers are left with no choice.
Supply management doesn't just limit competition – it enables cartel-like control over how animals are raised. That's bad for farmers, bad for consumers and, worst of all, for the hens on Canadian farms.
P.J. Nyman Toronto
Thank you for your editorial exposing the inequities facing some egg producers because of our supply management system.
The system was initially devised to protect small farmers but has evolved into one that enables and enriches large industrial operations (which no longer can even be called farms) where millions of birds are crammed into cages, can barely move and never see the light of day.
It is the small number of true farmers who humanely raised 'free range' laying hens that now deserve to be protected and who should be the beneficiaries of the supply management system.
Jane Harris Vancouver
Re 'Canada must not accept any trade deal that includes auto tariffs: Unifor' (Report on Business, June 24): With all the gloomy forecasts for our auto sector, why are our industry leaders so down on a homegrown auto sector, one that designs, manufactures and markets its own line of cars?
We have the manufacturing expertise, both in the Canadian divisions of the major auto manufacturers and in our domestic parts manufacturers. Presumably we have, or have easy access to, design expertise, not to mention unique design concepts for cars that reflect the Canadian experience.
We certainly have the capital markets necessary to finance such an enterprise. We may well even have some available plant and equipment.
So why do we hear downbeat assessments of our potential as an auto manufacturing hub? Why is 'we're not a big enough market to support our own auto industry' given any credence at all?
Sweden, with a population of 10.5 million, has several brands, most notably Volvo; manufactures, on average, about 275,000 cars annually; and exports about 85 per cent of them. Why is it not possible for Canada to do the same thing?
After all, we already manufacture about 1.5 million cars annually, making us the world's 11th-largest car manufacturer, and every one of them is exported to the United States under American brand names.
Nelson Smith Prince Edward County, Ont.
Re 'The perfection of imperfection' (June 21): After whipping through the economic and practical sections of the weekend paper, I really appreciate articles like the one by Adam Gopnik.
It's refreshing to explore this subject that affects us all and takes us away from current events like the daily trials of the Trump administration administering more harm on the world at a rapid pace.
To contemplate our attempts at perfection, to strive to get better at the instrument, the sport, the debate – whatever it is we are working on – that is our universal challenge. This binds us as we appreciate the humanity and humility that this involves.
Please bring on more social and philosophical articles that we can ponder over as we make our way through the weekend and brace ourselves for next week's onslaught of the 'U.S. going down…'
Helen Henshaw Hudson, Que.
Letters to the Editor should be exclusive to The Globe and Mail. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. Keep letters to 150 words or fewer. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. To submit a letter by e-mail, click here: [e-mail]