On Wednesday, September 30th, a group of nearly 130 farmers and supporters gathered at the Herdman-Chateauguay Border Crossing to protest the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Organized by dairy farmers Jason Erskine and Michel Crete, the protest gave locals an opportunity to be heard. Many of the farmers also attended the Montreal protest that took place on September 24th, but due to heavy fall workloads, many locals did not have the time to make the trip out to the city. Over a hundred people, along with their respective pickup trucks and tractors turned up to protest despite the rainy weather. The Herdman-Chateauguay border crossing was a particular target due to the amount of dairy products that are admitted through that particular location.
The protest, which has been affectionately referred to as “Operation Tailgate” was a community effort. With TPP talks being finalized in the near future, Erskine and Crete both believe that it is essential that local dairy farmers remain in the eye of the public in order to stress the importance of supporting Canadian dairy farmers. “I don’t see how dairy farmers giving up a portion of their market is beneficial to Canada,” said Erskine about the TPP talks. While the Canadian government has only agreed to allow foreign farmers access to 3.25 per cent of the Canadian market, it is still a concern for local farmers.
Erskine, who operates Erskine Farms (Les Fermes Erskine) with his brother Scott, is a long-time dairy farmer. Both brothers took over the family business in 1993 from their father, who was a dairy farmer before them. The farm, which cares for 180 dairy milking cattle, makes nearly all of its revenue from dairy. As the Union des Producteurs Agricoles (UPA) Haut-Saint-Laurent dairy representative, Erskine thought it was important for the locals to have the opportunity to be heard. Crete and Erskine are representatives of the Haut-Saint-Laurent sector of Les Producteurs de Lait du Québec (PLQ). Maurice Montcalm, president of the PLQ’s Montérégie-Ouest sector, was also in attendance.
