Over the 20 years of my service as an elected official, never have I seen the policy of supply management become such a hot-button issue. Both foreign and domestic politicians seem to be chiming in on what they think is best for Canadians, without truly studying the effects of their proposals. Having spoken to numerous dairy farmers in Ontario and Quebec throughout the years, while also being an MP from Alberta, I understand both sides of the argument on supply management.

(Photo: Monty Rakusen via Getty Images) While some politicians argue that supply management must be scrapped immediately, in order to "stand on principle for freedom," others say that if we even touch supply management, Canadian farmers will become impoverished within a matter of days. Both positions are drastically oversimplified, overstated and simply far removed from reality. Instead of throwing mindless rhetoric around, we should propose actual policy solutions to the problems facing us today. Ottawa must protect the interests of Canadians first, and this includes Canadian dairy farmers. My policy proposal is simple -- we must have a sensible solution to supply management that protects our Canadian farmers, while also keeping the consumer in mind. The viewpoint that by simply scrapping supply management will drastically reduce the price of dairy products is highly overstated. Such a policy would only marginally reduce prices, while systematically placing Canadian farmers into a position of economic hardship. These farmers, the backbone of Canada's agriculture industry, who have spent generations in the business of producing high-quality dairy, would be banished to economic ruins with the stroke of the pen from Ottawa. That is not the federal government's duty. In fact, it is the very opposite. Ottawa must protect the interests of Canadians first, and this includes Canadian dairy farmers.