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Ontario dairy farmer Ralph Dietrich, who milks about 180 cows north of the city of Guelph, said farmers are disappointed with the TPP outcome.

However, he said it gives the industry a sense of urgency to fight so that NAFTA doesn’t cause a further erosion.

Dietrich said the threat is coming as the sector has been enjoying growth and millions of dollars have been spent modernizing facilities.

“It could prove as a pivot point to re-energize us as an industry — to be even more diligent with respect to ensuring that we’ve already given at the office and we don’t need to do it again through NAFTA.”

The Dairy Farmers of Canada said Ottawa must recognize the cumulative impact of the trade deals.

Francois Dumontier of the Quebec Dairy Producers said while Canada has increased foreign imports, the Americans restrict access to its market to less than three per cent of internal consumption.

Meanwhile, exports from the U.S. to Canada have surged to 178,000 tonnes in 2016 from 24,000 tonnes in 1993, he said.

“If they want to have this market access they have to rejoin the TPP but we will not be giving twice to the Americans.”

Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay insisted the government fully supports the supply-managed sector and that it intends to consult with industry stakeholders about potential compensation.

The supply management system was created in the early 1970s in response to wide swings in prices and interprovincial trade disputes as technology and other developments disrupted the agricultural markets.

The system sets prices and protects Canadian farmers from competition, creating stability for dairy, egg, chicken and turkey producers.

It also blocks out foreign production from the Canadian market through the imposition of tariffs, a mechanism that has resulted in long-running disputes with Canada’s trading partners.