The dairy industry is one of several areas of Canadian agriculture which operates under a system of supply management. To ensure that production of Canadian food products such as milk, poultry and eggs meets the needs of consumers, supply management establishes production levels to meet demand. The supply management system is recognized by the Canadian and British Columbian governments as a proven solution to maintaining price stability and ensuring that Canada is able to meet the needs of consumers without being dependent on imported products. Supply management helps to support local agriculture without using subsidies from consumer tax dollars, and consumers benefit from having a supply of high quality dairy products with stable prices. Supply management has provided Canada with level farm and retail prices, both currently and historically, as compared to the United States. In the last ten years, Canadian dairy prices also have been consistently less expensive than in the US, by as much as nearly 45% (10).