Stephen Harper is known as a free market enthusiast who believes that unfettered competition is vital to any country's economic well-being. Yet the federal government continues to force Canadian families to squander in excess of $275 per family per year to protect the lucrative Canadian dairy and poultry industries. What gives?This system isn't supporting thousands of small Canadian farmers. It's supporting a small group of agricultural industrialists who are inhaling money at Canadian consumers' expense.

With reoccurring and recycled negative commentary about dairy supply management in the Canadian media, one would think that it, and not money, is the root of all evil. The question often raised in Canada, and around the world, is this: does dairy supply management, represent a reasonable model through which to license Canadian milk production?

The use of some remarkable automated milking systems, which allow cows to choose themselves when to be milked and keep information about each cow's production, has gone up steadily in popularity since they were first introduced in Canada nearly 15 years ago. The growing prevalence of robotic milkers on farms across the country is a sign of encouraging times.

If you look around the world at successful dairy farms, they are consistently faced with the issue of competitiveness, which I define as the ability to product a commodity profitably in a sustainable manner year after year. While we have our own challenges in the Canadian dairy sector, we are also fortunate to be working within a system that offers stability and consistency.

When it comes to food prices, Canadians often complain about paying too much. Who or what is to blame? Martha Hall Findlay points the finger at the supply management (SM) system. But Richard Doyle says SM has little to do with the price of milk -- it just benefits the economy. What do you think? Have a look at what Hall Findlay and Doyle have to say in our online debate. Then decide whose case is more persuasive, and cast your vote...