That is very much in keeping with what we were saying this morning. The hog market throughout the world is one of the most liberalized ones. That is also true of the grains markets. We are facing a crisis that is based on impressions. This disease cannot be transmitted in pork meat. The company I represent here this morning has dealings with 60 countries. Even though the borders have not been closed, the demand for pork is dropping because consumers are afraid. There is a danger—and I hope it does not happen—that we will experience quite a significant crisis in pork production. Canada exports 50% of its pork production. So we are the most vulnerable country in the world.
As I was saying earlier, trade liberalization has changed things. The programs devised 10 years ago cannot apply to fluctuations of this type. If consumers throughout the world reduce their consumption by 5% to 10%, this will be catastrophic for Canada. I do not know how the hog producers will manage. We will have to close plants, and the surplus hogs will not be slaughtered. We export too much.
Our country is very sensitive to pork consumption. Let's compare it to other products such as milk or chicken, which are supply-managed. These systems have proven their worth, and everything happens within the country. That means we control the entire situation. Consumers pay the real cost. The system is organized, and we are not dependent on markets or on political decisions.
It must be said that some countries close their borders for purely political reasons. They are rushing to reduce their inventory before the others. When a country closes its border, it reduces its inventory. It is completely strategic.
The message we want to convey this morning is precisely this: Agriculture has changed. There will be more and more fluctuations and there will be other pretexts such as those we are seeing in the case of pork at the moment.