We looked at the programs in a very summary manner. For us, Éleveurs de volailles du Québec, the most important program in the poultry sector and that pertains to the supply management issue is the AgriStability Program.
AgriStability has not been used much so far, if at all. We use it mainly in case of serious disasters, such as the one that occurred in British Columbia six or seven years ago, in the case of the avian flu.
The AgriStability program is meant to be used in case of a poultry production disaster. What we need most are not necessarily programs as such, but rather the protection of supply management. I think that the various parties took very strong positions in the last few weeks, and we are happy about that. It enables the producers, the industry and the consumers to get more for their money.
The issue of supply management has limited the need for new programs so far. Let us take the case of Europe. They abandoned supply management in milk production. Since then, they have had to create new programs to help producers and processing plants survive. Whereas here, in Canada, supply management makes all forms of substantial financial support from the state unnecessary. Moreover, it allows consumers to get more for their money every week.
Studies of chicken production have been conducted and supported by Laval University. They compare our production with chicken production in France, in the United States and in Australia. In some countries, the free market rules. They have done away with supply management. In our country, supply management has been maintained.
In Australia, for example, the price paid by the consumer has increased more than in Canada. The producers and the industry have less and less money. It is the distributors that have taken in most of the money. So far, these countries have not had to intervene significantly to help producers. However, they have started doing so recently. Maintaining supply management will make it possible to avoid investing additional money.
For us, Éleveurs de volailles du Québec, AgriStability is a tool enabling us to face disasters such as the one we had a few years ago. That being said, the program's effectiveness is theoretical for the time being. We hope that remains the case, since we do not want any disasters.
Our environment is obviously very regulated. In comparison, the banking environment, despite being heavily regulated, generates money and does not jeopardize the economy of the country. It is similar in our case. Supply management allows us to keep the ball rolling and still bring in money for the state, instead of costing it money through various programs. When I say that, you understand that it does not prevent....
I am looking for words. You know that this is my first time here, and it is a bit intimidating, especially since I am the first one to speak.