Ottawa has announced nearly $2 billion dollars in compensation for dairy farmers hurt by free trade agreements with Europe and Pacific Rim countries.
Approximately 11 thousand dairy producers, half of them in Quebec, will receive $1.75 billion over eight years.
The money will be allocated according to producers' quotas, with an average farmer receiving $28 thousand in the first year.
Making the announcement in Quebec this morning, Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau promised a similar program when the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement comes into force.