About Quotas
The quota system is used to allocate production of Canadian turkey to each province. The Canadian Turkey Marketing Agency (CTMA) in consultation with the Turkey Market Advisory Committee establishes annual quotas six to nine months ahead of the production year. The provincial board is then responsible for dividing its share of the national quota among the province’s registered producers. The producer allotments are sometimes adjusted if the amount of turkey in storage changes. At all times, a province must stay within the provincial allocation from CTMA. Manitoba’s share of the national production is currently approximately 7%.
All registered producers get a market allotment, which are the authorized kilograms they can market in a marketing year (May 1 - April 30). The market allotment can be greater or lesser than their basic quota, depending on provincial programs and the provincial allocation from CTMA.
Quota can also be obtained by three additional methods:
- Sale of a complete farm
- Sale of moveable buildings and equipment
- Reallocation of quota on the Retirement and Basic Allotment Reallocation Program (Quota Exchange). It is the right of the board to market quota that is sold on a Quota Exchange as the quota belongs to the board
- Allocation to a new entrant
In Manitoba, quotas belong to the Board and there is no value for quota. Anyone can buy a turkey farm and moveable buildings and equipment. Quota sold on the Retirement and Basic Allotment Reallocation Program (Quota Exchange) is made available to all registered producers on an equal share basis.
About Levies
Operation of the provincial board is funded through a levy, based on each kilogram of live weight of turkey marketed. The levies are collected by primary processors as agents of the provincial board. Manitoba’s levy is 2.7˘ per kilogram and the CTMA levy is 1.6˘ per kilogram. These amounts are deducted from the producer’s cheque by the processor and are forwarded to the board office. This funding is used to cover administration costs, promotional activities and consumer education.
Farm Gate Price
The provincial board is responsible for setting the minimum producer price per kilogram of live turkey produced. The price is negotiated between the board and processors. Factors considered include demand versus supply, availability for similar products from outside Manitoba, the retail price of competitive meats as well as the cost of production (COP) and storage stocks.
A formula is used by the turkey industry to measure changes in the costs involved in growing turkeys to market weight. The COP incorporates all on-farm costs, such as feed, poults, labour, energy, transportation, repairs, maintenance, financing, administration, property taxes, depreciation, levies, and other variable costs. By reflecting the costs that efficient farmers might reasonably be expected to incur in producing turkey, the COP formula indicates what a reasonable financial return for production should be.
Turkey Production in Manitoba
A major portion of turkey production occurs in southeastern Manitoba as well as large concentrations along the Trans-Canada highway to Portage la Prairie and south of Teulon up to Riverton and Arborg. Vertical integration does not play a large role in Manitoba’s turkey industry. The commercial turkey farms, as well as the breeder operations are primarily family owned and operated. Any non-registered producer can market up to 99 turkeys per year. The average size of a registered turkey production unit in Manitoba is 160,000 kilograms. The maximum allotment for an individual producer is 600,000 kilograms per year and the minimum basic allotment is 60,000 kilograms per year.
The market allotment is allocated to producers for the marketing year by category and period. Each period is 4 months:
| Period 1 | last Sunday in April - August 31 |
| Period 2 | September 1 - December 31 |
| Period 3 | January 1 – last Saturday in April |
Smaller producers tend to market 1 flock per year, but no more than 2 flocks per year. Medium producers tend to market 2-3 flocks per year. Larger producers market 3-5 flocks per year and in all 3 periods.
Over production by a registered producer is subtracted from the following year’s market allotment and the producer is charged a penalty levy of 30˘ per kilogram for each kilogram over their market allotment.
The efficiency of turkey production has greatly improved over the past twenty years. Where it used to take 25 weeks to raise a tom turkey for market, it now takes 16-18 weeks. Broiler turkeys take 11-12 weeks, while hen turkeys take 13-15 weeks. Manitoba has one of the lowest costs of production figures for turkey in Canada. Manitoba producers can produce turkey over quota if that processed product is exported. For exported turkey meat, the Manitoba Turkey Producers receive export re-grow credits for the eviscerated product sold. Manitoba typically produces an additional 10% over its total provincial turkey quota for export sales.
Responsibilities of Manitoba Turkey Producers
- Liaison between the production, hatching and processing industries
- Facilitate production to ensure processors are supplied with what they need when they need it, and in the form that is required at a competitive price
- Monitor producer production levels to ensure the province does not “over produce” its provincial allocation
- Promote and market Manitoba turkey products, as well as educate consumers on the uses of turkey
- Provide a forum for consumer, retailer, processor, and producer comments, complaints and suggestions
- Operate an Export policy in the province in compliance with the CTMA Policy covering exports
- Administer the CTMA Multiplier Breeder Growth policy in the province
The Manitoba Farm Products Marketing Council, a committee of provincial government appointments, oversees the operations of the Board to ensure that its delegated authority is exercised in the public interest.
There are many players in the turkey industry. There are only a few companies that provide the primary breeding stock to a turkey breeder farm. The turkey breeder farm is responsible for breeding hens to produce fertilized eggs that are shipped to a hatchery. The hatchery is then responsible for hatching the eggs into viable baby poults, which are shipped to the commercial turkey farms, where they are raised into adult turkeys. Once the turkeys reach an appropriate weight, they are transported to the processor.