The Régie des marchés agricoles et alimentaires du Québec granted a post-fire quota exemption in Ferme D. Mackinnon ltée et Les Producteurs de lait du Québec (PLQ), Decision 13250, dated November 5, 2026. The farm may transfer part of its milk quota to PLQ until June 30, 2027.
The exemption from the fourth paragraph of section 14.2 of the dairy quota regulation permits section 12 transfers. PLQ had refused the arrangement but left the amended exemption request to the Régie’s discretion. The request fell within the 24-month force-majeure period, the Régie said.
Earlier refusal concerned another arrangement
An earlier Decision 13112, dated April 24, 2026 explains the distinction. Fire had destroyed the farm’s main operation in June 2025. The company subsequently bought 100 cows, which remained with two other producers. It transferred quota to those producers from September 2025 through February 2026.
A plan to rent or buy another barn failed, prompting reconstruction. The farm sought more time for transfers to the producers housing its newly acquired cattle. The Régie refused, finding that the problem arose from buying cows before securing accommodation or a rebuilding plan.
The April reasons distinguished three temporary-transfer options after building damage: transfer to PLQ, to a producer housing surviving animals, or to one housing newly acquired animals. The last option was limited to six months before reconstruction ended. Temporary transfers across the applicable arrangements could not exceed 24 months.
PLQ also acknowledged that it had initially allowed the newly acquired cattle arrangement without the required building permit. The Régie declined to prolong it merely to address the farm’s business choices. Its statutory exemption power required unexpected circumstances beyond the applicant’s control, not a rewriting of the regulation.
In November, the Régie accepted exceptional circumstances arising from the fire and failed replacement-building efforts. Relief respected collective interests and the regulatory scheme without circumventing standards or granting an individual advantage.
