As national facilitator and chief administrator for the dairy industry, the CDC undertakes a number of activities and programs:

Industry Support
Through its chairmanship and work for the Canadian Milk Supply Management Committee (CMSMC), the CDC provides ongoing support to the Canadian dairy industry while operating in close co-operation with national and provincial stakeholders and governments.

Facilitator
It acts as a facilitator and provides secretariat services to the revenue pooling and market sharing systems.  Provisions for these functions are set out in the Agreement on the Eastern Canadian Milk Pooling, the Western Milk Pooling Agreement, and the Comprehensive Agreement on the Pooling of All Milk Revenues. The CDC also administers the financial mechanisms required by these agreements.

Quota
It calculates and recommends to the CMSMC the target national milk production for milk.

Imports/Exports
It has the authority to purchase, store, process, or sell dairy products on the domestic or export market, within World Trade Organization (WTO) commitments. The CDC also imports and redistributes tariff rate quota butter on behalf of the industry.

Support Prices
The Commission establishes support prices at which it will purchase butter and skim milk powder. These support prices are used as references by provinces to establish prices for milk used to manufacture products such as butter, cheese, and ice cream.

Industry Programs

• It administers the Special Milk Class Permit Program and issues permits allowing further processors to have access to competitively-priced dairy ingredients, and allowing exporters to export dairy products within Canada’s WTO commitment levels.

• It develops and implements marketing programs and services aimed at encouraging food manufacturers to maintain or increase their use of dairy ingredients in their various products. These activities are guided by the objectives set out in the Dairy Marketing Program.

Audits
The CDC carries out internal audits of its systems and practices as well as external audits, which are in large part performed on companies participating in the Special Milk Class Permit Program and it encourages the harmonization of audit procedures for dairy plants among provinces.