Alberta Milk Plan Regulation

(Consolidated up to 255/2025) ALBERTA REGULATION 28/2022 Marketing of Agricultural Products Act ALBERTA MILK PLAN REGULATION Table of Contents 1 Definitions 2 Designation Part 1 General Operation of Plan Division 1 Plan 3 Plan continued 4 Termination of plan 5 Application of the plan 6 Purposes of the plan Division 2 Responsibilities of Alberta Milk 7 Board continued 8 Responsibilities 9 Regulations to operate the plan 10 Financing the plan 11 Authority from a Canada Act 12 Funds established Part 2 Governance of Plan Division 1 Regions and Delegates 13 Regions 14 Region delegates Division 2 Directors and Elections 15 Directors 16 Election of region directors 17 Election of directors at large Division 3 Invalid or Controverted Elections, Vacancies 18 Insufficient attendance 19 Controverted elections 20 Vacant positions Part 3 Review, Transitional and Repeal 21 Review 22 Transitional 23 Repeal Definitions 1 In this Regulation, (a) “Act” means the Marketing of Agricultural Products Act ; (b) “agricultural product” means agricultural product as designated in section 2; (c) “Alberta Milk” means the corporation continued under section 7; (d) “annual general meeting” means an annual general meeting of the directors and delegates held in accordance with the bylaws; (e) “annual region meeting” means an annual meeting of the licensed producers in a region held in accordance with the bylaws; (f) “assets” means economic resources controlled by the body as a result of past transactions and from which future economic benefits may be obtained; (g) “bylaws” means the bylaws made by Alberta Milk pursuant to section 26(2.1) of the Act; (g.1) “Canadian Milk Supply Management Committee” means the Canadian Milk Supply Management Committee created under the National Milk Marketing Plan; (h) “Council” means the Alberta Agricultural Products Marketing Council; (i) “dairy animal” means a female animal of the Bos taurus species kept for the purposes of milking; (j) “dairy farm” means a premises where one or more dairy animals are kept and from which a part or all of the milk is sold, offered for sale or supplied for human consumption, and includes all buildings and land occupied or used in connection with the production of milk; (k) “dairy product” means (i) milk, (ii) a product of milk that contains a minimum of 50% milk ingredients by weight, (iii) a product of milk that is prescribed by a standard for dairy products in the regulations under the Safe Food for Canadians Act (Canada) or the National Harmonized Milk Classification System, and (iv) milk products; (l) “delegate” means a person elected or appointed as a delegate in accordance with the bylaws; (m) “director” means a director of Alberta Milk, whether elected or appointed as a region director or director at large; (n) “licensed producer” means a person who holds a producer licence issued by Alberta Milk and to whom a quota has been issued by Alberta Milk; (o) “marketing” means buying, owning, selling, offering for sale, storing, grading, assembling, packing, transporting, advertising or financing, distributing, reselling and pricing; (p) “milk” means the normal lacteal secretion from a dairy animal; (q) “milk product” means processed milk in the form of standard milk, homogenized milk, 2% partly skimmed milk, 1% partly skimmed milk, skim milk, chocolate partly skimmed 2% milk, chocolate partly skimmed 1% milk, chocolate milk, flavoured milk, buttermilk, 6% cream, 10% cream, 18% cream, whipping cream, heavy cream, eggnog or any other processed milk product; (r) “minimum price” means the price to be paid for regulated product, subject to any deduction or adjustments authorized under the Act, the Dairy Industry Act or the regulations under either Act; (r.1) “National Harmonized Milk Classification System” means the National Harmonized Milk Classification system established by the Canadian Milk Supply Management Committee as amended from time to time; (r.2) “National Milk Marketing Plan” means the federal‑provincial agreement made between the Canadian Dairy Commission and all the provinces for the operation of the milk supply management system as amended from time to time; (s) “person” means a person as defined in the Interpretation Act and includes (i) a corporation and the heirs, executors, administrators or other legal representatives of a person, (ii) a partnership as defined in the Partnership Act , (iii) an unincorporated organization that is not a partnership referred to in subclause (ii), and (iv) any group of individuals who are carrying on an activity for a common purpose and are neither a partnership referred to in subclause (ii) nor an unincorporated organization referred to in subclause (iii); (t) “plan” means the Alberta Milk Plan referred to in section 3; (u) “processing” means (i) with respect to milk, to pasteurize, homogenize or treat milk so that the milk’s form or composition is altered in any manner, and includes the cleaning and sanitizing of any surface, including the surface of equipment that comes into contact with the milk while it is being pasteurized, homogenized, packaged or treated, and (ii) with respect to dairy products other than milk, to manufacture, modify, pasteurize, prepare, reconstitute, package or store dairy products, and includes the cleaning and sanitizing of any surface, including the surface of equipment that comes into contact with the dairy product while it is being manufactured, modified, pasteurized, prepared, reconstituted, packaged or stored; (v) “processor” means any person who receives or processes for sale 50 litres or more of milk or dairy products, or both, on any day, but does not include a retail establishment that operates or uses a freezing device to freeze a frozen dairy product mix; (w) “producer” means a person who sells or supplies for sale the regulated product that has been produced by one or more dairy animals owned or controlled by that person; (x) “quota” means the privilege allocated by Alberta Milk to a licensed producer to produce and market regulated product; (y) repealed AR 255/2025 s2; (z) “regulated product” means milk; (aa) “special general meeting” means a special general meeting of the directors and delegates held in accordance with the bylaws; (bb) “special region meeting” means a special meeting of the licensed producers in a region held in accordance with the bylaws. AR 28/2022 s1;255/2025 Designation 2 Milk and dairy products are designated as an agricultural product for the purposes of the Act. Part 1 General Operation of Plan Division 1 Plan Plan continued 3 The Alberta Milk Plan established under the Alberta Milk Plan Regulation (AR 150/2002) is amended and continued. AR 28/2022 s3;255/2025 Termination of plan 4 The plan does not terminate at the conclusion of a specific period of time and must remain in force unless otherwise terminated pursuant to the Act. Application of the plan 5 (1) The plan applies (a) to all of Alberta, (b) to all persons who produce or market, or produce and market, the regulated product, and (c) to processors for the purposes of section 9(1)(b), (c), (d), (e), (g), (j) and (l) and (2)(c), (i), (j), (k), (l), (m), (n), (o), (p), (q), (r), (s), (s.2), (t), (u), (v), (x) and (y). (2) Despite subsection (1), a person who has not been allocated a quota under the plan is exempt from the plan if (a) the person produces less than 50 litres per day of regulated product, (b) the person ordinarily resides on the same parcel of land on which the production facilities where the regulated product is produced are located, and (c) not more than 50 litres per day of the regulated product is produced on the land where the production facilities are located. AR 28/2022 s5;135/2023;255/2025 Purposes of the plan 6 The purposes of the plan are (a) to provide for the effective control and regulation of the production and marketing of the agricultural product and to initiate and carry out programs to commence, stimulate, increase or improve the production or marketing, or both, of the agricultural product, and (b) without limiting the generality of clause (a), to accomplish the following: (i) to fix and allot quotas for the production and marketing of the regulated product; (ii) to maintain a fair and stabilized price for the regulated product; (iii) to establish and maintain pools for the distribution of all money payable to producers from the sale of the regulated product; (iv) to develop and maintain the orderly marketing of the regulated product; (v) to provide a consistent supply of high quality regulated product for the market; (vi) to promote the regulated product and agricultural product; (vii) to fund research and development in connection with the regulated product and agricultural product; (viii) to fund education in connection with the regulated product and agricultural product; (ix) to work with marketing boards and organizations having similar objectives as set out in this section. Division 2 Responsibilities of Alberta Milk Board continued 7 The board known as “Alberta Milk” is continued. AR 28/2022 s7;255/2025 Responsibilities 8 (1) Alberta Milk, without limiting the generality of section 16 of the Interpretation Act , is, subject to the Act, responsible for the operation, regulation, supervision and enforcement of the plan and any regulations and bylaws made by Alberta Milk. (2) The responsibilities of Alberta Milk, the authority delegated to Alberta Milk by the Council and the direction, administration and management of the work of Alberta Milk, its business and affairs, including the control and management of all assets owned, held and acquired by Alberta Milk, are vested in the board of directors. (3) The board of directors has the power to do all things necessary to carry out the purposes of the plan and the responsibilities and authority of Alberta Milk. (4) Alberta Milk may exercise its authority under sections 26(2) and 27(6) of the Act with respect to the plan and any regulations and bylaws made by Alberta Milk. Regulations to operate the plan 9 (1) Subject to section 5, Alberta Milk is authorized under section 26(1) of the Act to make, with the approval of the Council, regulations (a) requiring producers engaged in the production or marketing, or both, of the regulated product to register their names and addresses with Alberta Milk; (b) requiring any person who produces, markets or processes the regulated product to furnish to Alberta Milk any information or record relating to the production, marketing or processing of the regulated product that Alberta Milk considers necessary; (c) requiring persons to be licensed under the plan before they become engaged in the production, marketing or processing, or any one or more of those functions, of the regulated product; (d) prohibiting persons from engaging in the production, marketing or processing of the regulated product except under the authority of a licence; (e) governing the issuance, suspension or cancellation of a licence; (f) providing for (i) the assessment, charging and collection of service charges, levies and licence fees from producers for the purposes of the plan, and (ii) the taking of legal action to enforce payment of the service charges, levies and licence fees; (g) requiring any person who receives any regulated product from a producer (i) to deduct from the money payable to the producer any service charges, licence fees or levies payable by the producer to Alberta Milk, and (ii) to forward the amount deducted to Alberta Milk; (h) providing for the use of any class of service charges, licence fees, levies or other money payable to or received by Alberta Milk for the purpose of paying its expenses and administering the plan and the regulations made by Alberta Milk; (i) providing for the payment to a Canada Board of money that is payable under a Canada Act; (j) requiring persons who produce, market or process a regulated product to mark the containers of their products to show the place of origin or place of production to the satisfaction of Alberta Milk; (k) permitting Alberta Milk to exercise any one or more of the powers that are vested in a cooperative association under the Cooperatives Act ; (l) providing for classifying producers, processors and others into groups for the purposes of the plan. (2) Subject to section 5, Alberta Milk is authorized under section 27(1) of the Act to make, with the approval of the Council, regulations (a) requiring that the production or marketing, or both, of the regulated product be conducted pursuant to a quota; (b) governing (i) the fixing and allotting of quotas, (ii) the increase or reduction of quotas, (iii) the cancelling of quotas, and (iv) the refusal to fix and allot quotas to producers for the production or marketing, or both, of the regulated product on any basis that Alberta Milk considers appropriate; (c) respecting the regulation of the supply of a regulated product by producers to processors, including but not restricted to the transportation, delivery and supply of the regulated product to processors, entitlement of processors to the regulated product and transferring of the regulated product among processors; (d) governing the transferability or non‑transferability of quotas; (e) establishing (i) a formula for determining the volume, weight, components, contents, amount or number of regulated product deemed to have been produced or marketed by a producer, and (ii) the period of time in respect of which the formula is to be applied for the purpose of determining the amount of regulated product produced or marketed by a producer during a period of time; (e.1) respecting assurance programs and standards; (e.2) providing for (i) the assessment, charging and collection of a levy from any producer whose production or marketing, or both, of the regulated product is in excess of the quota that has been fixed and allotted to that producer, and (ii) the taking of legal action to enforce payment of the levy; (f) requiring any person who provides any agricultural product to a producer under the plan to furnish to Alberta Milk any information requested by Alberta Milk; (g) determining the quantity, weight and volume of each class, variety, size, grade, components and contents of the regulated product that shall be produced or marketed, or both, by each producer; (h) repealed AR 135/2023 s3; (i) directing, controlling or prohibiting the production or marketing, or both, of the regulated product or any class, variety, size, grade or kind of the regulated product in a manner that Alberta Milk considers appropriate; (j) regulating and controlling the production or marketing, or both, of the regulated product, including the times and places at which the regulated product may be produced or marketed; (k) determining from time to time the minimum price or prices that shall be paid to producers for the regulated product or any class, variety, size, grade, volume, weight, components, contents or kind of the regulated product and determining different prices for different parts of Alberta; (l) governing the priority of use for the regulated product or any class, variety, size, grade, volume, weight or kind of the regulated product; (m) requiring that the money payable or owing to a producer for the regulated product be paid to or through Alberta Milk; (n) providing for the payment to a producer of the money payable or owing for the regulated product, less any service charges and levies owing to Alberta Milk by the producer, and fixing the time or times at which or within which the payments must be made; (n.1) regulating and controlling agreements entered into by producers of the regulated product with persons engaged in marketing or processing of the regulated product, including to prohibit any provision in the agreements; (o) respecting the amount, manner and time of payments to producers by processors and requiring the making of statements and other documents accompanying payments and respecting the information to be contained in the statements and other documents; (p) respecting the payment to the producer of the money payable or owing for the regulated product, less the cost of any inspection, grading or testing costs and other costs required to ensure proper operation of the plan; (q) providing (i) for the operation of one or more pools for the distribution of all money payable to the producers from the sale of the regulated product, (ii) for the deduction of reasonable and proper disbursements and expenses with respect to the operation of the pool, and (iii) for the deduction of service charges and levies, including but not restricted to inspection costs, transportation, testing and grading costs and other costs required to ensure the proper operation of the plan; (r) providing for the collection from any person by legal action of money owing to a producer for the regulated product; (s) governing (i) the furnishing of security or proof of financial responsibility by any person engaged in the production, marketing or processing of the regulated product, and (ii) the administration and disposition of any money or securities so furnished; (s.1) subject to section 5(2), prohibiting a person to whom a quota has not been fixed and allotted for the production or marketing, or both, of a regulated product from producing or marketing, as the case may be, any of the regulated product; (s.2) prohibiting any person from purchasing or otherwise acquiring any regulated product from a person to whom a quota has not been fixed and allotted for the production or marketing, or both, of the regulated product, unless the person from whom the regulated product is purchased or otherwise acquired is exempt from the plan under section 5(2); (t) establishing grades for a regulated product, respecting the grading of the regulated product and providing for deductions from the price based on grade, and providing for netting out, in conjunction with pools, all amounts payable among producers, processors and Alberta Milk; (u) respecting the use of a regulated product based on the class, weight or volume available of the regulated product; (v) requiring purchasers of a regulated product and processors of the regulated product and agricultural products to provide information in a form acceptable to Alberta Milk respecting the source, weight and volume of the regulated product and of the agricultural products used to process and produce additional agricultural products and the class, volume, contents, components, weight and amount of those agricultural products and providing for the assessment, charging and collection of service charges respecting the verification of the information; (w) repealed AR 135/2023 s3; (x) providing for the terms and conditions on which a person may market the regulated product in excess of the quota fixed and allocated to the person; (y) permitting or prohibiting the transfer of the regulated product from one producer to another and permitting or prohibiting the transfer of the regulated product from one processor to another. (3) If an agricultural product is not a regulated product under the plan but is instrumental with respect to the production or marketing of the regulated product, the Council may, with the approval of the Minister, authorize Alberta Milk to make regulations (a) governing that agricultural product as if it were a regulated product under the plan; (b) governing, with respect to that agricultural product, the producers of the regulated product under the plan as if it were a regulated product under the plan; (c) establishing and governing a formula for determining the amount or number of a regulated product produced or deemed to have been produced from that agricultural product. (4) If Alberta Milk makes regulations under subsection (3), those regulations apply with respect to the agricultural product only (a) while that agricultural product is in the possession or under the control of the producer of the regulated product, or (b) while payment with respect to the regulated product is owing to the producer, processor or Alberta Milk for that agricultural product or verification of end use of the agricultural product is required to finalize transactions between the producer, processor and Alberta Milk. (5) If an agricultural product is not a regulated product under the plan but is used to produce an agricultural product, the Council may, with the approval of the Minister, authorize Alberta Milk to make regulations (a) governing, with respect to that agricultural product, the producers and processors of the regulated product under the plan in the same manner as if the agricultural product were the regulated product under the plan; (b) establishing and governing a formula for determining the size, volume, weight, components or number of agricultural product produced or deemed to have been produced from the size, volume, weight, components or number of the regulated product. (6) If Alberta Milk makes regulations under subsection (5), those regulations apply with respect to the agricultural product only while the agricultural product is owned or controlled by a processor or while payment with respect to the regulated product is still owing to a producer, processor or Alberta Milk or if verification of the ultimate use of the regulated product is required to determine money owing to a producer, processor or Alberta Milk in respect of the regulated product. AR 28/2022 s9;179/2022;135/2023;59/2025;255/2025 Financing the plan 10 (1) In accordance with the regulations the plan must be financed by the charging and collection of service charges, licence fees, levies and by any other money payable to or received or accrued by Alberta Milk. (2) Service charge revenue must be accounted for in at least the following 3 categories: (a) marketing and nutrition education; (b) research; (c) administration of the plan. (3) Subject to subsection (4), Alberta Milk may change the amount of a service charge. (4) A change to a service charge respecting marketing and nutrition education and research is not effective until the change has been approved by a vote of the majority of licensed producers present at the annual region meetings or special region meetings held throughout Alberta. (5) A vote under subsection (4) must be held in each region at an annual region meeting or special region meeting and the total number of votes shall be tallied to determine if a majority of licensed producers present at the meetings held throughout Alberta have voted to approve the change to the service charge. AR 28/2022 s10;255/2025 Authority from a Canada Act 11 Alberta Milk is empowered to accept and exercise any power and authority delegated to it by or pursuant to the Canadian Dairy Commission Act (Canada), the Agricultural Products Marketing Act (Canada) and the Farm Products Agencies Act (Canada). Funds established 12 (1) Alberta Milk may establish one or more funds under section 34 or 35 of the Act. (2) In order to finance the funds, Alberta Milk may raise amounts in accordance with sections 34 and 35 of the Act. Part 2 Governance of Plan Division 1 Regions and Delegates Regions 13 (1) For the purpose of the plan and the bylaws, Alberta is divided into 3 regions. (2) The areas included in each region are as set out in the bylaws. AR 28/2022 s13;255/2025 Region delegates 14 Each region is to be represented by delegates elected in accordance with the bylaws. Division 2 Directors and Elections Directors 15 (1) The board of directors of Alberta Milk consists of the following members: (a) 6 region directors, being 2 region directors for each region; (b) 3 directors at large. (2) To be eligible for election as a director, a licensed producer must meet the eligibility requirements set out in the bylaws. Election of region directors 16 (1) The election of region directors to represent a region is to be carried out by means of a vote conducted by the directors and delegates of that region holding office at the time of the election in accordance with the procedures set out in the bylaws. (2) An election described in subsection (1) is to be held each year following the announcement of the results of any election of delegates for the region and before the commencement of the annual general meeting. Election of directors at large 17 At each annual general meeting, the delegates must elect from among themselves directors at large in accordance with the procedures set out in the bylaws. Division 3 Invalid or Controverted Elections, Vacancies Insufficient attendance 18 (1) If there is in attendance at the meeting at which an election is held an insufficient number of persons who are eligible to vote at the election in accordance with the bylaws, (a) the election is void, and (b) the position for which the election was held remains vacant. (2) Notwithstanding that an election is declared void and a position remains vacant, the bylaws may provide that the term of office of the position is deemed to have commenced on the day that the election declared void was held. (3) If a position is vacant under subsection (1), the board of directors may fill the position by appointing a delegate in accordance with section 20. Controverted elections 19 (1) If a licensed producer questions (a) the eligibility of a candidate, (b) the eligibility of a voter, (c) any matter relating to a ballot or the tabulation of ballots, or (d) any other irregularity with respect to the conduct of an election, that licensed producer may, not later than 15 days after the day of the election, apply in writing to the Council to have the election declared void and the position declared vacant. (2) If the Council has not received an application under subsection (1) within the 15‑day period referred to in subsection (1), an individual elected at that election is deemed to be duly elected. (3) The Council shall not consider an application under subsection (1) that is not received by the Council within 15 days after the day of the election. (4) On receipt of an application under subsection (1), the Council shall consider the matter and may (a) declare the election to be proper and the position filled if, in the opinion of the Council, there is no basis for the application, (b) declare the election to be proper and the position filled notwithstanding that there is a basis for the application if, in the opinion of the Council, (i) the basis for the application did not materially affect the result of the election, and (ii) the election was conducted substantially in accordance with the plan, the bylaws and the Act, or (c) declare the election to be void and the position vacant if, in the opinion of the Council, there is a basis for the application and the basis is sufficient to or did affect the result of the election. (5) If the Council declares an election to be void and the position vacant, the Council may (a) order that, within the time that the Council considers proper, (i) in the case of a delegate, a special region meeting be held and an election conducted to fill the vacant position for the unexpired portion of the term, (ii) in the case of a region director, an election be conducted to fill the vacant position for the unexpired portion of the term, or (iii) in the case of a director at large, an election be conducted to fill the vacant position for the unexpired portion of the term, or (b) notify the board of directors that the position is vacant and the board of directors may appoint a delegate to fill the vacant position in accordance with section 20. (6) Notwithstanding that an election is declared void and a position is declared vacant under subsection (4)(c), the bylaws may provide that the term of office of the position is deemed to have commenced on the day that the election that was declared void was held. AR 28/2022 s19;255/2025 Vacant positions 20 (1) If a vacancy occurs on the board of directors, the board of directors may, in accordance with the bylaws and with the approval of the Council, appoint another delegate to fill the vacant position for the unexpired portion of the term. (2) If fewer than the required number of directors have been elected in accordance with section 16 or 17, the board of directors may appoint a delegate or delegates to the remaining position or positions in accordance with subsection (1). Part 3 Review, Transitional and Repeal Review 21 In compliance with the ongoing regulatory review initiative, this Regulation must be reviewed on or before February 28, 2031. AR 28/2022 s21;255/2025 Transitional 22 A delegate or director holding office immediately before the coming into force of this Regulation continues to hold office until the expiry of the individual’s term in accordance with the plan and the bylaws unless (a) the individual is removed or resigns from office, (b) the bylaws eliminate that office, or (c) the bylaws reduce the term of office for that position. Repeal 23 The Alberta Milk Plan Regulation (AR 150/2002) is repealed.