The newest board member of Dairy Farmers of Ontario (DFO) would like to see a return of a transfer assessment on quota, which would then be used as a loan to a young farmer for 10 years. When repaid the quota would then be loaned to another young farmer in the same region. The new transfer assessment could be 25 per cent, he suggested

"I know this will go over like a lead balloon with a lot of retiring farmers but I can see how our numbers (of dairy farmers) will get so low that we can’t keep supply management alive," he said. "Our communities also need clean, tidy profitable farms. They keep communities alive around here."

Atkinson, 45, wants farmers to chew on his idea and modify it if they need to but says farmers have to get off their butts and come up with a plan to encourage new dairy farmers.

"Dairying is getting to be a lonely business," he said, arguing that with fewer farms fewer politicians will heed the cry for protectionism in dairy production. "Are we going to have the goodwill of the community with just a few big herds out there?"

While he senses a threat to supply management, he also sees an unexpected ally in the Quebec government. "My gut feeling is that the one reason that supply management lives on is that it works well for Quebec and no politician wants to mess with what works in Quebec," he said. Noting the pro-farming policies in la belle province he added, "Quebec is a great place to be a farmer."

Atkinson milks 45 cows, north of Cobourg in the Northumberland Hills. His oldest son, Mark, will return to work on the farm next year, after graduating from the University of Guelph. Atkinson, who replaces Barton McLean, of Napanee, on the DFO will represent the counties of Northumberland, Hastings, Prince Edward and Lennox and Addington. He says that even with his incentive for young farmers, it’s no free ride. A new farmer needs 20 cows to start milking and needs to begin with a piece of equity. "I was up to my ears in debt when I got started," he recalled. The new farmer would have to work off-farm part-time.

Meantime, as dairy farmers leave the industry they leave behind them empty barns and a hesitant pool of young blood that sees farming as a mountain to scale. " We have to make the mountain climbable," he said. "New blood will keep this industry strong."

There are 5,500 dairy farmers in Ontario. Forecasts suggests Ontario is losing about 200 to 300 dairy farmers each year, said DFO vice-president of communication Bill Mitchell. "We could lose 1,000 to 1,500 farmers in 10 years."