After a quick breakfast at the Summerside Loyalist Inn, the day officially began at the Auchinleck Dairy Farm in Bedeque, PEI. Michael and Zsuzsanna were greeted by Randall and Jackie Affleck, who operate the farm, already in its fifth generation. Randall showed them around and spoke about the challenges facing the industry, leading to a frank discussion about supply management. They were joined by Malpeque MP Wayne Easter and a few local MLAs, before sampling some delicious ice cream bars produced locally at the ADL factory.
With a warm goodbye they parted ways and headed down the road to the Waugh Brothers Potato Farm. There, Michael and Zsuzsanna snapped a photo of the famous spuds, posted to Twitter earlier today and shown below.
Meanwhile, hundreds of supporters were gathering nearby at the Silver Fox Yacht Club in Summerside for a community BBQ. As Michael arrived, island MPs Shawn Murphy and Lawrence MacAulay joined Wayne in introducing Michael to the friendly crowd. Coincidentally, Premier Robert Ghiz and many of his caucus were in town for a meeting and made their way to the event after they wrapped up for the day. The islanders on hand listened intently to Michael’s speech, where he called for the restoration of a national vision as the country approaches its 150th birthday. However, a guest in attendance warned Michael afterwards, “The next time you visit, you’d better be Prime Minister.”
After some hamburgers, Michael and the team left to tour a lobster processing plant and holding facility, sampling another small taste of the best of the island — lobster — along the way (Michael had snacked on fresh oysters at the BBQ earlier). He shared his thoughts on what sort of role the federal government could have in supporting Canada’s food industry: one that sees the potential for government to help producers, farmers, and fishermen reach new markets. “We have some of the best products in the world and we know it,” he said, “But they need to know it in places like New York, New Delhi, and Hong Kong too. That’s the way we need to go.”
