OTTAWA — Newly elected Liberal MP Daniel Gobeil says his experience as a dairy farmer and agricultural leader will help him be a voice in Ottawa for a Quebec region on the front lines of the Canada-U.S. trade war.

The former president of Quebec’s dairy producers says he may already have contributed to Canada’s approach to the Trump administration, even before voters in Chicoutimi—Le Fjord elected him to Parliament in an Aug. 31 byelection.

“My opinion was taken into account, even when I was still a candidate,” Gobeil said in an interview on Friday with The Canadian Press.

Gobeil, who also served as vice-president of Dairy Farmers of Canada, said Prime Minister Mark Carney gave him a “receptive ear” during the campaign as Canada negotiated with the United States.

And Gobeil said he spoke with Dominic LeBlanc, the minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade, as Washington pressed Canada over its supply-management system, particularly in the dairy sector.

Canada’s supply-management system regulates production and prices for dairy, poultry and eggs and uses import quotas and tariffs to protect domestic producers.

A federal law adopted last year, which originated as a Bloc Québécois bill, prevents Ottawa from making trade commitments that would increase import quotas or lower tariffs protecting supply-managed dairy, poultry and egg sectors.

“There were discussions,” Gobeil said of his exchanges with LeBlanc, adding, “I knew what was going on — not all of the demands, but certainly those within my area of expertise, the dairy sector.”

Protecting supply management became a major issue during Gobeil’s byelection campaign. A Canada-U.S. trade agreement appeared within reach for several days, with reports suggesting Canada was considering changes to how it administers dairy import quotas.

But Carney suspended the talks and ordered Canada’s negotiating team home, saying Washington had introduced last-minute demands Canada could not accept.

Gobeil said that decision was a “game changer” for his campaign.

“It happened on a Friday night,” he said. “Saturday morning, we saw Carney’s polling, he was at 85 per cent in Quebec. People were behind that ‘Maîtres chez nous’ position.”

The phrase, which translates roughly as “Masters in our own house,” was popularized by former Quebec premier Jean Lesage during the Quiet Revolution of the 1960s and has recently been invoked by Carney.

The win flipped a seat previously held by the Conservatives and was part of a three-byelection sweep for Carney’s Liberals on Aug. 31.