Of the , farms that were counted in the Census, Slightly over 45, operations were new to the most recent census and over 62, operations had exited the industry since the previous census. Existing operations tended to expand their production, reporting increases in average farm area, cropland and total revenues. New farms, on the other hand, tended to be smaller and report lower average receipts than both existing farms and those farms that were no longer in business in While their proportion has dropped slightly since , Canada is still a field-crop growing country, with The next most common is beef farms, with Two farm types have had increases in proportion as well as number: "all other animal" farms and "fruit and vegetable" farms.
The total agricultural land area reported to the census was stable between the two censuses, at million acres. As farm numbers drop, the average size of a Canadian farm has increased from acres to acres. Although the national agricultural land area remained stable, the provincial numbers varied, with extremes in the eastern and western corners of Canada. Farm area dropped Farmers are responding to an increasingly competitive environment by changing tenure arrangements. Owned land dropped 2.
While land ownership remains attractive, land rental has been increasing for the past several censuses and is a less capital-intensive means of expanding an operation. In some cases retiring or downsizing farmers may wish to retain ownership of their land but not work it themselves, making renting it out an attractive option.
In other cases, investors or non-farmers may have acquired farmland but are renting it out so that someone else works and maintains it while they still get a return.
Crop-sharing, a practice used mostly on the Prairies, had the largest decline in area at For the first time, the Census of Agriculture asked a question on non-monetary land rental arrangements such as land trading and rent-free agreements. Census results show that 10, operations are involved in such arrangements and report 1. However, at the two extremes, Table 4 Tenure of agricultural land, selected countries and years.
Although land area has stayed constant, land use is changing Figure 1. Farmers dropped the area devoted to cropland and summerfallow and increased the area of seeded or tame pasture in response to declining farm incomes, low market prices for agricultural commodities and natural disasters.
The actual area devoted to crops dropped about a million acres 1. Total cropland in Canada now stands at almost 89 million acres or Summerfallow land dropped by Economic circumstances and technological changes have reduced farmers' reliance on this land management technique. The economic need to keep arable land productive, along with diversified and extended crop rotations, improved seeding and tilling methods and proper use of herbicides have all contributed to the reduction in summerfallow land.
Improved pasture increased Government policies that pay farmers for their environmental stewardship of the land or farmers who find new income sources from woodlots rather than from producing food are behind the increase in other kinds of land uses.
With This marks the third straight census to note a decline in the area planted in spring wheat. The decline in this commodity isn't particularly unique. Farmers today have an ever greater list of crops from which to choose, thanks to breeding efforts, good management and marketing know-how, that encourages diversification into other, higher-value crops.
Western Canada grows Moving into third place was canola, totaling Canola is the result of a Canadian crop-breeding coup in the s.
Canola is low in saturated fats and has been lauded as a healthy food oil. Demand for corn, and consequently prices, rose in late and early , fuelled by the expanding corn-derived ethanol fuel sector in the United States. However, just a year ago when the Census of Agriculture asked farmers about what crops they were growing, prices were low, due to a surplus of corn on the international market.
The census found that farmers had 2. Continuing the trend tracked over a number of censuses, the zones in which corn was produced expanded. The development of new, shorter-season cultivars triggered increases of grain corn area in Manitoba Figure 4. Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Saskatchewan have also adopted new corn varieties to increase their area. The total area planted to potatoes for Canada in was , acres, a decrease of 4. Between censuses, in , the area peaked after 15 years of continuous expansion when the world appetite for french fries seemed insatiable.
However, in french fry processing plants began to cut their contracts for potatoes as the rising Canadian dollar encouraged American buyers to source more of their product internally. This prompted potato marketing organizations to encourage producers to cut their potato area for all types of potatoes to improve prices.
Worldwide, BSE has caused many changes to the ruminant livestock sector, most specifically in the beef industry. Beef farms in Canada have had a tough time in the intercensal period, and their numbers reflect that, declining by The United States, along with 33 other countries, quickly closed its borders to Canadian beef. Operations were forced to retain their cattle and herd sizes increased until when domestic slaughter capacity started to catch up to the supply.
In , borders reopened to cattle less than 30 months old and the herd sizes in Canada started to decline slightly. On May 16, , Canadian farms held , more beef cows than in , bringing the total to 5. This increase in cows is mainly due to increases in non-reproductive cull cows which were retained longer than usual because of record low prices, a continuing ban on exports for cattle over 30 months of age and limited domestic slaughter capacity.
Steers and heifers destined for slaughter numbered 3. The post- BSE market reality proves that Canada's beef industry operates in a global market. Table 6 shows where Canada places among the major beef-producing nations of the world. Brazil's number of cattle dwarfs those in Canada by a factor of The only profiled country with fewer cattle than Canada's 16 million is the United Kingdom with 11 million head.
The dairy industry in Canada has evolved as better animal nutrition, genetics and know-how continue to increase the productivity of each cow, allowing farmers to decrease the dairy herd by 6. As in the past, the Canadian dairy industry remains centred in Quebec, which accounted for Second place Ontario accounted for Canada's main pork-producing provinces, Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba, continued to be the driving force behind the 7.
Farms reporting pigs across Canada dropped While the circovirus had a profound impact upon some farms, primarily those in Ontario and Quebec, by Census Day the overall impact on the sector was offset by the total growth in pig numbers in Many hog operations have chosen to specialize in a particular stage of the production cycle.
In the West, exporting weaner pigs to the United States to take advantage of lower feed costs and greater slaughter capacity south of the border continued to be prevalent at census time. Like many areas of the agricultural sector, conditions have changed considerably since the spring of , and the hog sector has seen its fair share of change. Higher grain prices, the high Canadian dollar and environmental regulations have placed additional pressures on hog producers.
The number of bison farms had not changed since , but bison numbers were up considerably, growing by nearly In , bison were reported in Canada: More than Bison meat offers consumers an alternative to beef and pork. Fewer birds, Annual Canadian consumption of chicken has been going up since the s, from 5. Turkey, it seems, isn't just for holidays anymore. Turkey production jumped by 5. More meat per bird has made increased production possible despite a 5.
Ontario had Farmers continued to switch from the deep, wide furrows of conventional tillage to no-till techniques. No-till, a technique in which the seeding equipment slices a thin slit in the earth to deposit the seed without disturbing most of the soil, increased to The area worked with conventional tillage, which had historically been the most popular tillage method, dropped to In , the United States was the destination for one-third of Canada's exports of crops, livestock, and fish.
While the overall number of Canadian farms continues to decline, the decline has slowed in recent years and several provinces are in fact adding or gaining new farms. The decline in farms has slowed to under 1 percent per year, the lowest level of decline since Since , British Columbia has increased its number of farms by Ontario continues to have the largest overall number of farms—over 68,—followed by Alberta with 58,, and Saskatchewan with 56, The total number of farms in Canada is approximately , The average size of a Canadian farm is acres.
Contrary to the trends in the rest of the country, British Columbia has experienced dramatic growth in the number of its small farms. The number of new small farms in British Columbia has increased by The nation's main crops are wheat, barley, corn, potatoes, soybeans, rice, and sugar beets. The dominant crop is wheat. In Canada produced 24,, tons of wheat. However, there is less wheat under cultivation in Canada than at any time in the 20th century.
This is the result of increased diversification and low worldwide wheat prices. The number-two crop was barley and the country harvested some 12,, tons of it.
Total crop output in was 53,, tons. The primary livestock products are beef, chicken, duck, turkey, goose, and pork. Beef production is concentrated in the western areas of the nation while poultry production is concentrated in the east.
About two-thirds of all poultry farms were in eastern Canada. Most livestock is consumed domestically. One out of every 4 farms in Canada raised beef. One of the fastest growing segments of Canadian agriculture is organic products food grown naturally and without pesticides, and sold without preservatives or additives.
The organic food industry has been growing at a rate of 20 percent per year. There are now about 1, registered organic food producers in Canada. Organic production is strongest in the western areas of the country.
There are also a growing number of specialty farms. For instance, there are now 1, farms whose main output is Christmas trees. In addition, the number of bison raised on farms for buffalo meat has tripled since the early s, and the total number of head are around 45, There are also a number of exotic species, including llama and elk, being raised for sale in specialty markets.
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