Maritime provinces lead country in unused farmland: Statistics Canada
New Statistics Canada numbers show a sharp decline in the amount of land being used for farming, especially in the Maritimes.
Farmer Christian Michaud sees it first-hand.
He has been forced to scale back operations at his farm in Bouctouche, N.B.
“We have adjusted that’s for sure. We used to grow 200 acres of vegetables and we are down to 100,” says Michaud, who is the chair of the New Brunswick Agricultural Alliance.
A number of reasons are at play.
The cost of production and the small financial return combined with the stress of the profession doesn’t make farming an attractive venture.
“If you go out in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and P.E.I., there’s lots of abandoned farmland and that’s a waste, unfortunately,” says food industry expert Sylvain Charlebois.
Stats Canada’s numbers prove it.
Nationwide, there has been a nearly 8 per cent drop in the area used for farming between 2001 and 2021.
The Maritimes are among the biggest losers.
Nova Scotia leads the way with 28.4 per cent less area farmed, New Brunswick is close behind at 28.3 per cent and on P.E.I. there’s 21.8 per cent less land being used for farming.
“We are at a point here in our region that we need, we need a plan to actually make our rural economy much more valuable and right now it’s just not a focus,” Charlebois says.
Increased efficiency in farming also plays a role.
Scientific advancements allow farmers to grow higher-yield crops on less land.
That’s good news as Nova Scotia aims to double its population by 2060.
“Food is got to be grown somewhere and I’d like to see it be grown here or as much as possible,” says Tim Marsh, who is the president of the Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture.
To do that, Michaud would like to see a commitment from government.
"Some true investment from government to make sure that the agriculture industry moves forward,” Michaud says.
Correction
This article has been edited to correct spelling in the paragraph, "Scientific advancements allow farmers to grow higher-yield crops on less land."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Cargo ship had engine maintenance in port before Baltimore bridge collapse, officials say
The cargo ship that lost power and crashed into a bridge in Baltimore underwent 'routine engine maintenance' in port beforehand, the U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Far North police 'dispatch' polar bear stalking schoolyard
Police and local hunters in an Ontario Far North First Nation community have “dispatched” a polar that was showing abnormal behaviour and treating the area as a hunting ground.
Donald Trump assails judge and his daughter after gag order in N.Y. hush-money criminal case
Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order that bars him from commenting publicly about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and jurors in his upcoming hush-money criminal trial.
Families shocked after Niagara Falls hotel cancels bookings made year in advance of solar eclipse
After having the foresight to book their Niagara Falls hotel rooms more than a year in advance, several families planning to take in the solar eclipse next month were shocked to find out their reservations had been cancelled.
B.C. rescuers face 'high likelihood' of failure to reunite orphaned orca with pod
The race to reunite an orphaned orca calf that’s stuck in a shallow lagoon with a neighbouring pod has entered its fifth day, and a marine scientist says the clock is ticking.
Video shows police interrupting auto theft in progress outside Toronto home
New video footage obtained by CP24 shows the attempted theft of a vehicle in a North York driveway earlier this month that was ultimately interrupted by police.
Majority of Canadians believe in life after death: Angus Reid survey
A new survey from the Angus Reid Institute has found that a majority of Canadians believe in some form of life after death, a proportion that has held steady for decades.
MyPillow, owned by U.S. election denier Mike Lindell, formally evicted from Minnesota warehouse
A court ordered the eviction Wednesday of MyPillow from a suburban Minneapolis warehouse that it formerly used.