Canadian farmers contribute nearly $140-billion to the economy, says a new snapshot of the sector from AgCanada.
“Despite COVID-19, the drought in Western Canada, the flood in British Columbia and other trade disruptions, the overall agriculture sector saw growth in 2021 and is expected to continue to perform well in 2022,” the department said.
It also said that farmers’ net cash income jumped by nearly half last year to a record $26.6-billion (from $17.8-billion in 2020) mainly because of higher commodity prices.
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“While the drought in Western Canada caused significant production losses, grain and oilseed prices were up substantially. As such, overall crop receipts are forecast to have increased by 17 per cent.”
Net cash income sets a new record
The AgCanada report also forecasts net cash income will see a big fall in 2022 – 25.8 per cent – but that is not bad news.
“While this might be viewed as a substantial decrease, it is relative to the record levels of 2021; the forecast for 2022 would still be the second-strongest year on record,” the report states. “For many major commodities prices are expected to stay at relatively high levels.”
Last year’s surge in income pushed average net operating income to $145,000 per farm from $91,500 a year earlier — a 59 per cent jump.
“Despite the impact of extreme weather, the global pandemic and trade disruptions, the sector remains a resilient engine of growth and is playing a key role in reigning the Canadian economy,” the report concludes.
