A new study says farmland ownership in Western Canada is becoming more concentrated.
The study was prepared by four authors, including two academics and Darren Qualman with the National Farmers Union.
“When we look at the number of acres in Saskatchewan, for instance, operated by small or medium sized farmers, those trend lines are going down very, very steeply,” said Qualman. ‘The largest operations are expanding very, very rapidly, We’re to a point now where a very small percentage of farmers control most of the land.”
The report found 38 percent of Saskatchewan’s farmland is operated and controlled by eight percent of farms.
The report says it is much harder for young and new farmers to enter agriculture.
It adds policy measures are ”urgently needed” to counter market forces that will drive even more concentrated farmland ownership in the future.
