Small Farms by Census Division, 1996

Small Farms: Big on Diversity, Small on Profit

by Roland Beshiri, Statistics Canada

Once experienced, life on the farm-working outdoors, eating and perhaps selling your home-grown fruit and vegetables, or the sound of lambs bleating in a spring meadow-is hard to give up. Across Canada's countryside unique rural farm experiences often keep people on the land.

One form of rural life is the small farm. (Small farms are defined here as census farms with product sales of $40 000 or less before expenses are deducted, based on the value of a dollar in 1995.) Under this arbitrary definition small farms accounted for half (or 139 000) of all Canadian census farms in 1996 (Figure 1).

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Figure 1. Small Farms Made up Half of all Census Farms in 1996

Most-and Increasingly More-small Farms are Losing Money

Yet despite their numbers, many small farms are not making money. After subtracting operating expenses from the gross farm revenue, the result is a financial loss.

In 1991 a slight majority of small farms in four provinces reported gross receipts greater than operating expenses. By 1996, after a 15% increase in the number of small farms that lost money, none of the provinces could make that claim. Figure 2 shows the provincial changes in small census farms with financial losses.

Across Canada, 64% of all small farms were losing money: almost $9 500 on average in 1996, or a loss $1 400 greater than in 1991. Conversely, 39% of all census farms in Canada were losing money in 1996.

And what about the 36% of small farms that did make money? Well, in general they're not getting rich: Their average net farm operating income was about $6 000 in 1996, or about 30% of the average net operating income ($20 100) of all census farms. British Columbia and Ontario stand out with the lowest percentages of small farm operators who were in the black (24% and 29% respectively) in 1996. Quebec had the highest percentage with 49%.

Most Small-farm Operators also Work off the Farm

Many farmers work off their farms and 64% of small-farm operators reported non-farm wages or employment income in 1996, either to augment their farm income or support it as a hobby, or to pursue another profession-or for all those reasons. Only 52% of operators on larger farms reported having an additional source of earnings. By province, the percentage holding jobs off the small farm ranged from 59% in Saskatchewan to 73% in Newfoundland and Labrador. These numbers for small farms are virtually unchanged since 1991. The average income from non-farm sources for these operators was $29 600, $6 300 more than for operators of larger farms. The gap has widened by $1 200 since 1991.

The Total Number of Small Farms is Declining

Small farms, both in area and number, are giving way to large farms. In 1991, small farms accounted for 25% of the total farmland in Canada. By 1996, they accounted for only 20%.

The number of small farms decreased by 5.6% since 1991. Saskatchewan's loss was greatest: 21% of its small farms disappeared between 1991 and 1996 (Figure 2).

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Figure 2. In Most Provinces, More Small Farms Lost Money in 1996 than in 1991

Four provinces actually bucked the trend and increased their small farm numbers: Newfoundland and Labrador by 5.6%, New Brunswick by 9.3%, British Columbia by 14%, and Nova Scotia by 18%.

In British Columbia, more farmers are selling their produce to farmers' markets or direct to customers. As for consumers, their interest in alternative commodities- products typically of interest to new farmers on small farms-continues to grow.

Including Christmas tree farms in the 1996 Census of Agriculture accounts for much of Nova Scotia's and New Brunswick's increase. Newfoundland has seen gains as farmers look for alternatives to fishing to make a living.

Across Canada in 1996, 72% of small farms reported field crops and 51% reported traditional livestock (such as pigs, cattle, and poultry), the two most popular commodities on both small and large farms.

Many Small Farms Specialized in Alternative Commodities

About 67% of census farms reporting alternative commodities (for example, garlic, currants, and ostriches) were small farms. Their small scale and flexibility gives them an advantage in developing commodities for specialized or newly emerging markets. Four significant alternative commodities differed from the rest: caraway, oriental vegetables, ginseng, and deer and elk were reported mainly by large farms.

Small farms figure greatly in their predilection for alternative commodities, but not in their production (Figure 3 and 4). In terms of area, small farms accounted for almost 70% of garlic and wild rice, and for about 50% of the alternative berries (currants, blackberries and saskatoon berries). For animals, small farms accounted for 81% of beefalo (a cross between beef cattle and buffalo), almost 70% of emu and rhea, 60% of goats and approximately 50% of rabbits and llamas.

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Figure 3. For Many Commodities, Small Census Farms are the Frequent Farmers

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Figure 4. But Their Share is Small

Roughly three-quarters of small farms growing alternative commodities reported a financial loss. Some may have been relatively new and still developing their markets.

Despite the difficulties-non-profitable farms, working at another job off the farm, and continually searching for new markets for alternative agricultural produce-small-farm operators do persist. What helps keep these people on the farm is an appreciation for the land and their rural lifestyle.

DATA FOR THIS ARTICLE CAME FROM THE 1991 AND 1996 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE; THE BRITISH COLUMBIA MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE (STATISTICS UNIT); THE NEWFOUNDLAND DEPARTMENT OF FISHERIES, FOOD AND AGRICULTURE; AND THE NOVA SCOTIA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND MARKETING.

Data and Mapping Notes provides information regarding the 1996 Census data presented in the maps and references to mapping techniques used.

• Beef Cattle by Census Division, 1996 Map | Read about this map
• Dairy Cows by Census Division, 1996 Map | Read about this map
• Wheat Acreage by Census Division, 1996 Map | Read about this map

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• Agriculture at a Glance, 1996
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