BOTTOM lines may approach or reach the black this year for prairie grain farmers, but the hair on many of their heads is grey.
The aging of Canadian farmers and the inability or failure of the younger set to replace producers as they retire or otherwise leave the business has long been a concern in the agricultural industry.
Years of inadequate returns discouraged those actively engaged in agriculture, as well as those considering it as a career. Leaving the farm to the kids was akin to child abuse, as the old joke went. And without new blood, new ideas and people to carry forward on a record of agricultural progress, the industry future looked moribund and gloomy.
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Now there appears to be a greater chance of positive bottom lines due to higher grain prices, encouragement toward agricultural investment and the various opportunities apparent through new markets, biofuel among them.
So perhaps now is also the time that this industry must work toward a revival of interest by younger farmers and entrepreneurs who can see the opportunities in crop, livestock and food production.
The cost of getting into farming from a standing start has always been prohibitive, and it is becoming more so as land prices rise along with industry optimism. The average farmland price per acre in Alberta rose 6.4 percent in the first half of 2007. Saskatchewan land prices rose by three percent in the same period, and Manitoba by 1.7 percent.
Economies of scale dictate that larger farms, in terms of acres, are needed to develop and maintain a viable grain farming operation.
One can easily see the dilemma facing would-be new farmers – huge costs for land alone. Equipment, inputs, labour and a host of other expenses add to the total, and that’s just the beginning.
Yet the situation is not bleak. Governments are making policies that enable easier rollover of farm businesses to the next generation. Banks and other lenders are developing favourable loan terms. Renting farmland has become a more common and viable option.
These and any other plans to encourage the entry of younger people into the industry deserve major attention.
Given the proper impetus, perhaps Western Canada could also see the revival of its rural communities and infrastructure to service a new wave of farmers and others who play supporting roles.
In recent decades, the poor returns that plagued agriculture resulted in a widespread impression that the industry was fading. Farmers’ own worries about the future of farming spilled into the public consciousness.
Other bright, shiny and more profitable industries were seen as the vanguards for prairie economies on the move. They got more attention and more interest from the younger generation.
Well, the sun is now shining on agriculture as well. With policies and actions that favour the entry of the next generation, there is no reason the industry cannot be as strong a part of the economy as other sectors.
Bruce Dyck, Terry Fries, Barb Glen, D’Arce McMillan and Ken Zacharias collaborate in the writing of Western Producer editorials.
