Saskatchewan farm. (Photo 121958973 © Pictureguy66 | Dreamstime.com)

By Jaryn Vecchio

New Report

Value of farmland increased in 2022 across country

Mar 14, 2023 | 1:55 PM

The value of farmland across the country rose quite a bit in 2022.

According to Farm Credit Canada’s (FCC) Farmland Values Report, the average price for these properties rose by 12.8 per cent last year.

The average for four provinces was higher than the national average: Ontario (19.4 per cent), PEI (18.7 per cent), New Brunswick (17.1 per cent), and Saskatchewan (14.2 per cent).

Alberta and British Columbia’s values were the lowest among all the provinces, however, they still rose by 10 per cent and eight per cent, respectively.

The FCC said a big reason for the jump is supply as there are fewer farmlands available for purchase which helps raise the price for the ones that are. Nova Scotia, Manitoba, and Quebec each saw increases of around 11 per cent.

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“Any neighbouring farmland parcel coming up for sale can generate significant buyers’ interest considering that this may happen only once in a lifetime,” read FCC’s report.

Also playing a part in the growth was improved weather conditions which helped raise farm cash receipts to $94.9 billion. This is up roughly 14 per cent from 2021. Each province saw increases with Ontario, Alberta, and Saskatchewan leading the way.

The FCC adds the last reason for the growth in value was non-traditional buyers.

“These buyers may be individuals, groups, or other entities looking to buy farmland without the intent of farming,” the report said. “It is next to impossible to determine the extent of the presence of non-traditional buyers in the farmland market as there’s no single database across the country that contains all the relevant information.”

Despite this, the FCC estimate that between nine per cent and 15 per cent of cultivated farmland sold in 2022 was purchased by non-traditional buyers.

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Jaryn.Vecchio@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @princealbertnow