> agro-business flourishes? This is what we are seeing in the US. Whole
> farming villages are being abandoned, buildings empty and crumbling,
> highways bypassing them.
>
> Cheers,
> Lawry
Family farmers across Canada are experiencing the worst farm income crisis in decades. In 2005, average realized net farm income from the markets (not counting government payments) was approximately negative $12,000 per farm. In 2004, it was negative $10,000 per farm, and in 2003, it was negative $16,000 per farm. These figures after inflation is taken into account - are well below those experienced by farmers in the 1930s. During the worst years of the Great Depression, the average Canadian farm averaged $3,897 per farm from the markets (after average farm earned negative $323 per farm.Yet at the same time as family farms are in crisis, the profit picture for the other links in the chain could not be better. For the large agribusiness corporations that dominate in Canada, 2004 was the best year in history. Overall, their profits hit record highs. Of the 75 companies profiled in a recent NFU study (The Farm Crisis and Corporate Profits see www.nfu.ca) 41 posted record profits, and another 16 had near-record profits or their second-or third-best year ever. Thus, 57 of 75 companies 76% - had their best year or nearly their best.
A small number of very large companies dominate the marketplace, and they are using their economic leverage to extract large profits at the expense of family farmers. This fact was confirmed in a recent report entitled "Empowering Canadian Farmers" (commonly referred to as the Easter Report) released in July, 2005 by the federal government.
In a posting Mike Gurstein describes his Saskatchewan hometown which he revisited some ten years ago as having prospered while other towns withered away because it appeared to have won "the geographic lottery". Some places gained as marketing and distribution centres while others lost. I've put this message on my blog (http://members.eisa.com/~ec086636/newblog.htm) along with a picture of my grandfather's house near Theodore, northwest of Yorkton, Saskatchewan. The picture was taken a couple of decades ago, so the house may no longer exist. However, in the 1930s and early 1940s, the farm on which the house was situated supported my grandparents, an aunt and an uncle, plus my parents for a time. It also helped several other uncles and aunts acquire farms of their own. Times were different for farmers then.
Ed
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