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Is part of the story:
- Alison & Robert
- Episode 4 of 8
Soy far, soy good
Date published : November 25, 2009 - Sherrington, Quebec
Operating within a notoriously fickle market, Alison and Robert measure success one crop at a time.
The Canadian Family Farm
"Canada’s agricultural system is hostile to family farmers – the very people who form the backbone of our food system. This crisis exposes this fundamental flaw."
Nettie Wiebe,
1st woman to hold position of President of the National Farmers Union
When Alison and Robert spent $500,000 on new farm machinery, they were taking advantage of the record-low interest rates being offered by banks eager to stimulate new spending in times of crisis.
Access to this cheap credit made the acquisition easier, but a half-million dollar purchase still constitutes a massive investment for a family farm. It’s an audacious move, made at a time when family farms are particularly vulnerable.
Canada is one of the planet’s biggest food producers and exporters. Yet the primary producers within this system - the farmers themselves - are being elbowed out of the economy.
Confronted with the fluctuating dollar and international market forces beyond their control, family farms are either disappearing or forced to expand into economies of scale. But bigger farms mean deeper debts, as more and more of the wealth generated by farming goes to agri-business.
Strapped for cash, farmers are often forced to find second jobs. And when the manure hit the global economic fan last fall...well, a difficult situation got worse.
Our agricultural system is a relatively recent invention. During the Second World War, responding to calls from a devastated Europe, Canada worked hard to boost its agricultural output. After the war, the sector was further transformed by industrialization and the widespread introduction of chemical fertilizers and pesticides - substances initially developed for chemical warfare. As early as the 1950s, family farms were beginning to lose ground to large-scale agri-business interests - a process that continues to this day.
But the system has growing numbers of critics... and new models of food production and consumption are starting to take root.
Some facts & figures:
1/ Less Canadian farms :
2/ Less farmers under the age of 35:
This represents a drop of 48.8% between 1991 and 2001
3/ Increased debt load:
The total debt of Quebec farmers grew by 28% between 2001 and 2005, from $8.1 billion to $10.4 billion.
Sources: National Union of Farmers, Statistics Canada; Le Devoir, July 8, 2006
"Canada’s agricultural system is hostile to family farmers – the very people who form the backbone of our food system. This crisis exposes this fundamental flaw."
Nettie Wiebe,
1st woman to hold position of President of the National Farmers Union
When Alison and Robert spent $500,000 on new farm machinery, they were taking advantage of the record-low interest rates being offered by banks eager to stimulate new spending in times of crisis.
Access to this cheap credit made the acquisition easier, but a half-million dollar purchase still constitutes a massive investment for a family farm. It’s an audacious move, made at a time when family farms are particularly vulnerable.
Canada is one of the planet’s biggest food producers and exporters. Yet the primary producers within this system - the farmers themselves - are being elbowed out of the economy.
Confronted with the fluctuating dollar and international market forces beyond their control, family farms are either disappearing or forced to expand into economies of scale. But bigger farms mean deeper debts, as more and more of the wealth generated by farming goes to agri-business.
Strapped for cash, farmers are often forced to find second jobs. And when the manure hit the global economic fan last fall...well, a difficult situation got worse.
Our agricultural system is a relatively recent invention. During the Second World War, responding to calls from a devastated Europe, Canada worked hard to boost its agricultural output. After the war, the sector was further transformed by industrialization and the widespread introduction of chemical fertilizers and pesticides - substances initially developed for chemical warfare. As early as the 1950s, family farms were beginning to lose ground to large-scale agri-business interests - a process that continues to this day.
But the system has growing numbers of critics... and new models of food production and consumption are starting to take root.
Some facts & figures:
1/ Less Canadian farms :
- 1996: 276,548
- 2000: 246,923
- 2006: 229,373
2/ Less farmers under the age of 35:
- 1991 : 77 910 / 19,9%
- 1996 : 61 055 / 15,8 %
- 2001 : 39 915 / 11,5 %
This represents a drop of 48.8% between 1991 and 2001
3/ Increased debt load:
The total debt of Quebec farmers grew by 28% between 2001 and 2005, from $8.1 billion to $10.4 billion.
Sources: National Union of Farmers, Statistics Canada; Le Devoir, July 8, 2006
Field Director
Dominic Morissette
Editor
Miguel Raymond
Director-coordinator
Hélène Choquette
Original score
Robert-Marcel Lepage
© 2009 NFB – All rights reserved
Dominic Morissette
Editor
Miguel Raymond
Director-coordinator
Hélène Choquette
Original score
Robert-Marcel Lepage
© 2009 NFB – All rights reserved
Theme
- Canada’s agricultural system is hostile to family farmers –
- the very people who form the backbone of our food system.
- - Nettie Wiebe, 1st woman to hold position of
- President of the National Farmers Union
