“I see this as a gross mismanagement of one of the biggest investments we ever made.”
–Lenore Newman
B.C.’s farming community is being hit by a double whammy — low utilization rates of actual farming on protected farmland, and the highest financial losses to farm in Canada.
Farmers in this province lost $456.9 million in 2024, according to new Statistics Canada data. Worse, the data shows they’ve been unprofitable since 2017.
A big problem appears to be the high cost of farm land in British Columbia.
But in many communities across the province, the majority of farmland protected by the Agricultural Land Reserve is not actually being used for farming, according to an analysis of available provincial farm utilization data.
As much as 62 per cent of the fertile Cowichan Valley ARL land on Vancouver Island — popular for wineries — is not being farmed. In the Peace River Region, the number sits at 39 per cent of available protected farmland being unfarmed. In Kelowna, the amount is approximately 55 per cent — the same as the Regional District of South Okanagan.
The numbers are a bit out-of-date because the government has failed to keep up with regular public data collection, but they are still cause for concern, said Lenore Newman, director of the food and agriculture institute at the University of the Fraser Valley, and the Canada research chair in food security and the environment.
“The numbers are horrible,” she said in an interview. “And if you listen to the government and the ALC (Agricultural Land Commission, which regulates ALR land) you would think every single inch of land is being farmed. And we’re under 20 per cent in some regions.
“If you listen to the government and the ALC, you would think every single inch of land is being farmed.”
Lenore Newman
“I think it’s happening for a lot of reasons, but I see this as a gross mismanagement of one of the biggest investments we ever made, which is setting aside one-third of private land in this province to protect an industry, and then we let an industry die.
“So what the heck are we even protecting?”
‘More farms the better,’ says Ag minister
In Metro Vancouver, public data shows 55 per cent of ALR land is unfarmed, but Agriculture Minister Lana Popham said internal updated data shows the figure is closer to 37 per cent. That amount is split roughly in half between what has the potential to be farmed, and what is physically limited, simply unavailable, set aside for protected parks, or used as golf courses.
“The more farms the better, from my perspective for sure,” said Popham.
“Some people have purchased farm land without ever intending on farming it. So even though we’ve got tax incentives for people to farm, some people are not interested. How do you get people to farm more?”
One option would be to increase the farm revenue required to get a property tax break from the current $2,500, to spur actual farming on the land, or the consolidation of uneconomic hobby farms into larger commercial farming properties.
Popham said she’s heard the suggestion, but isn’t sure it would work.
“It’s always in conversation,” she said. “But it’s a tax change so you have to be really careful with it.”
“If we… make it much easier for industrialization on farmland, we will jeopardize our primary production capability.”
Lana Popham
Another option is to scrap the 50/50 rule that prevents them from processing products on their land unless 50 per cent of the material comes from their own farm.
B.C.’s business community is calling for the move to help unlock more local food production and boost food security in the wake of U.S. tariff threats.
Premier David Eby has expressed enthusiasm for the idea, but Popham said she wants to be “really careful about it.”
“If we start to open up the tap and make it much easier for industrialization on farmland, we will jeopardize our primary production capability,” she said.
“It will just happen. The cost of land will go up.”
Farmers aren’t consolidating, they’re giving up
Newland said the low farmland utilization rates, combine with other factors to paint a picture of an industry in crisis.
“For me there are three flashing red lights that say we are badly mishandling our agricultural industry and have been for about 20 years,” she said.
“We’re the only province where the industry is losing money, where the rest of the country is surging ahead because food security is national security.
“We’re the only province where the [farming] industry is losing money.”
Lenore Newman
“And plunging farm numbers. It’s in the census, we’re losing two per cent per year. And it’s not amalgamation, people are just giving up.”
Some communities do see high farming uptake, like Delta, a rich agricultural community. Public data indicates only 24 per cent of ALR land was unfarmed there — though internal ministry data puts that at 12 per cent.
In the Fraser Valley, 33 per cent of effective ALR land is unfarmed, according to the public data.
Land costs discourage young would-be farmers
Opposition Conservative agriculture critic Ian Paton said that’s because many parcels have been split into half-acre, or five-acre hobby farms that are used for recreational and residential purposes.
Real conventional farming requires large plots of land, and major machines — both of which cost millions of dollars.
“British Columbia is the most expensive province by a mile to be a farmer or a rancher, because of the price of land here, and also because of the transportation costs,” said Paton.
“British Columbia is the most expensive province by a mile to be a farmer or a rancher.”
Ian Paton
“Everything that we need, if you’re feeding livestock or you’re importing fertilizer, it’s either coming from the United States or is coming across the Rocky Mountains by rail.
“The price of farmland in the Fraser Valley is pretty exorbitant,” added Paton.
“So it harms young people trying to get into it. Somebody that wants to buy themselves a chunk of farmland, 10 acres, well, you’re probably looking at $150,000 to $200,000 an acre.”
Time to reform the ALC: food security expert
Newman said the province should completely overhaul the Agricultural Land Commission, which ties up farmers with so much red tape that some people just plop big houses onto the land and choose to pay low taxes instead.
The decision-making on farmland becomes consolidated within an unelected body, and an unelected chair, she said.
“Maybe after 50 years we need to think about whether it’s okay to have one unaccountable, unelected person running one-third of the private land in the province.”
“We need to [re]think… one unaccountable, unelected person running one-third of the private land.”
Lenore Newman
Farming and food production go together, and were always envisioned as part of the ALR since its inception in the 1970s, said Newman. But many people expect farmland to be quiet, peaceful and quaint.
“It’s a big super-efficient industry that feeds people, but it’s an industry and looks like one,” she said.
“What we’ve increasingly seen is people want to live next to a hobby farm and not an actual profitable farm. That’s a big problem. We do need to philosophically decide if we’re preserving a greenbelt or a food production zone.”
Popham said some reforms to the ALC have already been made, and discussions continue. The U.S. tariff situation and ongoing discussions about food security may improve things as well, she said.
“People are very concerned about us growing more food,” said Popham. “That’s probably going to result in some more area farmed.”