The total number of farms in the province fell slightly since 2016
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
Saskatchewan had fewer farms in 2021 than it did in 2016.
The 2021 Census of Agriculture recorded 34,128 farms in 2021 compared to 34,523 in 2016. This means the number of farms in the province fell by 395 over that time.
Of the total number of farms, 20,438 are oilseed and grain farms.
For the 2021 census and beyond, Stats Canada is using a new definition of “farm.”
Going forward, a “farm” is any operation that will be reporting revenues or expenses to the Canadian Revenue Agency.
The total farmed acreage in Saskatchewan also dipped between 2016 and 2021.
In the 2016 ag census, Stats Canada reported farmers produced food on 61.6 million acres of land. In the 2021 census that number is about 60.23 million acres.
That change means about 1.37 million acres of Saskatchewan farmland are no longer in production.
To put that number into context, the entire area of Trinidad and Tobago is about 1.28 million acres.
Another area where Saskatchewan agriculture experienced a decrease is in the number of acres dedicated to crop production.
In 2016 that number was 40.5 million acres, but in 2021 that number dropped by 0.4 per cent to 40.3 million acres.
Here are some other Saskatchewan highlights from the 2021 Census of Agriculture:
- The number of farms reporting having a succession plan written increased from 3,041 in 2016 to 4,816 in 2021.
- The number of female operators increased from 11,275 in 2016 to 12,010 in 2021.
- The number of turkey farms in Saskatchewan increased from 216 in 2016 to 224 in 2021. However, the number of turkeys fell from 253,550 in 2016 to 92,599 in the 2021 census.
Statistics Canada will release more detailed provincial and territorial profiles in June.