The Agricultural Study

The following is the executive summary of the City of Kingston Agricultural Study Report. The full report can be downloaded using the link at right.

Agriculture is a multi-dimensional, economic and social activity. Farms are the basic production unit. They are supported by a number of agricultural service industries and in turn farming provides raw materials to the food industry and other processing industries. In addition, farming delivers and affects the landscape of the City and provides environmental benefits to the rural area and the broader community.

From an employment and production perspective, farming has over the past few decades made up a declining portion of the workforce and the economy of the City. However, the supporting industries and the processing and distribution services have significantly increased and represent an important portion of the agri-business and related business sector.

The decline of farming in agri-business is due in part to improved efficiencies and technologies. Over the past 45 years, the number of farms in Canada has declined by 50% while production during this same period has tripled. This level of change and innovation is unparalleled in any other industry. The future holds even more challenges as new products, processes and technologies create even greater opportunities and require significant adjustments to existing farming and agri-food production techniques.

As the Standing Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry states in their Interim Report of June 2006 (reproduced as Attachment E), "Farmers and farm communities have known for some time that the situation is economically unsustainable ... there is something seriously amiss with the current state of agriculture in Canada."

The pace of change and the issues involved in responding to this change have taken its toll on human resources. Younger farm operators are not entering the farming industry and the average age of farm operators in the Kingston area is well above 50 years of age. Some farms have responded to these efficiencies by becoming larger. The operations make up a small number of the farms in the City. They form a small portion of the 200 farms that are currently active within the City. The remaining farms are classified as either lifestyle farms or retirement farms and depend on a significant portion of off-farm employment in order to support family incomes.

Increasing regulation, both local, provincial and federal as well as the importance of international trade and threats to the agrifood industry caused by food safety concerns and changes in consumer preferences create uncertainty in farm production, processing and distribution.

In addition to the importance of farming as a key element of supporting the agri-food industry, farming is the largest single land user in the Municipality, particularly in the rural area. Farmers play a significant role in the management of the rural landscape and the protection of natural heritage features. This increases the importance of maintaining farming as a viable activity. The above noted changes result in opportunities for new crops and new forms of processing and distribution. In addition to changing consumer preferences, concerns about health and safety aspects of food production point to the benefits of local food production. This suggests that there is an opportunity for new relationships between producers, processors, distributors and consumers. Entirely new food chains are being tentatively explored and these new forms of farm production require coordination and support which is most easily co-ordinated at the local level.

In addition to the traditional land use issues related to protecting the land resource base and the services required to support farm production, the Municipality can play an important role in facilitating change in the farm community. This report outlines considerations in the following critical areas:

1. protection of good farmland,
2. maintaining and encouraging farm operations both large and small,
3. facilitating/supporting agricultural related economic development,
4. ensuring municipal services are accessible and appropriate to farming and the rural area,
5. recognizing the mixed use nature of rural areas and the importance of farming,
6. moving forward to create an action plan for agriculture.

The report concludes with a proposal to develop an action plan for agriculture. The principles forming a basis for such a plan would include:

• developing a shared vision with shared action to be undertaken by the agricultural industry and all levels of government;
• exploring how agriculture can become financially sustainable to enable the current and future generations of farmers to continue farming;
• protecting farmland through public policy and programs;
• capitalizing on the distinct nature of agriculture in the Kingston area; and
• creating an alliance between the agricultural community and consumers to provide a strong voice for farming and food production locally.

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