Brenda O’Farrell
The Advocate

Canadian farmers saw their net income drop by almost 26 per cent in 2024, according to the latest figures released by Statistics Canada at the end of May.

The decline – which amounted to $3.3 billion – represents the sharpest fall in net income in six years and resulted from a reduction in farm cash receipts coupled with “slightly higher operating expenses,” the Crown agency reported.

The drop in income among agricultural producers was seen in every province, including Quebec, where farmers experience a 25.4-per-cent drop in net returns, hitting $1.44 billion overall. In 2023, Quebec farmers recorded a net income of $1.93 billion, StatsCan reported.

Only Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia avoided drops in farm net income, while Saskatchewan posted the larges decline – $1.3 billion. The drop was mostly attributed to reduced crop revenues.

Overall, farm operating expenses in 2024 increased by 2.4 per cent, hitting $78.3 billion, compared with $76.4 billion in 2023.

For the second year in a row, interest expenses topped the list of expenses that gained the most, rising 28.6 per cent in 2024 compared with 2023. StatsCan noted that the Bank of Canada only began cutting interest rates midway through 2024 after hiking rates for two years.

While interest rates took a toll, farm debt in Canada in 2024 took a substantial uptick, rising 14.1 per cent, which represents the largest annual increase in more than 40 years.

The one bright spot was found in livestock receipts, which rose 6.9 per cent last year. This jump was seen in all provinces and across all livestock sectors except poultry.

Cattle and calves receipts saw 11.6-per-cent hikes, hitting $39.9 billion, in 2024, representing more than two-thirds of the increase recorded in livestock income. The high prices for cattle were attributed to the steady domestic and international demand for beef coupled with smaller herds in both Canada and the U.S. Average beef prices in 2024 hovered more than 50 per cent their usual 5- and 10-year averages, StatsCan said.