June 30, 2025
RED FM News Desk
SURREY, BC – Farmers in British Columbia suffered a staggering $456.9 million loss in 2024, according to Statistics Canada. A lobby group states there are multiple reasons why the province’s agricultural sector experienced Canada’s largest net loss last year.
Statistics Canada data reveals that B.C. farms collectively haven’t turned a profit since 2017, and the agricultural sector has seen its net losses deepen every year since 2020.
The B.C. Agriculture Council highlighted that the cost of acquiring suitable agricultural land in B.C. is prohibitively high. They added that the average farmer in the Lower Mainland is currently carrying millions of dollars in debt.
Adding to these financial burdens, a series of climate disasters have significantly impacted B.C. farms. Jennifer Woike, president of the agriculture council, pointed to the devastating 2021 floods in the Fraser Valley, which affected 1,100 farms and resulted in the loss of over 60,000 hectares of farmland.
The council is now urging the government to increase its compensation programs for those affected by climate disasters. They’re also calling for an update to the province’s 52-year-old Agriculture Land Reserve (ALR) to help ensure farms can survive in the decades to come.
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