The Ups and Downs of Farm Values and Profitability
As a consumer, you can’t help but notice that fresh food prices fluctuate — sometimes wildly. When extreme weather hits Canadian farms, prices can spike dramatically. A severe drought or flood on the Prairies can send grain and beef prices soaring, while supply chain disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic pushed grocery prices up significantly.
Four years ago, food prices came under intense pressure. COVID-19 created labour shortages, transport difficulties, and panic buying. Grocery prices rose sharply — in some cases by as much as 10–11% in a single year, with overall food inflation peaking at 10.4% in early 2023, the highest level in nearly 40 years. By late 2022, the cost of filling a shopping trolley had climbed nearly 10% from the previous year, and some individual food items jumped by 20–30%.
Did Canadian farmers benefit from these price rises? Not necessarily. Farm profits don’t automatically follow retail food prices. When consumers pay more at the supermarket, producers don’t necessarily earn more at the farm gate. During the pandemic, many farmers faced labour shortages for harvesting, higher transport and input costs, and supply chain bottlenecks. Much of the price increase occurred at the wholesale and retail levels, not on the farm.
At the height of the food price surge, surveys of Canadian producers showed that many were actually worse off. While retail prices climbed, farm-gate returns for some commodities — including beef — lagged or even declined in certain periods due to rising expenses. Ranchers selling cattle often received prices that didn’t keep pace with the final cost to consumers.
Observers increasingly pointed to factors such as corporate concentration in the grocery sector and widening margins between farm gate and retail as contributing to the gap. Meanwhile, families feeling the cost-of-living squeeze reduced their consumption of meat, fish, fruit, and vegetables. Food insecurity reached record levels: in 2024, 25.5% of people in the ten provinces (approximately 10 million Canadians, including 2.5 million children) lived in food-insecure households. Many households reported skipping meals or cutting back on nutritious fresh foods to make ends meet.
If Canadians are eating less fresh food, that also eventually impacts farmer income when demand for their produce softens.
The federal government responded to cost-of-living pressures with measures such as one-time supports for low-income households and tax adjustments, while commissioning inquiries into grocery pricing practices.
So, retail prices are up. Demand for some fresh foods is under pressure. Many farmers feel squeezed. Is there any good news?
Yes — and no.
As food prices rose in recent years, so did something else: the value of Canadian farmland. Farmland values have shown strong growth, with national averages increasing by around 11.5% in 2023 and continuing upward (for example, 9.3% in 2024–2025 in many regions, driven especially by the Prairies). Higher rainfall in some years created ideal conditions for crops and grazing, supporting land values across Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba.
Of course, farmers only realise the benefit of higher farm values when they sell. And while values have risen, actual sales activity has sometimes slowed.
At the same time, many producers face ongoing challenges: rising input costs, weather volatility, and difficulty attracting the next generation. The average age of Canadian farm operators is projected to reach 57 by 2026, with more than half over 60. Younger people often see farming as physically demanding and not consistently profitable, leading to concerns about farm succession and the long-term strength of rural communities.
Farming has never been easy. Producers are rarely fully appreciated or consistently well rewarded for the essential work they do — feeding Canadians and contributing to our food security.
One of the reasons we started IIF Canada was to build a stronger connection between farmers and consumers. Another was to improve farmers’ cash flow by providing seasonal working capital through direct community investment — without adding debt.
Through our regulated share farming platform, members of the IIF community can choose to support real Canadian farming programs (grains, livestock, horticulture, and more). Your investment helps producers manage the ups and downs of each season, shares in the genuine risks and rewards, and creates lasting value for both farmers and members.
Sign up for the waitlist today to be among the first to join the IIF community when opportunities launch. Together, we can support resilient Canadian family farms, strengthen our food system, and put a real farm in your pocket — season after season.
