Metro Vancouver Real Estate Driving Up Cost of Farming and Fresh Produce

According to a new report released by Vancity credit union, the high cost of real estate in Metro Vancouver is pushing up the prices of locally grown fruits and vegetables.

The report indicated that many individuals who are non-farmers are purchasing small farms between five and twenty acres in land to take advantage of tax breaks and turn them into country estates with limited farming.

The co-author of the new report, Brent Mansfield, says 35 per cent of leased farmland in the area is now owned by businesses that appear to be holding companies for developers, which often have terms such as holding, investment, estate, land, property or development in their name.

According to the report, farmland in Metro Vancouver costs from approximately $110,000 to $350,000 per acre for land up to 20 acres in size. However, the report found that farming is not financially practical in British Columbia due to land prices which are higher than $80,000 per acre.

Brent Mansfield said the price of small farms is actually about what is economically practical for most businesses to do and therefore farmers have to raise the prices of their produce to make the business work.

Food prices are predicted to increase 25 to 50 per cent particularly fruits and vegetables.

The report indicates that so far the cost of fresh vegetables has increased 26 per cent and the cost of fresh fruit has increased 9 per cent between January 2015 and January 2016.

Brent Mansfield mentioned that more needs to be done to protect agricultural land in order to keep farming sustainable in the region.

Reference: CBC News

http://www.cbc.ca/…/metro-vancouver-farming-land-prices-1.3…